The regime forfettario is how most freelancers and sole traders in Italy start out: one flat tax, no VAT on invoices, light paperwork. It also generates the same handful of questions every time someone opens a partita IVA (VAT number). Here are the rules for 2026 and straight answers to those questions.
This guide answers the general questions about the forfettario regime for freelancers and sole traders. If you let rooms or apartments to holiday guests, jump to forfettario if you rent on Airbnb; for invoices, see e-invoicing for partita IVA holders.
Checked against the Agenzia delle Entrate’s pages and the 2026 budget law in October 2026. It is general information, not tax advice.
The regime at a glance
- Revenue limit. Revenue or fees in the previous year must not exceed €85,000. Go over €85,000 and you leave the regime from the following year; go over €100,000 during the year and you leave it at once, charging VAT from the invoice that crosses the line.
- Taxable income. Not your actual profit, but revenue multiplied by the profitability coefficient (coefficiente di redditività) for your ATECO code, from 40% for accommodation and food service to 78% for most professions and 86% for construction and real estate.
- Tax rate. A single substitute tax of 15% replaces IRPEF, the regional and municipal surcharges and IRAP. A genuinely new activity pays 5% for its first five years if it meets the conditions. INPS contributions are due on top.
- VAT and invoices. No VAT charged and none reclaimed. Electronic invoicing has been compulsory for all forfettari since 1 January 2024, and invoices over €77.47 carry a €2 marca da bollo.
- Other limits. Spending on employees and collaborators must stay within €20,000, and income from employment or a pension in the previous year must not exceed €35,000 (the higher limit confirmed for 2026).
The Agenzia’s forfettario page lists the full conditions and exclusions, such as holding a controlling stake in a company whose work is linked to yours.
Can I have two forfettario regimes for two businesses?
No. An individual has one VAT number, and the regime applies to that person, not to each activity. You can, however, carry on more than one activity under the same VAT number and stay in the forfettario regime, as long as you meet the conditions.
Can I have two VAT numbers?
No, not as an individual. Each person has a single VAT number for all their self-employed and business activity. A separate business can have its own VAT number only if it is a separate legal entity, such as an SRL or an association, and then it is that entity’s number, taxed under its own rules.
Can I run two different activities under one VAT number?
Yes. You register each activity with its own ATECO code, one as the main activity and the others as secondary. In the forfettario regime, each activity’s revenue is multiplied by its own coefficient, so keep the revenue for each one separate. The €85,000 limit applies to the total.
A translator who also lets a holiday apartment as a business, for example, applies 78% to translation fees and 40% to letting revenue, and adds the two results.
If I change what I do, do I need a new VAT number?
Usually not. You notify the Agenzia delle Entrate of the new or changed ATECO code within 30 days of starting the new activity: individuals use form AA9/12, companies and other entities form AA7/10, online or at an office. Your commercialista can file it for you. Check whether the new activity also needs a registration with the Chamber of Commerce, the comune or a different INPS scheme.
Does the forfettario regime end after five years?
No. The regime has no time limit: you can stay in it for as long as you meet the conditions. What ends after five years is the reduced 5% rate for start-ups, after which the rate becomes 15%.
Closing and reopening to get the 5% rate again does not work. It is available only if you did not carry on a business, artistic or professional activity in the previous three years, and if the new activity is not simply a continuation of earlier work, including work done as an employee.
Weighing self-employment against a job offer? Here is how a fixed-term employment contract works.
Common mistakes
- Letting revenue drift past €85,000 without noticing, or past €100,000 mid-year.
- Choosing an ATECO code that does not match the work, with the wrong coefficient and sometimes the wrong INPS scheme.
- Treating no VAT as no bookkeeping: invoices, receipts and INPS payments still need to be kept in order.
If you host holiday guests, see the hosting section above. For anything that depends on your own figures, talk to a commercialista before you file.