(Finance) – The Council of Ministers, on the proposal of the Minister of Economy and Finance Giancarlo Giorgetti, approved, in preliminary examination, a legislative decree which he will introduce provisions regarding tax assessments and biennial composition with creditors. The decree – explains Palazzo Chigi in a note – in implementation of the delegation for tax reform, contains provisions on: tax assessment, in particular for the purpose of better participation of the taxpayer in the assessment procedure and to strengthen forms of cooperation between administrations national and foreign; of a biennial composition with creditors, which can be accessed by smaller taxpayers, holders of business income and self-employment, resident in the territory of the State.
“We have approved an important provision: a legislative decree linked to the topic of tax reform which – stated the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – intervenes on the assessment discipline by encouraging the participation of the taxpayer even in the assessment phase, designing a more collaborative tax system with the taxpayer, also intervening on the side of the reduction of penalties without lowering the guard on the fight against tax evasion. The most significant provision – explained Meloni – is that of the introduction of a biennial preventive agreement for smaller taxpayers which is an instrument which increases collaboration with the tax authorities and represents a sign of trust from the State towards taxpayers who, with adhering to the preventive agreement is freed from subsequent assessments for two years, therefore it is an agreement that is made upstream with the State. But on the other hand we also intervene to strengthen the action to combat tax evasion through digital IT tools, especially the ability to make databases interoperate to be more effective, obviously always guaranteeing the protection of privacy”.
As regards the provisions regarding the assessment procedure, the government reports, provisions are introduced aimed at rationalizing and involving the taxpayer in the assessment procedure. It is envisaged – in coordination with the changes made to the “Taxpayer’s Statute” – that the “scheme of provision” which must be communicated to the taxpayer for the purposes of preventive cross-examination with the administration must also contain the invitation to define the “proceeding with membership”. The “mandatory invitation” regulation is repealed, which requires the financial administration, before issuing a notice of assessment, to notify the taxpayer of the invitation to appear to start the procedure for defining the assessment. The regulation of compliance with the assessment reports is introduced, establishing that the taxpayer can also comply with the assessment reports and regulating the preliminary investigation procedure.
Furthermore, the general regulation of “recovery acts” aimed at the recovery of credits not due or non-existent, used unduly in compensation. To this end, a single ascertainment procedure, independent of the nature of the credit unduly used in compensation, which provides, among other things, the possibility of facilitating the definition of sanctions and a single expiry period, of eight years from the use of the credit, of the power to notify the document. In the absence of specific provisions, the provisions introduced also apply to the recovery of taxes, duties and unpaid amounts, including those relating to contributions and tax breaks unduly received or used or to transfers of tax credits in the absence of the requirements. All documents, measures, notices and communications, including those that must be notified by law, may be sent via certified email. There new regulation relating to digital domicile it extends to payment slips and to the documents and communications of the collection agent.
Provisions aimed at the rationalization and reorganization of the provisions are introduced – continues the note from Palazzo Chigi regulatory provisions regarding risk analysis activities aimed at preventing and combating tax evasion, tax fraud and abuse of tax law, as well as stimulating spontaneous compliance by taxpayers. On the subject of cooperation between national and foreign administrations, the “exchange of information on request” is introduced with European Union countries and other states with which there are specific agreements, and the regulation of “advanced administrative cooperation tools” aimed at minimizing the impacts of controls by foreign administrations on taxpayers and their economic activities, also through a new regulation of simultaneous controls and joint checks.
They strengthen themselves prevention and fight against VAT evasion and fraud. In particular, subjects not resident in the territory of the European Union or the European Economic Area, who fulfill the obligations deriving from the application of the rules on VAT through a tax representative, will be able to carry out intra-community operations only after issuing a suitable guarantee . Furthermore, the tax representative must be in possession of certain subjective requirements of good repute (such as not having been convicted, even if not definitive, for financial crimes and not having concluded agreements for the application of sentences at the request of the parties in relation to the same); in the case of appointment of a legal person, the above requirements must be possessed by the legal representative of the entity that you intend to appoint as tax representative. With the decree, explains Palazzo Chigi, the regulations for the revision of the limitation periods and forfeiture of State action and of the sanctioning system of the tax on insurance premiums are revised, with the possibility of submitting the late report within 90 days of deadline for submission, without prejudice to the application of administrative sanctions for delay. Reports submitted with a delay of more than ninety days are considered omitted, but constitute, in any case, the right to collect the taxes due based on the taxable amounts indicated therein. Furthermore, the deadline for the notification of notices in cases of omitted or unfaithful annual reporting of premiums collected is modified, which conforms to those of other indirect taxes: in the event of unfaithful reporting, the action of the State to obtain the taxes, of the interest and penalties provided for expires on 31 December of the fifth following year.
As for the Biennial preventive agreement the legislative decree establishes that smaller taxpayers, holders of business income and self-employment, resident in the territory of the State can access it. For the application of the CPB, the Revenue Agency will formulate a proposal for the biennial definition of the income deriving from the operation of a business, or from the exercise of arts and professions, relevant for the purposes of income taxes and the value of production net relevant for the purposes of the regional tax on productive activities. The decree also regulates the IT procedures to support the composition with creditors and establishes that the taxpayer can join the proposed composition within the deadlines for submitting the tax return. In detail, taxpayers interested in the application of the synthetic indices of fiscal reliability (ISA) who, with reference to the tax period preceding those to which the proposal refers, are in possession of certain requirements (such as having obtained a fiscal reliability score of at least 8 on the basis of the data declared; not having tax debts or having paid off those which have a total amount equal to or greater than 5,000 euros). For these taxpayers, the hypotheses that do not allow access to the composition with creditors are identified (such as failure to submit the tax return in relation to at least one of the 3 previous tax periods; conviction for one of the crimes relating to income taxes and on added value, false accounting, laundering, use of money, goods or utilities of illicit origin, self-laundering, committed in the last 3 previous tax periods).
In the tax periods subject to agreement, taxpayers are in any case required to comply with ordinary accounting and declaration obligations and to communicate data through the presentation of models for the application of synthetic indices of fiscal reliability. Once the two-year period covered by the agreement has elapsed and the requirements remain, the Revenue Agency formulates a new proposal for a two-year agreement relating to the following two years, which the taxpayer can join. Membership does not produce effects for VAT purposes, the application of which occurs according to the ordinary rules. They will also be able to join the CPB carrying out business activities, arts or professions who adhere to the flat rate regime. Even for these taxpayers, it is expected that the acceptance of the Revenue Agency’s proposal for the biennial definition of income constitutes the obligation to declare the agreed amounts in the tax returns of the tax periods concerned, in which taxpayers will also be required to the obligations envisaged for subjects who adhere to the flat-rate regime. Furthermore, the methods of identifying income for the purposes of the composition are regulated and the hypothesis of renewal, termination and forfeiture of the composition is regulated (as for the composition for ISAs). For the tax periods covered by the agreement, the assessments cannot be carried out unless, following the investigation activity of the Financial Administration, the causes for forfeiture of the agreement arise; the Revenue Agency and the Guardia di Finanza plan to use greater operational capacity to intensify control activities against subjects who do not participate in the biennial preventive agreement or who forfeit it; subjects who have adopted the composition regime will be able to enjoy longer deadlines for making payments relating to the advance and the balance due on 30 June.