Article 1, paragraphs 445 to 448, of Law No. 207/2024 (Finance Act 2025) made certain amendments to the provisions set forth in Article 1, paragraphs 1051 to 1063, of Law No. 178/2020 (Finance Act 2021), relating to the tax credit granted to companies for investments in new capital goods called "Industry 4.0', while paragraphs 427 to 429 made changes to Article 38 of Decree-Law No. 19/2024, concerning the tax credit known as 'Transition 5.0".
INDUSTRY 4.0 CREDIT
In particular, a tax credit is now granted to companies that, in the period between between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025, make investments in capital goods materials new intended for production facilities located in Italy, referred to in Annex A of Law No. 232/2016 attached to this email, or "they book" the investment by 31.12.2025 (i.e., an order is placed with the supplier and a down payment of at least 20% of the cost is made) and they make it by 30.06.2026.
This tax credit is recognised in the following measures, differentiated according to the amount:
- for investments up to EUR 2,500,000, the credit is equal to 20%;
- for investments between EUR 2,500,000 and EUR 10,000,000, the credit is equal to 10%;
- for investments between EUR 10,000,000 and EUR 20,000,000, the credit is equal to 5%;
within the limit of available resources of EUR 2,200 million for the period 2025.
The credit in question is available to all undertakings resident in the territory of the State, including permanent establishments of non-residents, which are not subject to insolvency proceedings. Entitlement to the benefit is in any case subject to the condition of compliance with the workplace safety regulations applicable in each sector and the proper fulfilment of obligations to pay social security and welfare contributions in favour of workers.
The tax credit can only be used by offsetting in three equal annual instalments starting from the year in which the assets are interconnected to the corporate system; therefore, the moment the investment is made is relevant for the purposes of the eligibility of the credit, while the moment of interconnection is relevant for the purposes of the possibility of its use.
If, by 31 December of the second year following the year in which the interconnection took place, the subsidised assets are sold for consideration or are transferred to production facilities located abroad, the tax credit is correspondingly reduced by excluding the relevant cost from the original basis of calculation. Any increased tax credit already used for offsetting purposes must be directly reimbursed by the person within the deadline for the payment of the balance of the income tax due for the tax period in which the aforesaid events occur, without the application of penalties and interest.
For the purposes of subsequent controls, entities availing of the tax credit are required to retain, under penalty of revocation of the benefit, the appropriate documentation to prove the actual incurrence and correct determination of the eligible costs. To this end, invoices and other documents relating to the acquisition of the subsidised goods must contain the express reference to the regulatory provisions and, to this end, the following wording may be used: 'Purchase qualifying for the tax credit pursuant to Article 1, paragraph 1057-bis, Law No. 178/2020 recognised by Article 1, paragraph 446, Law No. 207/2024". On this point, the Inland Revenue, in its Answer No. 270 of 18.05.2022, specified that this wording must also be indicated on the transport document.
Enterprises are, moreover, required to produce a sworn expert's report issued by an engineer or an industrial expert registered in their respective professional registers or a certificate of conformity issued by an accredited certification body, showing that the assets possess technical characteristics such as to include them in the list referred to in the aforementioned Annex A of Law No. 232/2016, and are interconnected to the company's production management system or supply network. With regard to the agricultural sector, the technical expertise referred to in the previous sentence may also be issued by an agronomist or forestry doctor, a graduate agro-technician or a graduate agricultural expert. For goods whose unit purchase cost does not exceed €300,000, the documentary burden referred to in the preceding sentence may be fulfilled through a declaration made by the legal representative pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 445/2000.
With regard to the investments made, companies must send a communication to the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy concerning the amount of the expenses incurred and the relevant tax credit accrued, using the form approved by the Ministerial Decree of 24.04.2024.
Finally, as provided for in Article 6 of Decree-Law No. 39/2024, in order to benefit from the tax credit in question (there is no specific deadline for sending it), companies must also send the tax credit electronically to the GSE:
- a prior communication, in which to indicate the total amount of the investments they intend to make, the presumed distribution of the credit over the years and its use;
- a final report, updated upon completion of the investments.
It should be noted that the use of this facility is compatible with that of the ZES Mezzogiorno, already discussed in a previous circular.
CREDIT TRANSITION 5.0
The Industry 4.0 facility is not, however, compatible with the Transition 5.0 (whereas the latter is compatible with the Mezzogiorno SEZ), provided for companies resident in Italy (excluding those subject to bankruptcy proceedings) that 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2025 make investments in new tangible and intangible assets referred to in Annex A and Annex B of Law No. 232/2016, as part of innovation projects from which the following results a reduction in energy consumptionprovided that, through them, an overall reduction in energy consumption of the production structure located in the national territory, to which the innovation project refers, is achieved of no less than 3% or, alternatively, a reduction in the energy consumption of the processes concerned by the investment of not less than 5%.
The tax credit, which can only be used for offsetting, is recognised in the following measures:
- for investments up to EUR 10,000,000, the credit is equal to 35%;
- for investments between EUR 10,000,000 and EUR 50,000,000, the credit is equal to 5%.
The amount of the above tax credit for each investment tranche is respectively increased:
- at 40% and the 10%if the energy consumption of the production facility is reduced by more than 6% or, alternatively, of reducing the energy consumption of the processes involved in the investment by more than 10%;
- at 45% and the 15%if the energy consumption of the production facility is reduced by more than 10% or, alternatively, of reducing the energy consumption of the processes involved in the investment by more than 15%.
The reduction in consumption, re-proportioned on an annual basis, is calculated with reference to the energy consumption recorded in the financial year preceding the start of the investments, net of variations in production volumes and external conditions affecting energy consumption.
The benefit is subject to the submission of appropriate certificates issued by an independent evaluator, according to criteria and procedures identified by decree of the MIMIT, to the GSE.
For the purposes of subsequent checks, the persons availing of the tax credit are required to retain, under penalty of revocation of the benefit, the appropriate documentation to prove the actual incurrence and correct determination of the eligible costs. To this end, invoices, transport documents and other documents relating to the acquisition of the subsidised goods must contain an express reference to the provisions of Article 38 of Decree-Law No. 19/2024. The actual incurrence of the eligible expenses and the correspondence of the same with the accounting documents prepared by the company must be evidenced by appropriate certification issued by a chartered accountant or auditing firm.
While remaining at your disposal for any doubts or requests for clarification, we would like to take this opportunity to extend our best regards to all.