Frequently Asked Questions | Italy

We are a team of fully regulated financial advisers working across Europe, with a strong presence in Italy since 2010.   Our focus is on helping foreigners, and returning Italians from abroad, who are residents or want to become residents in Italy.

We provide personalised advice on investments, pensions, retirement planning, estate and succession planning, and cross-border tax planning. Our aim is to help you make the most of your finances while living in Italy, and to give you peace of mind that everything is structured correctly.

Things in Italy can get complicated enough and so we apply 3 rules:

1. Simplicity
2. Tax efficiency
3. Consolidation   (not necessarily in this order!)

Yes.

We, as advisers, live in Italy ourselves and have been here for many years. We speak Italian and over the years we have learnt from our own mistakes and those of clients. We know all the pitfalls so you don’t have to fall into them yourself!

Banks can appear to make things easy because they have control of everything under one roof, but that does not always mean that they are working in your best interests.

They generally work with their own labeled products, or incorporate them into their recommendations, which creates a conflict of interest.

Unlike banks we are not tied to one set of products or services. We are also not targeted by products sales targets. Our No 1 focus is you.

The Spectrum IFA Group advisers are also shareholders in the group which pays us dividends from group profits. This means we are invested in growing the business and creating great client outcomes. You achieve your financial goals and we build a long term a long term stable business.

If you have seen an article, watched a video or come across any of our material online and you think we might be able to help you in some way do no hesitate to get in touch via email, through the website contact form or contact us directly on messaging.

Yes. Our first meeting is a discovery meeting and a chance to get to know one another. It also allows us the chance to understand whether we can help you with anything specific.

We don’t charge for an initial discovery meeting. We only charge if we take you on as a client and you take up one of our recommended products or services. Otherwise, we are happy to have an initial chat to understand how we might be able to help out, and failing that we can put you in touch with people who might be able to assist.
If there is nothing we can do for you specifically, we just ask that you leave a review of your experience on the folllowing link to assist in our online profile:

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/spectrum-ifa.com/location/italy

Our charges are all very transparent. We don’t bill you directly but we are remunerated from the accounts we help set up. The charges are typically an initial charge on any lump sum invested, commensurate with the amount of work involved in your financial and tax plan, and an ongoing charge to access our continuous services. This can vary depending on product and amount invested.

All charges are presented to you in the discussion phase, agreed and signed for before implementation. Unlike a fee-based model, our charges do not attract VAT, which in Italy would add 22% on top.

Regular reviews are part of our ongoing service and we meet clients at least once or twice a year to review their plans and investment accounts. However, with modern technology it is much easier to stay in touch outside of these structured dates and we encourage our clients to be in touch whenever they have questions for us.

When I get my carta d’identità, what does that mean for my fiscal residence?
Once you got your have your certificato di residenza and your ID card you will become fiscally tax resident immediately if you start working in Italy, or from your first full fiscal year (more than 183 days) if you are retired or living from other means.

Don’t forget that once you have established residency and got your documents, you will get a visit from your local police officer (vigili) who will check that you are living at the address you have stated on your residence application. This is normal procedure and completely fine. They won’t book an appointment, but normally turn up unannounced to check that you are living there.

Yes. This is a large part of our work and we are very familiar with the issues people face when they are already living in or moving to Italy. We have been through many of the same problems ourselves.
Whilst we do not replace your commercialista (accountant), we can help you to plan around the Italian tax system and set up the most tax efficient plans for your circumstances.

NO. We are not a group of commercialisti.

As financial planners our role is distinct from the commercialista in that we take a wide look at your overall current financial circumstances, assess it using our 3 basic rules of simplicity, tax efficiency and consolidation ( where possible) and then discuss your short medium and long term goals to position your financial affairs in the right way for your life in Italy.

A commercialista by contrast typically takes your current financial information and reports it to the tax authorities. They may identify financial planning opportunites, but are not necessarily looking for them. However, should they do so then they would need to refer you to us to discuss and ultimately implement them.

We discuss tax planning with clients, provide guidance on how investments, pensions and estate planning interact with Italian tax rules. But to actually submit a tax return you will need a commercialista or tax person.

Working with Italian professionals, like commercialisti, can create some cultural difficulties and language barriers. When we take on a client we encourage them to share their Italian annual tax return with us, so we can check for errors. (Yes! They do occur)

Also, on request, we can speak with your commercialista to help them with interpretations of overseas accounts, which they may not otherwise be familiar with. This is part of our ongoing service and in the past we have identified errors which may have otherwise cost clients thousands in additional tax but by conducting these annual checks we can help avoid problems further down the line.

We can also help you understand how the Italy double taxation treaties with your country of origin.

This is the situation that we try and help our clients avoid at all costs, or at the very least, prepare for should it occur. However, if you are already subject to an investigation then you probably need to speak with your commercialista first.

You would be surpised what tools they now have at their disposal.

Since the introduction of the Common Reporting Standard 2016, they can track bank accounts movements and can identify payments coming in from abroad. They receive information from other tax authorities regarding assets held and income paid from pensions, investments and monies held on account. They have also developed sophisticated tools called the spesometro and redditometro which track your expenses and incomes and compare the two to determine whether they are comparable or if inconsistencies occur.

We always recommend that you declare your assets abroad. Better to be safe than sorry!

Change commercialista!!!! If you are told this, then they clearly don’t understand the tax code fully and you are potentially liable for their mistake. If you want to keep on working with them then you MUST get a declaration in writing, ideally on paper (but an email with their company details will also suffice). If the Agenzia delle Entrate pick up on any omissions they will start from the point that they think you are trying to evade taxes. In addition, they may not contact you immediately, but usually around 4 years after the taxable event (because generally they have 5 years to query your returns, although in some cases this can extend further back in time).

You could receive a knock on the door from the Guardia di Finanza or receive a letter from the AdE asking you to go to their office to corroborate information which they have obtained. It sounds worse than it is, but it is still not a very pleasant experience. The long and short of it is that it needn’t be this way. If you do things properly from the start, or at least get your tax affairs in order as soon as possible, then you can avoid these situations.

** All commercialisti carry insurance by law and if you have anything in writing from them, then should you be fined and sanctioned and incur fines due to mis-advice then (hopefully) you can claim on their insurance. If you don’t have anything written down, then any costs /taxes are on you! **

You would be surpised what tools they now have at their disposal.

Since the introduction of the Common Reporting Standard 2016, they can track bank accounts movements and can identify payments coming in from abroad. They receive information from other tax authorities regarding assets held and income paid from pensions, investments and monies held on account. They have also developed sophisticated tools called the spesometro and redditometro which track your expenses and incomes and compare the two to determine whether they are comparable or if inconsistencies occur.

We always recommend that you declare your assets abroad. Better to be safe than sorry!

You generally have 2 choices: Either declare all the missed years and bring everything up to date or just drop into the tax system in the current or last tax year and wait until they contact you. Your strategy should be defined in consultation with your commercialista.

Progressive income tax rates in Italy goes by the name IRPEF (pronounced ear-pef)
In 2026 they are as follows:

• €0 – €28000 23%
• €28801 – €50000 33%
• €50000+ – 43%

In the main your employment income, rental income from properties outside Italy and pension income will fall in this category. Some investment income can fall in this category as well.

The rental income needs to be declared each year. The net income after allowable expenses in the country in which the property is located is the correct figure to declare in Italy. This income is added to the rest of your income and taxed at IRPEF rates (progressive income tax rates)

Yes. On property overseas you pay 1.06%, whereas on financial assets (portfolios, general investment accounts, brokerage accounts, mutual funds, ETFs etc), you pay 0.2% pa on the value at the 31st December each year or 0.4% pa on the same value if the assets are held in a blacklisted territory according to the Italian authorities

Yes. QROPs and SIPPs mainly.

Yes, but not in all cases.  However, we will always recommend investment structures specifically designed for residents in Italy, which are tax efficient.

We work with a wide range of asset managers, mainly based in Ireland, Luxembourg or Cyprus They are all EU licensed and authorised and provide services either directly to us, or directly with the client. These managers have access to global investment markets and design portfolios based on risk profiles and investment horizon based on the discussions we have with you.

Yes. All the solutions we recommend are fully regulated and meet EU standards

Absolutely. As part of any financial planning process we are obliged to discuss your ethical investment preferences, if any. We can build portfolios that prioritise ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) factors. We also have portfolios which follow specific ethical themes which we can discuss with you.

We ask you to complete a short questionnaire to understand your investment risk profile and then, after discussion with you about your estimated time horizons for the investment recommend a suitable risk controlled and diversfied portfolio. This is monitored and rebalanced once a year.

Yes. This is one of our specialist areas. Retiring in Italy is a great life. It’s easy to forget the financial side of things when you buy your house and have your Italian dream, but it can quickly turn sour unless you deal with the financial side as well. We are here to help you do that.

You may be able to access your UK pensions directly, transfer them to a different structure, or consolidate them. We assess the options and explain the tax implications for you in Italy.

Yes. Italian succession law and taxation can be complex, especially for foreigners. We help you understand your position and can recommend solutions to ensure your assets are passed on according to your wishes. Depending on the complexity we may need to get a lawyer involved but we have the contacts and can refer you if required.

There are a few options, and it’s always good to take legal advice, but you can write your own which is known as a testamento olografico. It must be 100% hand written in Italian. It is always wise to check the legality of the wording with a lawyer. However, for most people this will be sufficient for your needs.

We are governed by the EU law GDPR on confidentiality.

We can help you repatriate your assets, if you need to. We are happy to work with your advisers in your country to help understand the best way to repatriate your money.

We only recommend solutions from well-regulated, reputable financial institutions. Your money is always held with the provider, never with us directly.

You can get in touch via our website, email, or phone. We’ll arrange an initial meeting at a time that suits you.

It’s helpful to bring recent statements for your pensions, investments, and bank accounts, along with a copy of your passport and proof of residence in Italy.

We work with people of many nationalities, not just British citizens. If you are living in Italy and have cross-border financial needs, we can help.

Thinking about buying property in Italy? Read our full guide →