DURC Certificate: How to Get It, How Long It Lasts, and What to Do If You Fail

In a nutshell

DURC (Documento Unico di Regolarità Contributiva — Italy's certificate of compliance with social-security contributions) is a digital certificate proving that your business is up to date with payments to INPS (Italy's social-security agency — pensions, unemployment, family benefits), INAIL (Italy's workplace-injury insurance institute), and, if you work in construction, to the Cassa Edile (the sector's joint welfare fund). Without a valid DURC you cannot bid for public contracts, receive payments from a public-sector body, or access building-renovation tax breaks or other public grants. You can request it for free, online, in a matter of minutes — and it remains valid for 120 days.

At a glance

Cost	Free
Processing time	Instant if you're compliant. If not: 15 days to regularise.
Validity	120 days from the date of issue
Where to apply	INPS DURC portal or INAIL — DURC online
Access	SPID (Italy's digital identity for accessing online public services), CIE (Italian electronic ID card), or CNS smart card

What DURC checks — and when you need it

The system automatically queries three databases:

1. INPS — employee contributions, Gestione Artigiani/Commercianti, and the Gestione Separata (for self-employed workers).
2. INAIL — whether your annual insurance premium is current.
3. Cassa Edile — only if your ATECO activity code is construction-related: monthly payments, holiday entitlements, CPT and training-school contributions.

If all three come back clean, the DURC is issued immediately with a positive result. A single irregularity with any one of them triggers the regularisation process instead.

You need a DURC in these main situations:

• entering a public procurement tender (works, services, or supplies);
• receiving payments from a public-sector body — the PA checks it automatically before settling your invoice;
• claiming Superbonus, Bonus Casa, ecobonus, or sismabonus tax breaks on significant amounts;
• applying for Cassa Integrazione (CIG — state-funded temporary wage support when a company suspends or reduces work) or NASpI (Italy's unemployment benefit) for employees;
• registering with the Albo Nazionale Gestori Ambientali or obtaining an SOA attestation (qualification certificate for public works);
• carrying out subcontracting on public or private construction sites.

Step-by-step: how to request it

Via the INPS portal

1. Go to DURC online INPS and log in with SPID, CIE, or CNS.
2. Select "Richiesta regolarità" (compliance request).
3. Enter the tax code of the entity being checked (your business or Partita IVA — Italy's VAT number, required to invoice as a self-employed worker), the reason for the request, and — if it relates to a public contract — the contracting authority's details.
4. The system queries INPS, INAIL, and (if relevant) the Cassa Edile.
5. The digitally signed PDF is immediately available in your online file.

Via the INAIL portal

The process is identical: go to INAIL — DURC online, log in with the same credentials, and follow the guided steps. Both portals query the same databases and produce the same document.

When someone else requests it for you

Contracting authorities, banks, notaries, and SOA bodies can request the DURC on your behalf, without you needing to do anything. In those cases they pull it directly from accredited systems.

If the result is non-compliant: the 15-day rescue window

The system doesn't issue an outright negative DURC immediately. Instead, it opens a regularisation phase (DM 30/01/2015, art. 4):

1. You receive a notification via PEC (PEC — certified email, which is legally valid in Italy) listing the amounts owed, the relevant body, and the deadline.
2. You have 15 days to pay what's owed or submit an approved instalment plan.
3. If you pay within the deadline, the DURC is issued as compliant.
4. If you don't pay, a negative DURC is issued with immediate consequences: exclusion from tenders, suspension of public-sector payments, loss of building-bonus entitlements.

Watch your PEC inbox carefully — if a notification arrives while you're on holiday and you miss it, you lose the window. The contracting body can also step in directly, paying INPS or INAIL on your behalf and deducting the amount from your invoice.

There is some good news: DM 30/01/2015 includes a tolerance threshold of €150 (including interest and penalties). Below that figure you are considered compliant.

Instalment plans and DURC: how they interact

If you have an approved instalment plan and are making payments on time, you are considered compliant for DURC purposes:

• INPS: up to 24 standard instalments, up to 60 under an extraordinary payment plan.
• INAIL: up to 24 instalments.
• Agenzia delle Entrate Riscossione (tax-collection agency — outstanding tax rolls): up to 120 instalments (10 years).

Important: missing even one instalment voids the plan and your DURC becomes non-compliant immediately. Set reminders for every payment date.

Construction sector: tighter rules

If you work in construction, the checks are broader and include the Cassa Edile (union contributions, holiday entitlements, CPT, training-school payments). On top of that, since DM 143/2021, there is also the DURC di Congruità (labour-cost congruity certificate): for sites over €70,000, you must demonstrate that your labour costs meet the minimum percentages set by the sectoral agreements. You request it through the CNCE EdilConnect portal (cnce.it). Without this document you cannot obtain the certificate of proper execution or release retention bonds.

In Rome the relevant body is the Cassa Edile Roma e Provincia (CER), at Via Marsala 9, 00185 Roma, tel. 06 49981.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Paying private websites for a "fast-track" DURC. The DURC is free on the INPS or INAIL portal. Anyone charging you €30–100 to do it for you is selling you something you can get yourself in five minutes.
2. Forgetting the expiry date. The 120 days run from the date of issue, not from the last time you used the document. Always check the date printed on the PDF before attaching it to anything.
3. Confusing DURC with DURF. The DURC covers social-security contributions (INPS/INAIL). The DURF (Documento Unico di Regolarità Fiscale) is a completely different document, issued by the Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy's tax-revenue agency) and covering withholding taxes on subcontracts (art. 17-bis DLgs 241/97). They are not interchangeable.

Special cases

Sole trader with no employees. The DURC only checks the relevant INPS scheme (Artigiani/Commercianti or Gestione Separata) and, for tradespeople, INAIL self-insurance. The Cassa Edile is not checked unless you do construction work.

Flat-rate (forfettario) professional with no employees. You are not required to hold a DURC unless you bid for public contracts. When you do need one, you request it the same way as everyone else.

Newly registered business. Having no prior payment deadlines, the result is immediately compliant. Pay close attention to your first quarterly deadlines (16 May, 20 August, 16 November, 16 February) — keeping on top of them is the simplest way to never end up with a negative DURC.

Company in concordato preventivo or extraordinary administration. You can still obtain a compliant DURC if you are adhering to the plan approved by the court.

Official sources

• INPS — DURC online
• INPS DURC request portal
• INAIL — DURC online
• DM 30/01/2015 — DURC simplification
• Ministry of Labour — Worker protection
• CNCE — Construction congruity DURC

Legal references: Legge 296/2006 art. 1 cc. 1175-1176, DM 30/01/2015, DLgs 36/2023 art. 94, DM 143/2021, Circolare INPS-INAIL 28/E del 08/10/2015.