IRPEF in Rome 2026: income tax brackets, rates, and local surcharges

In a nutshell

IRPEF (Imposta sul Reddito delle Persone Fisiche -- Italy's personal income tax) is the main income tax for individuals in Italy. It applies to salaries, pensions, self-employment income under the standard regime, and other types of income. From 2024 onwards -- confirmed by the 2025 Budget Law -- it operates with three progressive brackets. If you live in Rome, you add the Lazio regional surcharge and the Rome municipal surcharge on top of the national tax.

At a glance

Cost	Calculated on your income (see brackets below)
Timeline	Employees: withheld monthly from payslip. Self-employed: balance by 30 June, instalment by 30 November
Where in Rome	Agenzia delle Entrate for calculations and pre-filled returns
Documents	Certificazione Unica (CU -- annual earnings certificate), Modello 730 (Italy's simplified annual tax return for employees) or Redditi PF

How IRPEF works: the logic of brackets

IRPEF is a progressive tax: instead of a flat percentage on your total income, rising rates apply to successive income bands. The 43% rate applies only to the portion of income above 50,000 euro, not to everything you earn. Confusing the marginal rate (the rate on the last euro earned) with the effective rate (total tax divided by total income) is one of the most common mistakes people make.

For 2026, three brackets are in force:

Taxable income	Rate	Tax on the band
Up to 28,000 EUR	23%	23% of income
From 28,001 to 50,000 EUR	35%	6,440 + 35% on the excess
Over 50,000 EUR	43%	14,140 + 43% on the excess

Example with income of 35,000 euro:

• First band: 28,000 x 23% = 6,440 euro
• Second band: 7,000 x 35% = 2,450 euro
• Gross tax total: 8,890 euro

Example with income of 70,000 euro:

• First band: 28,000 x 23% = 6,440 euro
• Second band: 22,000 x 35% = 7,700 euro
• Third band: 20,000 x 43% = 8,600 euro
• Gross tax total: 22,740 euro

Deductions and the tax-free threshold

From the gross tax you subtract deductions. The most important ones:

Employees: deduction of up to 8,500 euro per year for income up to 15,000 euro. In practice, below this threshold IRPEF is wiped out. The deduction tapers off as income rises.

Pensioners: deduction of up to 8,500 euro, aligned with employees from 2024.

Self-employed under the standard regime: deduction of up to 1,265 euro for income up to 5,500 euro.

Employees earning up to 15,000 euro also receive the supplementary payment (trattamento integrativo, the former "Renzi bonus"), which combined with the deduction effectively zeroes out IRPEF.

Deductions for dependants: an un-separated spouse gives entitlement to a maximum deduction of 800 euro (for income below 15,000 euro, tapering thereafter). Children under 21 are covered by the Assegno Unico Universale INPS (Italy's universal child benefit paid by INPS, Italy's social-security agency) -- not by IRPEF deductions. Deductions remain for children aged 21 to 30 (theoretically 950 euro per child, tapering with income) and for other dependent relatives living with you (750 euro). A person is considered a dependant if their income does not exceed 2,840.51 euro (4,000 euro for children up to age 24).

Lazio regional surcharge

On top of national IRPEF, residents in Lazio pay a regional surcharge. The rates (LR Lazio 2/2013 and subsequent amendments) are:

Income band	Lazio rate
Up to 15,000 EUR	1.73%
From 15,001 to 28,000 EUR	1.93%
From 28,001 to 50,000 EUR	3.23%
Over 50,000 EUR	3.33%

Important: unlike national IRPEF, the regional surcharge applies to your entire income at the rate of the band you have reached, not just to the excess above the threshold. For income of 35,000 euro: 35,000 x 3.23% = 1,130.50 euro.

Employees pay this in monthly instalments starting with the year-end adjustment (usually from March of the following year). Check the updated rates on the Regione Lazio -- Tributi e finanze website, since the Region can revise them each year.

Rome municipal surcharge

Roma Capitale levies a further surcharge:

• Rate: 0.9% (the maximum permitted)
• Exemption threshold: income up to 12,000 euro pays nothing
• Above 12,000 euro, the 0.9% applies to the entire taxable income

For income of 35,000 euro: 35,000 x 0.9% = 315 euro.

Employees pay an advance (by November, calculated on the previous year's income) and a balance (by June of the following year). Check the updated resolutions on the Roma Capitale -- Tributi website.

What you actually pay: full calculation for a Rome employee earning 35,000 euro

Item	Amount
Taxable income	35,000 EUR
Gross IRPEF	8,890 EUR
Employee deduction (estimate)	-1,700 EUR
Net IRPEF	7,190 EUR
Lazio regional surcharge (3.23%)	1,130 EUR
Rome municipal surcharge (0.9%)	315 EUR
Total tax burden	~8,635 EUR
Effective rate	~24.7%

How to pay: employees, self-employed, and returns

Employees and pensioners: your employer or pension body withholds IRPEF each month as a withholding agent and settles up at year-end. You receive your Certificazione Unica (CU -- annual earnings certificate) by 16 March of the following year. If you have deductible expenses (medical, mortgage, renovation), it pays to file the Modello 730 by 30 September to get your refund directly through your payslip.

Self-employed under the standard or simplified regime: you have no withholding agent and pay directly via F24:

• Previous-year balance + first instalment: by 30 June
• Second instalment: by 30 November

Main tax codes: 4001 (IRPEF balance), 4033 (first instalment), 4034 (second instalment), 3801 (regional surcharge balance), 3844 (municipal surcharge balance), 3843 (municipal surcharge advance).

The pre-filled return is available from the Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy's tax-revenue agency) from May, already populated with CU data, medical expenses, mortgage information, and other data submitted by third parties.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Confusing the marginal rate with the effective rate. The 43% applies only to the income above 50,000 euro. Someone earning 55,000 euro does not pay 43% on everything -- only on the 5,000 euro above the threshold.
2. Forgetting the surcharges. Anyone who factors in only the national IRPEF underestimates their real tax burden by around 4 percentage points (regional + municipal). Rome's combined surcharges are among the highest in Italy.
3. Not declaring foreign income. If you are a tax resident in Italy, you must declare all income earned anywhere in the world, including foreign bank accounts (quadro RW of the return). Penalties for omission are severe.
4. Losing deductions through insufficient tax liability. Deductions (medical expenses, renovation costs, etc.) reduce tax only up to the amount actually owed: if your IRPEF is zero or very low, any excess deductions are simply lost. Plan deductible expenditure in years when you have a real tax liability to reduce.
5. Missing the supplementary payment check. For income between 15,001 and 28,000 euro, the supplementary payment is only available in specific circumstances. If it was paid by your employer when it was not actually due, you will have to repay it in your return.

Special cases

Foreigners resident in Italy: if you are an Italian tax resident -- registered in the Anagrafe (civil-registry office at the municipality) for more than 183 days a year, or with your main economic base in Italy (art. 2 TUIR) -- you pay IRPEF exactly as Italian citizens do: same brackets, same rates, same deductions. Residents are taxed on worldwide income. To avoid double taxation, Italy has treaties with over 100 countries: the treaty determines where tax is paid and how it is credited. See the list of treaties on the MEF website.

People moving to Italy from abroad: check whether you qualify for the regime impatriati (returning/incoming worker regime, art. 16 D.Lgs. 147/2015, amended by D.Lgs. 209/2023), which taxes only 50% of employment income for five years.

Rental income: on residential rental income you can opt for cedolare secca (flat substitute tax) at 21% (open-market leases), 10% (agreed-rent leases -- Rome qualifies as a high-density municipality), or 26%/21% for short-term tourist rentals, instead of ordinary IRPEF.

Two income sources -- employee plus self-employed: both incomes are added together and IRPEF is calculated on the total. The employer withholds on the employment side; you pay the rest yourself in your return.

Official sources

• Agenzia Entrate -- IRPEF rates and brackets
• Agenzia Entrate -- Pre-filled return
• Agenzia Entrate -- IRPEF surcharges
• Regione Lazio -- Taxes and finance
• Roma Capitale -- Taxes
• MEF -- Double-taxation treaties
• Normattiva -- TUIR DPR 917/1986

Legal references: DPR 917/1986 (TUIR); D.Lgs. 216/2023 (three-bracket IRPEF reform); L. 207/2024 (2025 Budget Law, stabilisation); art. 13 TUIR (employee deductions); D.Lgs. 446/1997 art. 50 (regional surcharge); D.Lgs. 360/1998 art. 1 (municipal surcharge); LR Lazio 2/2013.