Modello F24: How to Pay Taxes and Contributions in Rome

In a nutshell

Modello F24 (Italy's universal payment form for taxes and contributions) is the single form you use to pay virtually every tax and social-security contribution in Italy: IRPEF (Italian personal income tax), IVA (Italian VAT), INPS (Italy's social-security agency) contributions, INAIL (Italy's workplace-injury insurance institute) premiums, IMU (Italian property tax), withholding tax on employees, and much more. It is called "unified" because in a single payment you can settle amounts owed to the central government, INPS, your region, and your municipality — and you can offset tax credits against tax debts. If you hold a Partita IVA (Italian VAT number — required to invoice as a self-employed worker), you are legally required to file the F24 electronically.

At a glance

Cost	Free when filed electronically; bank fees may apply for paper filing
Timeline	Debited on the due date you specify; offsets above €5,000 require a compliance visa from an accountant
Where in Rome	Online (Fisconline/Entratel), home banking, accountant, CAF or Patronato
Documents needed	Tax ID (Codice Fiscale), tax code (codice tributo), reference year, amount

What it's for and what you pay with it

Introduced by DLgs 241/1997, the F24 is the standard channel for almost every tax and contribution payment. In Rome, as throughout Italy, you use it for:

• National taxes: IRPEF balance and advance payments, IRES (Italian corporate income tax), IRAP (Italian regional production tax), monthly and quarterly IVA, withholding taxes, cedolare secca (flat-rate tax on rental income), flat-rate substitute tax for forfettari (taxpayers on Italy's flat-rate regime)
• Social-security contributions: INPS for employees, the Gestione Separata (INPS fund for freelancers and collaborators), tradespeople, traders, INAIL
• Local taxes: IMU, TARI (waste-collection tax), municipal and regional IRPEF surcharges
• Late-payment regularisation (ravvedimento operoso): overdue tax + interest + reduced penalty

Flat-rate taxpayers (forfettari) use the F24 for the substitute tax (codes 1790 advance, 1791 balance), even though they do not pay IVA.

Types of F24

There is more than one version. Use the right one for each situation:

• F24 ordinario (standard): the general-purpose form with 6 sections (central government, INPS, regions, IMU and local taxes, INAIL, excise duties). Covers the vast majority of payments.
• F24 semplificato (simplified): for IMU and certain local taxes. Faster to complete.
• F24 Elide: for registering rental contracts, stamp duty, and notarial deeds. The main codes are 1500 (first registration), 1501 (subsequent annual renewals), 1502 (assignment), 1503 (extension), 1504 (termination).
• F24 Accise: for excise and consumption duties, managed by the Agenzia delle Dogane (customs agency).
• F24 EP: reserved for public bodies.

How to fill it in: the main sections

The standard F24 has a header (your Codice Fiscale and personal details) and the payment sections. The ones you'll use most often:

Central government section (Erario): enter the tax code (codice tributo, 4 digits), the reference year, and the amounts owed or being offset as credits. If you are paying in instalments, fill in the instalment field (e.g. "0106" = first instalment out of six).

INPS section: enter the INPS branch code (for Rome: 7100 EUR, 7200 Nomentano, 7300 Tuscolano, 7400 Aurelio), the contribution reason code (e.g. DM10 for employees, P10 for the Gestione Separata for professionals, AP for tradespeople, CP for traders), your INPS registration number or Codice Fiscale, and the contribution period.

Regions section: region code 12 for Lazio, tax code 3801 for the regional IRPEF surcharge.

IMU and local taxes section: entity code H501 for Roma Capitale. Tax codes: 3912 IMU on luxury primary residences, 3918 IMU on other properties, 3916 on building land, 3961 TARI.

The most common tax codes

Code	What you're paying
1001	Withholding tax on employment income
1040	Withholding tax on self-employment income (freelancers)
1100	Municipal IRPEF surcharge
3801	Regional IRPEF surcharge
1790 / 1791	Substitute tax for flat-rate taxpayers (advance / balance)
1840 / 1841 / 1842	Flat-rate rental tax — cedolare secca (June advance / November advance / balance)
6001–6012	Monthly IVA (6001=January … 6012=December)
6031 / 6032 / 6033	Quarterly IVA (Q1 / Q2 / Q3)
6099	Annual IVA balance
3918	IMU on other properties
3961	TARI – Roma Capitale

The full list is available on the Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy's tax-revenue agency) — Tax codes page.

How to pay: electronic or paper

If you hold a Partita IVA, the F24 must be submitted electronically only — this obligation has been in force since 2007 (DL 78/2009, art. 10). You have three options:

1. Fisconline or Entratel — free services from the Agenzia delle Entrate, accessible with SPID (Italy's digital identity for accessing online public services), CIE, or a digital certificate (CNS)
2. Your bank's home-banking portal (look for "F24" or "tasse" in the payments section) — may charge a transaction fee
3. Through an accountant (commercialista), a CAF (free assistance offices for tax forms and benefits applications), or a labour consultant (consulente del lavoro)

If you are a private individual without a Partita IVA, you can still use the paper form at a bank, post office, or a tobacconist with Lottomatica service — but only if no tax credits are being offset. If you are offsetting anything, you too must go electronic.

Offsetting tax credits

One of the most useful features of the F24 is tax-credit offsetting (compensazione): you can apply a tax credit (for instance, an IVA credit) to pay a different tax debt (for instance, INPS contributions), without waiting for a cash refund.

Rules to keep in mind:

• The annual cap for "horizontal" offsetting (between different taxes) is €2,000,000 per calendar year.
• If you are offsetting IVA, IRPEF, IRES, or IRAP credits exceeding €5,000, you need a compliance visa (visto di conformità) from your accountant on the relevant tax return, and you must wait 10 days after filing that return before using the credit (DL 124/2019).
• Offsetting is forbidden if you have overdue tax bills (cartelle esattoriali) of more than €1,500, unless you have already paid or are on a repayment plan.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Wrong tax code. The payment won't be attributed to the right tax and you'll receive an irregularity notice. The fix is to submit a correction request (istanza di correzione) at your local Agenzia delle Entrate office — it's free.
2. Wrong reference year. Same remedy: submit a correction request. Don't try making a second payment and hope it sorts itself out.
3. Offsetting credits you don't actually have. The penalty ranges from 100% to 200% of the credit used. For credits that technically exist but you're not entitled to, the penalty is 30%. It's not worth the risk.
4. Ignoring the late-payment window. If you miss a deadline, don't wait — every extra day increases your penalty. The "sprint" late-payment option (ravvedimento operoso sprint) costs only 0.1% per day within the first 14 days; beyond 90 days the penalty climbs to 3.75%, then 4.29% within two years, then 5%.

Special cases

Domestic workers (housekeeper or carer): INPS contributions are paid via PagoPA vouchers, not the F24. It's a separate channel.

Registering a rental contract: use the F24 Elide (not the standard form) with codes 1500–1504 depending on the type of transaction.

Late payment of IRPEF: use penalty code 8901; for IVA use 8902, for IRES 8903, for surcharges 8904, for other taxes 8911. Also add the interest line using code 1989.

You're a foreigner without SPID or CIE: you can't access Fisconline on your own. Your options are an Italian bank's home-banking portal, or delegating an accountant or a Patronato (free union-run office helping with social-security and administrative paperwork) — such as ACLI, INCA-CGIL, or ITAL-UIL — to file the F24 on your behalf.

Where to get help in Rome

If you have questions about filling in the form or have made an error, you can turn to:

• The 7 Agenzia delle Entrate offices in Rome (Roma 1–7) for assistance and F24 corrections
• INPS offices in Rome (EUR, Aurelio, Nomentano, Tuscolano and others) for clarifications on contribution reason codes and reference periods
• Patronati and CAF (ACLI, INCA, ITAL, CAF) — free for private individuals
• An accountant (commercialista) for more complex situations, especially if significant offsets are involved

Official sources

• Agenzia delle Entrate — Modello F24
• Agenzia delle Entrate — Tax codes
• Agenzia delle Entrate — F24 online
• INPS — Modello F24
• Normattiva — DLgs 241/1997
• Normattiva — DLgs 472/1997 (late-payment rules)
• Normattiva — DLgs 471/1997 (penalties)

Legal references: DLgs 241/1997 artt. 17–28, DL 78/2009 art. 10, DL 124/2019 art. 3, DLgs 472/1997 art. 13, DLgs 471/1997.