RAI TV Licence Fee on Your Electricity Bill: How It Works and How to Claim an Exemption

In a nutshell

The RAI licence fee is an annual tax you owe if you have a TV at home. Since 2016 it no longer arrives as a separate bill: it's charged automatically through your electricity bill, spread across ten monthly instalments from January to October. For 2026 the amount is €90 per year. If you have no TV, you can be exempt — but you must formally notify Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy's tax-revenue agency) each year with a specific declaration.

At a glance

Cost	€90/year (2026), in 10 instalments of €9 on your electricity bill
Deadlines	Declaration by 31 January for full-year exemption; by 30 June for the second half of the year
Where	Online with SPID/CIE at agenziaentrate.gov.it, or by registered letter / certified email
Documents needed	Codice Fiscale (Italian tax ID), ID document, customer reference number and POD code from your electricity bill

How the charge appears on your bill

If you hold a residential electricity contract, the RAI licence fee is added to your electricity bill automatically — you don't have to do anything to trigger it. Bear in mind that only one licence fee is charged per household (per famiglia anagrafica — the group of people registered at the same address), even if there are multiple TVs or multiple electricity contracts in the home.

Instalments are charged from January to October. November and December bills do not include the licence fee.

Italian law treats as a "TV" any device capable of receiving a television signal: not just traditional sets, but also those with a digital terrestrial tuner (DVB-T/T2) and smart TVs fitted with a built-in tuner. Computers, tablets, smartphones and monitors without a TV tuner do not count.

How to declare that you don't own a TV

If your household — and none of the other homes belonging to your registered household — contains any TV-capable device, you can stop paying the licence fee by submitting a non-possession declaration (Quadro A).

What to do:

1. Download the form "Dichiarazione sostitutiva" — Quadro A from the Agenzia delle Entrate — Canone TV page.
2. Fill it in with your personal details, Codice Fiscale (Italian tax ID — your personal 16-character code, used for almost everything), and the declaration that no member of your registered household has a TV at any address.
3. Submit by the relevant deadline:
   • 31 January: exemption for the entire current year
   • 30 June: exemption from the second half of the year (you'll still owe the first half)
   • After 30 June: exemption takes effect only from the following year
4. You can submit via:
   • Agenzia delle Entrate online portal using SPID (Italy's digital identity for accessing online public services), CIE (Italian electronic ID card) or CNS — the fastest option
   • Certified email (PEC) to the address listed on the Agenzia's website for the Quadro A form
   • Registered letter (raccomandata A/R) without envelope, addressed to: Agenzia delle Entrate - Ufficio di Torino 1 - SAT, Sportello Abbonamenti TV, Casella Postale 22 - 10121 Torino
   • Through a CAF (free assistance office for tax forms and benefits applications) or Patronato (free union-run office helping with social-security and administrative paperwork) — free or for a token fee

The declaration is valid for the year in which it is filed. Check the current rules to confirm whether it needs to be renewed annually.

Warning: if you declare that you have no TV but you do, you risk criminal liability for making a false declaration (DPR 445/2000), plus recovery of unpaid fees and administrative fines of €500 to €2,000.

Exemption for people over 75

If you are 75 or older and the combined income of you and your cohabiting spouse does not exceed €8,000 per year — and no other person with their own income lives in your home (apart from your spouse and domestic staff) — you are entitled to a full exemption from the licence fee.

To apply:

1. Complete the form "Dichiarazione sostitutiva esenzione over 75" (available at agenziaentrate.gov.it).
2. Attach a copy of your ID and income documentation (CU certificate, Modello 730 — Italy's simplified annual tax return for employees — or Modello Redditi PF).
3. Submit through the same channels described above.

The exemption is permanent as long as the qualifying conditions are met. To obtain it from the start of the year, file by 31 January; for the second half of the year, file by 31 July. If your income situation changes, you are legally required to notify the Agenzia.

If you've just arrived in Rome

If you've activated a residential electricity contract, the RAI licence fee will be charged automatically from the month after activation. If you don't have a TV, submit the non-possession declaration straight away to stop the charges. Amounts already billed before your declaration are not refundable, unless there was an administrative error.

To submit the declaration you'll need your Codice Fiscale, your POD code (the code starting with IT000E, found on your electricity bill), and your electricity contract's customer reference number.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Assuming a smart TV isn't subject to the fee. Almost all smart TVs include a built-in digital terrestrial tuner — in that case the licence fee is due, regardless of how you actually use the set.
2. Skipping the non-possession declaration on the assumption that "no one checks." Agenzia delle Entrate cross-references data with the civil registry and electricity contracts. If it spots discrepancies, it can recover unpaid fees with interest and penalties.
3. Thinking you can "cancel" RAI like a commercial subscription. The licence fee is a tax, not a private contract. The only way to stop paying it is to declare that you have no TV.

Special cases

Multiple electricity contracts: if you have two contracts in your name at the same address, check that the licence fee is being charged on only one of them.

Second home: if you have a second residential electricity contract in your name at a different address from where you're registered, you don't owe a second licence fee. Only one fee is due per registered household.

Flatmates with separate registrations: the licence fee is the responsibility of the person whose name is on the electricity contract. If each flatmate is registered at a different address, each answers for their own contract independently.

No personal electricity contract (shared building contracts or other unusual arrangements): the fee is paid via F24 (the universal Italian payment form for taxes and contributions) using tax codes TVRI or RICA, or by postal order to account 2105 made out to "ABBONAMENTO RAI — TORINO".

Official sources

• Agenzia delle Entrate — Canone TV
• Official RAI Licence Fee portal
• RAI Licence Fee — information and forms

Legal references: R.D.L. 246/1938, Legge 208/2015 commi 152-160, DM 13/05/2016 n. 94, Legge 244/2007 art. 1 comma 132 (over-75 exemption), DPR 445/2000 (penalties for false declarations).