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International Tax Focus - 7/2025

International Tax News Italy - Monthly update


The Monthly Update newsletter summarizes the most relevant cross-border tax novelties of June 2025, from a domestic, European and international perspective.


Among the main topics:


- Italian Digital Services Tax in online games;


- in-bound workers regime without request to the employer;


- amendments to the CFC rules and to the anti-hybrid penalty protection regime.



  1. Game bonuses are not relevant for Italian digital tax purposes

    With the statement of practice no. 6 of 3 June 2025, the Italian Tax Authorities have clarified that, in online games, gaming bonuses are not relevant to determine taxable base for digital services tax purposes (so-called “web tax”, governed by Art 1(35) and ff. of Law 145/2018, which provides for a 3% tax on the amount of revenues deriving from digital services).

    In fact, gaming bonuses do not generate (actual) digital revenues for the platform manager (which operates as an intermediary).

    On the contrary, according to the Italian Tax Authorities, the amounts that are relevant for the purpose of the digital tax are equal to the commission retained by the intermediary which is usually the residual share of the amount collected by such intermediary net of the prize pool and the tax due on it (so-called “imposta unica”).


    2. In-bound workers regime may be applied even without sending a request to the employer 

According to the Italian Supreme Court’s decision no. 15234 of 7 June 2025, workers may benefit from the in-bound-workers regime even if they have not sent a request to the employer in order for the latter to apply the benefits of such regime directly in its capacity as withholding agent.

Where such request has not been filed, the workers may benefit from the regime in the tax return or they may file a reimbursement request pursuant to Art. 38 of Presidential Decree 602/73. 

In its decision, the Italian Supreme Court recalls the clarification of the Circular letter no. 14/2012 (§ 2.2) issued by the Italian Tax Authorities according to which “on a residual basis, the interested party may submit a request for reimbursement pursuant to Article 38 of Presidential Decree no. 602 of 1973”: it is therefore allowed to benefit from the regime at stake through one or more reimbursement request even in the absence of a written request to the employer, as there is no specific law provision that explicitly provides for the regime not to apply in the absence of such request to the employer.

 

 

  1. CFC and anti-hybrid penalty protection rules amended

Art. 4 of Law Decree no. 84 of 17 June 2025 amends the Italian controlled foreign companies regime (contained in Art. 167 of the TUIR). In particular:

·       the criteria to allocate the QDMTT to constituent entities located in the foreign jurisdiction in order to calculate the effective tax rate for CFC purposes have been amended;

·       the optional regime that allows the Italian controlling person to pay a substitute tax equal to 15% of the net accounting result of the potential CFC(s) has been amended as well.


Such amendments will be effective as of the fiscal year 2024.

Art. 5 of the same Law Decree no. 84/2025 also amends the transitional rules relating to the penalty protection regime on anti-hybrid measures introduced by Art. 61 of Legislative Decree 209/2023.

The new rule sets as the deadline for the preparation of the anti-hybrid documentation on the same day of the deadline for the filing of the tax return for fiscal year 2024.


  1. Assonime analyses the Italian anti-hybrid penalty protection regime

Assonime has published its circular no. 14/2025 through which the association analysed the requirement that the anti-hybrid documentation needs to meet to grant the penalty protection provided for by Art. 61 of Legislative Decree 209/2023.

The deadline for 2024 and 2023 is set for 31 October 2025.

The circular also examines other aspects relating to Annexes A and B of the documentation: the second, in particular, outlines the procedure and the information to be collected in connection with the anti-hybrid documentation.

 

 

 

  1. VAT exemptions may still apply even when formal omissions occurred

In its decision relating to case C-125/24 of 12 June 2025, the European Court of Justice stated that, lacking a fraud, the violation of formal customs obligations does not entail that VAT exemption in the event of the reintroduction of goods into the Member State (Art. 143(1)(e) of Directive 2006/112/EC) of export is not applicable anymore.

In the case analyzed by the Court, an individual had transported two horses to Norway to participate in some competitions and then had reintroduced them into Sweden without presenting them to customs, thus failing to present the declaration of release for free circulation.

According to the above-mentioned decision, since the substantive conditions required for the VAT exemption to apply are met, the failure to comply with the formal obligations (due to negligence and not to fraud), while giving rise to the customs debt, does not prevent the application of the duty-free regime for re-imported goods.

 

 

  1. Peru ratifies and Antigua and Barbuda join the MLI

On 9 June 2025, Peru deposited its instrument of ratification of the Multilateral Convention on the Implementation of Tax Treaty-Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS Convention).

The MLI will enter into force, for Peru, on 1 October 2025.

On 18 June 2025, also Antigua and Barbuda signed the Multilateral Convention for the Implementation of Tax Treaty-Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS Convention).

The jurisdictions adhering to the agreement thus become 105.

 

 

 

7.  G7 reaches an agreement on cohexistence of Pillar Two and US rules

At the G7 summit on 28 June 2025, the jurisdictions party to the Inclusive Framework agreed to exempt US groups from the application of Pillar Two rules.

As a result, the United States of America eliminated from the draft of the financial bill the proposed Section 899 of the Internal Revenue Code, which was aimed at increasing the levy on U.S.-sourced income produced by persons resident in “hostile” States.

 
 
 

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