Opening a VAT number in Turin: the steps and the real timings

The order matters, because some steps depend on the outcome of the ones before. For a professional with no obligation to register with the Chamber of Commerce, the process stops after the first two; anyone opening a business goes through all of them.

1. Setting up your position

   You fix the ATECO code, the tax regime and the pension fund, and you check the flat-rate scheme requirements against your actual situation.

2. Declaration of start of activity

   The individual files the start-of-activity form with the Agenzia delle Entrate (the Italian Revenue Agency), online, also through an intermediary. The number is assigned straight away.

3. Registro Imprese and INPS

   Anyone carrying on a business activity sends the Comunicazione Unica (the single registration filing) to the Chamber of Commerce, which passes the information on to INPS and, where needed, to INAIL.

4. Comune and tools

   If the activity requires it, you file a SCIA (certified notice of start of activity) with the Sportello Unico, the Comune's one-stop business desk. At the same time you set up PEC (certified email), a digital signature and electronic invoicing.

The tax side is identical throughout Italy. What changes are the local offices: the Turin Chamber of Commerce for the Registro Imprese and the register of artisans, the Comune's Sportello Unico per le Attività Produttive (one-stop desk for business activities) for activities that require a SCIA, and the ASL (the local health authority) for anyone handling food.

The activities that most often need a step at the Comune are retail trade from fixed premises, serving food and drink, food workshops, hairdressers and beauticians. For these, the real opening date depends on the requirements for the premises, not on the VAT number: it is worth checking them before you sign a lease.

Then there is the annual Chamber of Commerce fee, due from anyone registered with the Registro Imprese, and the regional and municipal surcharges on IRPEF (personal income tax), which do not apply to those on the flat-rate scheme. The amounts must be checked against the rules for the current year.

Once you have the number, there are only a few things to sort out, but they need doing straight away. Set up the channel for receiving electronic invoices, so that your suppliers' invoices arrive in the right place. Open an account dedicated to the activity: for an individual it is not always compulsory, but keeping business income separate from household spending makes every check simpler.

Next, set up your savings for tax. An example with round and purely illustrative figures: if for every €1,000 you receive you put €300 aside in a separate account, by June you already have the cash for taxes and contributions. The right percentage for you depends on the regime and the pension fund, and is worked out once, at the start.

Finally, note down the deadlines for the first year, which for anyone opening during the year are different from those of the following years. If you are on the flat-rate scheme, the page on the flat-rate scheme in Turin explains what you pay and what you do not. To go over all the steps in one place, go back to the guide on opening a VAT number in Turin.