Cedolare secca
The alternative to ordinary taxation of rent.
OpenCAF services · Leases
Registering a rental contract
A rental contract must be registered within thirty days of signing. It is not a formality: without registration the contract is void, and the tenant can rely on that against the landlord.
01 · When it applies
Which rental contracts must be registered
All property rental contracts must be registered, whatever the amount of the rent, with a single exception: contracts lasting no more than thirty days in total in the year with the same tenant.
Registration must be made within thirty days of the date of signing, not of the start date. A contract signed on 10 January with a start date of 1 March must be registered by 9 February.
Both parties are jointly responsible for the obligation, but in practice the landlord deals with it. Within sixty days of registration, the landlord must also give documented notice of it to the tenant and to the building manager (amministratore di condominio).
| Type of contract | Typical length | Registration |
|---|---|---|
| Open-market 4+4 | 4 years + 4 on renewal | Compulsory |
| Agreed-rent 3+2 (canone concordato) | 3 years + 2 on renewal | Compulsory, with a certificate of compliance |
| Temporary | From 1 to 18 months | Compulsory, with evidence of the temporary need |
| For university students | From 6 months to 3 years | Compulsory |
| Commercial | 6 years + 6 | Compulsory |
| Short, up to 30 days a year | Up to 30 days | Not compulsory |
Failure to register makes the contract void. The tenant can ask the court to convert it into a contract of the statutory length, with the rent brought down to the minimum set by the local agreements (accordi territoriali): a risk that falls almost entirely on the owner.
02 · Costs
Registration tax, stamp duty and cedolare secca
On registration, two taxes are paid, unless you opt for the cedolare secca (the flat tax on rental income).
Registration tax on residential leases is 2% of the annual rent, with a minimum of €67 for the first year. For agreed-rent contracts the taxable base is reduced by 30%. By law the tax is due in equal shares from landlord and tenant, unless otherwise agreed.
Stamp duty is €16 for every four written pages, and in any case for every hundred lines, for each copy to be registered.
If you opt for the cedolare secca, neither registration tax nor stamp duty is paid for as long as the option lasts. This is one of the reasons why the choice between the ordinary regime and the cedolare secca should be made before registration, not after.
- Registration tax can be paid every year or in a single payment for the whole term, with a discount.
- The single payment is worthwhile on long contracts, but it cannot be recovered if the contract ends early.
- For years after the first, the tax must be paid within thirty days of the end of the previous year of the lease.
- For extensions, tax is due on the whole extension period.
- For early termination, a fixed tax of €67 is due.
Who pays what
The 50% split of registration tax is a rule of law, but it applies between the parties: towards the Agenzia delle Entrate (the Italian Revenue Agency) both parties are jointly liable for the full amount.
- Stamp duty is usually paid by the tenant by custom, but it is freely negotiable
- With the cedolare secca the landlord also gives up the ISTAT adjustment (inflation indexation of the rent)
- The tenant's share of the tax is not deductible
03 · What to bring
The documents for registering a rental contract
- The contract signed by all parties, in two originals
- ID documents and codici fiscali (Italian tax codes) of landlord and tenant, and of any co-obligors
- Cadastral data for the property: sheet, parcel, sub-unit, category and rendita catastale (cadastral value)
- Energy performance certificate (APE), with the details to be quoted in the contract
- Local agreement and certificate of compliance, for agreed-rent contracts
- Evidence of the temporary need, for temporary contracts
- IBAN for the taxes to be debited, if you choose online payment
For agreed-rent contracts, the certificate of compliance issued by an organisation that signed the local agreement is needed to access the tax benefits, including the reduced IMU (municipal property tax) base and the reduced rate of cedolare secca.
04 · After registration
Extension, transfer, termination
A registered contract also generates obligations in later years, and each one has a thirty-day deadline.
- ISTAT adjustment: it applies only if provided for in the contract and if you have not opted for the cedolare secca. It must be requested in writing and is not automatic.
- Notice to quit: the tenant can withdraw with six months' notice for serious reasons, or as provided in the contract. The landlord has limited options at the first expiry date.
- Unpaid rent: rent not received remains taxable until the eviction order is validated, subject to the specific rules for residential leases.
Later years
Payment of registration tax within thirty days of the end of each year of the lease, unless you have the cedolare secca or paid in a single payment.
Extension
To be notified within thirty days of expiry, with payment of the tax on the new period.
Transfer or takeover
A change of tenant or landlord must be registered within thirty days, with a fixed tax.
Early termination
To be notified within thirty days, with payment of the fixed tax of €67.
05 · Voluntary correction
Late and missed registration
A delay is put right with ravvedimento operoso (voluntary correction): you pay the tax due, legal interest for the days of delay and a reduced penalty that decreases with how little time has passed. The sooner you act, the less you pay.
Failure to register, however, has consequences that go beyond the tax penalty. An unregistered contract is void, and the tenant can go to court to have the tenancy converted into a contract of the statutory length, with rent set according to the minimums in the local agreements. In that case the owner loses far more than the penalty saved.
Then there is the income side: rent received under an unregistered contract is still taxable, and failing to declare it is a separate violation.
Voluntary correction is no longer possible once the Agency has served a tax demand or assessment. If the contract has never been registered, the worst thing you can do is wait.
Frequently asked
The questions that keep coming up
Do I also have to register a six-month contract?
Yes. The only exemption covers contracts lasting no more than thirty days in total in the year with the same tenant. A six-month contract must be registered within thirty days of signing.
This also applies to temporary contracts and to those with university students, which are shorter but fully subject to registration.
Who pays the registration tax?
By law it is due in equal shares from landlord and tenant, unless the parties agree otherwise. Towards the Agenzia delle Entrate, however, both are jointly liable for the full amount.
If the cedolare secca option is chosen, registration tax is not due from either party, and neither is stamp duty.
Can I register a contract after the deadline has passed?
Yes, through ravvedimento operoso, paying the tax, interest and a reduced penalty. Late registration cures the tax violation.
The civil-law effects of the period in which the contract ran without registration remain, however: the tenant keeps the remedies provided by law, which late registration does not entirely remove.
Is it worth paying the tax for the whole term in one go?
Financially, yes: a single payment entitles you to a reduction. The risk is early termination, because the tax for the years not used cannot be fully recovered.
On a 4+4 with a stable tenant it makes sense. On a temporary contract or an uncertain tenancy, paying every year is the better choice.
Do I have to tell the tenant about the registration?
Yes. Within sixty days of registration the landlord must give documented notice of it to the tenant and to the building manager, the latter so that the building's records can be updated.
It is an obligation often overlooked, but it is expressly required by the rules on residential leases.
Let's talk
Thirty days from signing, not from the start of the tenancy
It is the most common mistake: the deadline runs from the date of the contract, even if the tenancy starts later. Bring it in as soon as it is signed.