Researched by ExpatMoneyEU Research Team · Last updated 11 November 2026 · Data: Agenzia delle Entrate (regime forfettario rules) and INPS Circular 8/2026 — 2026 rates. Estimate only — not tax or financial advice. The forfettario is a tax regime, not a business type: eligibility depends on your revenue, your other income and your activity, so confirm with the Agenzia delle Entrate or a commercialista before opening or switching a partita IVA.
ExpatMoneyEU verdict: A professional invoicing €50,000 a year under the forfettario keeps about €35,508 after tax and INPS — a total burden of roughly 29%. The 5% start-up rate is the real prize: the same €50,000 costs only about €11,609 in total, keeping about €38,391. Check the 5% conditions before you assume you qualify.
Taxable income is your revenue × the profitability coefficient — your real costs are ignored. INPS is charged on that taxable income at 26.07% (Gestione Separata, 2026), within a minimum income of €18,808 and a ceiling of €122,295, and the INPS you pay is deductible from the taxable base before the substitute tax is calculated. Artisans and traders pay a different INPS scheme (fixed minimums plus 24% / 24.48%, with an optional 35% reduction) — this calculator models professionals in the Gestione Separata.
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What this calculator does
This calculator estimates what a self-employed person with an Italian partita IVA pays under the regime forfettario — Italy’s flat-rate tax regime for freelancers and sole traders. Instead of taxing your real profit, the forfettario taxes a fixed share of your revenue: your activity’s ATECO code sets a profitability coefficient (40% to 86%), and a single substitute tax of 15% — or 5% for the first five years of a genuinely new activity — replaces IRPEF, its regional and municipal surcharges, IRAP and VAT. On top of the tax you still pay INPS pension contributions, which this calculator includes at the 2026 Gestione Separata rate of 26.07% for professionals without their own pension fund. Enter your revenue, pick your activity group and rate, and you get your taxable income, your INPS bill, your substitute tax, your total due and what you keep — monthly and annual.
The 2026 picture in one number: the forfettario only works up to €85,000 of revenue in the previous year. Cross €100,000 at any point in the year and the regime ends immediately, in that same year — with VAT due from the invoice that crosses the line.
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How to use it (4 steps)
- Enter your expected annual revenue — the total of your invoices and fees for the year, before any costs.
- Pick your activity group: the coefficient follows your ATECO code (78% for most professionals, 67% for other activities including software and IT, 86% for construction and real estate, down to 40% for trade and food service).
- Choose your substitute tax rate — 5% if you are in the first five years of a genuinely new activity that meets the start-up conditions, otherwise 15%.
- Pick your INPS scheme — 26.07% if you have no other mandatory pension cover, 24% if you are also covered as an employee or pensioner elsewhere — then read what you keep.
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The formula, with every variable explained
Taxable income = revenue × coefficient. The coefficient is a fixed percentage of revenue set by your ATECO code — it stands in for your costs, so your real expenses are ignored entirely. That is the forfettario’s bargain and its trap: if your real costs are low you win, if they are high you lose. INPS = taxable income × 26.07% (Gestione Separata, 2026), charged on income between the €18,808 minimum and the €122,295 ceiling set by INPS Circular 8/2026 — below the minimum, contributions are calculated on the minimum; above the ceiling, nothing more is due. Your INPS is deductible: substitute-tax base = taxable income − INPS paid. Substitute tax = base × 5% or 15%. Total due = INPS + substitute tax. What you keep = revenue − total due. Note the order matters: because INPS is deducted before the tax is calculated, the tax in this model is lower than 15% of the full coefficient income — on €50,000 at 78% and 15%, the tax is €4,324.91, not €5,850. Artisans and traders use a different INPS scheme (fixed minimum contributions plus 24% for artisans and 24.48% for traders, with an optional 35% reduction for forfettari) — this calculator models professionals in the Gestione Separata.
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Worked example with real numbers
Example: a consultant (78% coefficient) invoicing €50,000 in 2026, on the standard 15% rate, in the Gestione Separata. Taxable income is €50,000 × 78% = €39,000. INPS at 26.07% of €39,000 is €10,167.30. Deduct the INPS: the substitute-tax base is €39,000 − €10,167.30 = €28,832.70. The substitute tax at 15% is €4,324.91. Total due is €10,167.30 + €4,324.91 = €14,492.21, and you keep €35,507.79 — an effective burden of about 29.0% of revenue. On the 5% start-up rate the same figures give a tax of €1,441.64, a total due of €11,608.94 and €38,391.06 kept. A second example: a software developer (67% coefficient) invoicing €30,000 on the 5% rate. Taxable income is €20,100; INPS is €5,240.07; the tax base is €14,859.93; the tax at 5% is €743.00; total due is €5,983.07 and you keep €24,016.93. A small earner shows the INPS floor: a professional invoicing €20,000 at 78% has taxable income of €15,600 — below the €18,808 minimum — so INPS is charged on €18,808, giving €4,903.24 of contributions.
Rate table used by this calculator (2026)
| Component | Rate / amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue limit | €85,000 / year | Prior-year revenue; over €100,000 mid-year the regime ends immediately |
| Substitute tax — standard | 15% | Single tax replacing IRPEF, surcharges, IRAP and VAT |
| Substitute tax — new activity | 5% | First 5 years of a genuinely new activity meeting the conditions |
| Coefficient — professional / health / education / finance | 78% | Most consultants, freelancers and professionals |
| Coefficient — other activities incl. software & IT | 67% | Residual group, including software and IT services |
| Coefficient — construction & real estate | 86% | Highest coefficient in the table |
| Coefficient — commercial intermediaries | 62% | Agents and intermediaries |
| Coefficient — street trade, non-food | 54% | Ambulant trade in non-food goods |
| Coefficient — trade / food & beverage / accommodation | 40% | Wholesale & retail trade, food manufacturing, restaurants and hotels |
| INPS Gestione Separata | 26.07% | 2026, INPS Circular 8/2026; 24% if also covered elsewhere |
| INPS income floor / ceiling (2026) | €18,808 / €122,295 | Contributions calculated on at least the floor, at most the ceiling |
| Other limits | €20,000 staff costs; €35,000 employee income | Employee/collaborator spending cap and prior-year employee-income cap (2025–2026) |
Simplified model for professionals in the INPS Gestione Separata: artisans and traders pay fixed minimum INPS contributions plus a percentage above a floor (24% artisans, 24.48% traders in 2026) and can elect a 35% reduction — their figures differ. Regulated professions with their own pension fund (cassa) do not pay the Gestione Separata at all.
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Sources and disclaimer
Rules are modelled from the Agenzia delle Entrate’s regime forfettario pages and Law 190/2014, art. 1, commi 54–89 and Annex 4 (the regime, the €85,000 limit, the €100,000 immediate-exit rule, the 5% / 15% rates and the profitability coefficients); the €35,000 employee-income cap for 2025 and 2026 from Law 207/2024, art. 1, comma 12; and INPS Circular 8/2026 (3 February 2026), which sets the 2026 Gestione Separata rate at 26.07% (25% pension + 0.72% additional + 0.35% ISCRO), the 24% reduced rate for those already covered, and the €18,808 minimum and €122,295 maximum income. Artisans’ and traders’ rates come from INPS Circular 14/2026. Estimate only — not tax or financial advice. Eligibility also depends on limits this calculator does not test — staff costs, prior employee income, controlling stakes and invoicing your former employer. Verify your position with the Agenzia delle Entrate or a qualified commercialista before opening a partita IVA or choosing the regime.
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