Further to recent investigations regarding using a UK limited liability company with registered branches in Italy or setting up an independent Italian corporate identity i would like to further discuss the Italian limited liability company known in Italy as SRL (Società a responsabilità limitata), literally translated as “company with limited responsibility.” And similar to a UK ltd company.

For those of you considering DIY restoration of your Italian property, there are certain options. Forget just simply doing a DIY, unless you are a builder, because as soon as you require any trade to enter your property in Italy you need to “employ” them. You can do this as an individual (persona fisica) or as a self employed company (ditta individuale) or as a ltd company.  Simple DIY paying cash to your workers for serious restoration jobs in Italy is not simple in fact it is illegal. MIPC as Italian Property Consultants exist for this reason. I would advise you to set up an Italian limited company for that complex DIY project SIMPLY to protect your personnel assets from any unfortunate 3^rd party claims.

Beyond this article there is a further Italian corporate structure known as SPA (Società per Azioni) which is more like a UK PLC and is used by organisations to be quoted on the Italian stock exchange by large corporate businesses in Italy. The S.p.A. (similar to a Joint Stock Company) is the most regulated of the two major limited liability companies requiring a full-blown board of directors and board of auditors, as well as higher minimum capital requirements (i.e. 120.000,00 euros). The regulations set forth in the Italian Civil Code (”ICC”) for the S.p.A. also apply to the S.r.l., unless stated otherwise.

Here i will not go into the formalities but more the issues you should be aware of if you are in the phase of considering setting up and SRL in Italy.

Italian SRL:

An Italian SRL is similar to a small UK ltd company, the type of UK Ltd company you set up to have limited liability and when you are running the business yourself or with a few other shareholders/partners. In Italy the SRL does not actually have shareholders but you hold quotas, in the bigger picture the concept is the same, just its important to know that they are not shares. There are no requirements for management by a board of directors. Also in most cases, small S.r.l.’s can do without a board of auditors provided there be at least one director (Sole Director).

How to create an SRL in Italy:

In the UK there are many off the shelf ready made UK Ltd companies which for a small fee you can become the shareholder and sole director and company secretary. Personally i have always used  Hanover Company Services in the UK, cheap efficient and professional to either buy an off the shelf ltd company or create a new Ltd UK company. The memorandums of associations are very generic and basically you can use the corporate structure to trade in most activities.

In Italy it is different and not so easy.

You must follow the following steps and costs;

1: Determine the articles of association (statuto) and specify all the trades you wish to operate in. Add as many as you possibly can think of, in which your business in the future may wish to operate in, as any future changes involve a visit to the notary (minimum 2000 euros). Get a professional (normally your commercialista, that’s the Italian accountant that everyone has in this country !!) to check that your statuto covers every possible sub section of a trade that exists in Italy. There are more than you think !!!! … be specific in your requirements to ensure you cover that minor trading section that you assumed obviously was covered  but with the Italian law it isn’t. !!!!! You have been warned.

2: Obtain an Italian fiscal code for yourself. You need this as the person creating/owning the SRL.  You can use your non Italian address if you don’t have a house in Italy.

3: You need an Italian address for the future SRL in Italy. Either use your Italian property address, either owned or rented or ask a friend to use their address. I haven’t got around to studying virtual Italian PO boxes just yet or service companies offering this option at their address, but i will. If necessary use your Italian accountant’s/lawyer’s address with their approval.

4: Fix an appointment with a notary to create and register the new SRL and ask for a quote for the expenses. This can vary from 2000 euros  upwards.

5: Deposit the minimum nominal capital of the SRL 10,000 euros in the new “temporary” Italian company bank account at your preferred Italian bank. This is a strange concept in that you need to pay the nominal capital into the “temporary” company bank account, which actually doesn’t exist, as the bank cannot create the account until the notary has actually registered the company. But we are in Italy and the system works. Use a trusted Italian bank. I actually asked the bank but who has ownership of my nominal capital until the notary has registered the company and you, the bank,  have transferred the deposit into the then new company account…answer…”its in the system”….just accept it …..it’s official and works.

6: if you are a sole director & sole quoteholder and also the future company secretary (delegato amministrativo) then you must deposit 100% of the nominal capital. If there is more than 1 person involved then you only need to deposit 25%. Here’s some small personnel advice….In Italy the best small companies are made of an odd number of quoteholders and i would advise you to ensure that they are less then 3 share/quoteholders  J !!!! Is that clear !!!

7: With the relevant nominal capital paid to the bank, take the receipt to the notary. He will register the company in accordance with your statuto and then you have the act of registration, in Italian the atto di registrazione.  Deposit a copy of the atto with the bank to ensure your money is deposited in your new Italian company bank account.

8: Get your accountant to register the new company with the local chambers of commerce (camera di commercio) and with the REC registro ditte. Also get them to apply for your VAT (IVA)number (obligatrory for any Italian company indentity.)

9: With an SRL you will be obliged to follow the company accounts filing and tax returns. All Italian company accounts follow the calendar year to 31/12. Company corporation tax returns are due.  National and local company taxes will be due. Individual tax returns too.

10: The company must register with INPS and INAIL to pay employee taxes and social security taxes.

11: Your accountant with their services or their preferred wages burueau (consulente di lavoro) will also prepare wage slips (buste paghe).

Further SRL taxes and employee issues will be discussed in a separate article.

If you are considering a DIY Italian restoration in your house in italy or looking to buy Italian property MIPC are happy to advise as an Italian property consultant.

I was just advising some clients about income tax on the rental income for thier italian property and thought you may wish to know the personal income tax rates in italy, locally know as IRPEF

There is no tax free income. The following is for income raised during the financial year 2009 upto 31/12/09. In Italy the tax year is the same as the calender year.Tax returns on the Mod 1 due 31.5.10.

First 15,000 euros taxed at 23%

Further income from 15000 – 28000 taxed at 27%

Further income from 28000 – 55,000 taxed at 38%

Further income from 55000 – 75000 taxed at 41%

Anything above 75000 taxed at 43%

So an income in Italy  of 100,000 euros would result in an italian tax bill of

15000@23%=3450

28000-15000=13000@27%=3510

55000-28000=27000@38%=10260

75000-55000=20000@41%=8200

100000-75000=25000@43%=10750

For a total tax bill of 3450+3510+10260+8200+10750=36170

Thats 36.1% italy income tax IRPEF on a 100,000 italian income…How does that rate to your countries income tax rate…post comments to let us know.

In some cases often in the south of Italy the valore catastale (rateable value) can be higher than the actual market value. Be careful as the notary will declare both values and any large difference may attract an italian finance police (la finanza) investigation. What you believe a bargain the finanza may believe you were purposely understating the value of the property thus tax avoidance by assisting the seller to avoid higher capital gains tax.

To avoid this you can request a perito quantity surveyor to officially value the property and produce a report called relazione di perito where the quantity surveyor swears in front of a judge his valuation of the property. Give this copy to the notary and ensure he makes reference to it in the atto di vendita final purchase deed.

This means you will pay lower notary fees “purchase taxes” and not be accused of tax avoidance.

Of course if the market value is higher than the catastal value then you don’t need to worry about this issue.

The above is an extract from the MIPC “Italian Property Consultant” ebook. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive similar italian property news.

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If you plan to buy a property in Italy always engage a professional Italian Property Consultant.

There are 2 airports in/near Venice. Please note which you need to return home from as otherwise you may find yourself in the wrong departure lounge

Closest to Venice is the Marco Polo Airport (VCE) , 15 minutes east of Mestre, used by major airlines.

Nearby is Treviso airport (TSF) also referred to as Venice by certain low cost airlines likes Ryanair, which is 30 minutes north east of Venice.

Either is great for visiting Venice. Both are also used for skiing in Italy in the Italian Dolomite ski region for resorts such as Cortina, Arabba, Selva di Cadore, Corvara, Colfosco, Alleghe.

Here is a brief outline about Venice Marco Polo Airport VCE located at Viale G Galilei 30/1, 30173 Tessera, Venezia, Italy.

Venice in Italian is Venezia. If you are travelling onwards by foot to Venice centre i would highly recommend taking one of the boats from the airport to Venice, tickets available in the airport, it kick starts that romantic weekend in Venice.

Venice airport (VCE) official website.

Outline: Modern large airport, with all principal facilities including car hire, taxis, bus service, restaurants, tax free shops and even boat-taxi bookings if you are staying in the heart of Venice..

Consider yourself fortunate if you arrive or depart on a clear day, when views from the air can be breathtaking. You’ll see the Dolomites, the Adriatic, and the Venetian Lagoon. You’ll see land that’s submerged at high tide, suggesting a Northern Italian version of Atlantis. And if you’re on the right side of the plane, you’ll see the city of Venice itself, with instantly recognizable landmarks like the Campanile di San Marco and the Grand Canal.

Airport layout :

Groudfloor : arrivals    1^st floor : departures     Top floor: restaurant bar

If you arrive early for departure I would highly recommend the bar on the top floor as it has fantastic views across the water to Venice.

Public Transport:

Bus: There are scheduled bus services to Padua, Mestre and Venice. Venice-Mestre railway station is connected to the airport by the ATVO Fly Bus and the ACTV bus 15. Bus 5 also runs to Piazzale Roma. Bus information is available from ATVO (tel: (04)  2138 3672) and ACTV (tel: (04) 1272 2111).
Taxi: Traditional taxis are available from Radiotaxi (tel: (04) 1595 2080). Taxis to Padua and shared taxis area also available.
Water: Alilaguna (tel: (04) 1240 1701) runs waterboat services between the airport docks and Venice, Murano and Lido. A 24-hour motorboat service is available from Consorzio Motoscafi Venezia (tel: (04) 1522 2303).

Car hire:

All major car hire firms are present. The hire cars are parked a 3 minute walk from the airport exit. Walk under the gangways to go directly to the cars, there is no shuttle to the hire car park.

There is a petrol station as you enter into the airport grounds for that last minute top up to deliver your hire car full of petrol avoiding charges.

How to get to the airport : The airport is very well signposted from all major motorways. Just make sure if you are arriving from the north not to exit the motorway too early at Treviso as you will end up at Treviso airport TSF. Continue towards Venice and then the airport signs take you to VCE Venice Marco Polo airport.

Accomodation : Endless choice on line. If you are looking for property in Venice, MIPC your Italian Property Consultant have some interesting apartments for sale just off the Grand Canal, though they are expensive luxury Italian property.

MADE is the international event for Projects Architecture and Building which takes place at the Milan Rho exhibition centre from 3rd – 6th February 2010 in Italy.

How to get to Milan Rho exhibition centre ? : Rho is here NW Milan centre. Nearest airport is Milan Malpensa MXP, though unless you are travelling by taxi or car (40 minutes) its a little difficult to get from MXP to Rho. I would advise Milan Linate (LIN) if your travelling by foot, as from here you can easily travel into Milan central railway station(30 mins) and then get the MM1 (red) tube line directly to “Rho-Fiera” (40 mins-last stop). Follow this link to the official Rho exhibition centre Milan Italy website for further details. You could also travel to Bergamo airport (BGY), hire a car in Italy and then take the A4 into Milan and then the A8(E62) and then you will see signs for FieraMilano and Rho-Fiera (1.5hrs).

Italian Property Consultant MIPC is actively involved in property restorations in Italy and collaborates with Italian Architects, Geometras (an Italian hybrid of project managers) and Italian construction firms. MIPC will be visiting MADE in Milan Italy for networking and to keep up to date with new building techniques, ecological products and the latest bio-architecture designs. We are also particularly interested in the “Borghi & Centri Storici” which focuses on the restoration and the improvement of Italian historical centres, like Salemi, as a new “made in Italy” product, within a framework of sustainable development.

If you too are considering to build a house in Italy or a restoration project in Italy then maybe you should consider a visit to MADE and we can meet up, if so contact MIPC your Italian property consultant.

ps Some of you may have searched italy TV license not Italian TV licence.

island for sale sardegna

Serpentara 2 miles off the South East coast of Sardegna is for sale. Located in the province of Cagliari in the far south east corner near the town of Villasimius, see google maps.  South of Villasimius heading towards the Punta Santa Caterina is the island of Isola dei Cavoli, further east and a little north is the island of Serpentera, 2 miles off the coast of Sardegna see google maps , which translated means Serpent named after the shape of the island coast line.  134 hectares of land in Italy with 1 old building known as the La Torre di San Luigi (circa 1700), that’s Saint Luigi’s old tower / lighthouse in Italy and a 2^nd world war buncker on the coast. There is no planning permission to build your luxury Italian beachside property, nor a lovely villa set in the Italian island in Italy overlooking the sea…. as a matter of fact the island is part of an Italian nature reserve a the protected area of Capo Carbonara.

The property was owned by an Italian estate agent which has gone bankrupt and only today the liquidators offered the property in an Italian property auction, but no one offered the asking price of 600,000 euros . The local council of Villasimius unfortunately couldn’t raise sufficient funds. There are online groups creating an Italian property syndicate but they too failed to raise funds. So this is the 3^rd time the sardegna island as not reached the auction reserve price.

Are you interested in making an offer for a paradise island, set in the natural coastline of Sardegna. If so contact MIPC quickly before the Regione Sardegna , that’s the regional government, make an offer.

Italian property auctions are a high risk experience for a non Italian buyer of property in Italy. There are some great bargains available, but most bargains are “sold” prior to the auction. It is known in certain areas of southern Italy for the bankrupt party to turn up after the auction and claim back their property. Always take professional advice from an Italian property consultant.

The odds of being able to win the jackpot by matching all six numbers are 1: 622,614,630!
* The odds of matching five numbers including the ‘Jolly number’ are 1:103,769,105.
* The odds of matching any five numbers are 1:1,235,346
* The odds of matching any four numbers are 1:11,907
* The odds of matching any three numbers are 1: 327