Freelancing in Rome: the partita IVA, the flat-tax regime and INPS

Italy's flat-tax regime for small freelancers is one of the best deals in Europe. The catch is the visa, the pension contributions and an invoicing system that runs through the tax office.

The short version

• You need the right to be self-employed first. Most Australians get it through the digital nomad visa, a self-employment visa under the annual quota, or Italian or EU citizenship [1][2].
• A partita IVA (VAT number) is free to open, but you'll almost always want a commercialista (accountant) to set it up and file for you.
• Under the regime forfettario you pay a flat 15% substitute tax on a fixed share of your turnover, or 5% for the first five years of a genuinely new business, as long as turnover stays under €85,000 [3].
• Pension contributions to INPS are the big cost. Most freelance professionals pay 26.07% to the Gestione Separata in 2026 [4].
• Every invoice is an electronic invoice sent through the tax office's system, including for flat-tax freelancers [3].

First, check your visa lets you work for yourself

This is the step Australians skip. A partita IVA is a tax registration, not a work permit. Opening one doesn't make your stay legal for self-employment.

The digital nomad route

The Italian Consulate General in Sydney's 2026 checklist covers "digital nomads" (self-employed, freelancers, consultants) and "remote workers" (employees). You need a degree or a long professional track record, at least six months' experience in the work you'll do, proof of annual income of at least €25,500 for the previous financial year, travel insurance of at least €30,000 and a lease registered with the Agenzia delle Entrate [1]. Self-employed applicants relying on experience must show a trade or business licence and tax assessments for the last five financial years [1].

The self-employment visa

This one is narrower. Italy sets quotas each year, and the self-employment categories cover entrepreneurs investing at least €500,000 and creating three jobs, freelance professionals in regulated or registered professions, company directors, recognised artists and founders of innovative start-ups [2]. You'll need a nulla osta from the Rome Questura, proof of housing, and a certificate from the Camera di Commercio or your professional order showing enough resources [2]. In practice it's slow and paperwork-heavy, so start early.

Opening a partita IVA in Rome, step by step

1. Get your codice fiscale and residenza sorted. You'll need both, plus your permesso di soggiorno or its ricevuta.
2. Choose your ATECO code. This is the activity code that describes your work (web design, translation, consulting). It decides your profitability coefficient under the flat-tax regime, so pick it carefully.
3. Decide on the regime. Most new freelancers start in the regime forfettario. The alternative, the regime ordinario, taxes actual profit at normal IRPEF rates and charges VAT.
4. File the opening declaration. The form (AA9/12 for individuals) goes to the Agenzia delle Entrate, usually filed online by your commercialista. There's no government fee.
5. Register with INPS. Professionals without their own professional fund go into the Gestione Separata. Traders and artisans register with the Camera di Commercio and the commercianti or artigiani scheme instead.
6. Set up e-invoicing. Pick a provider or use the free Agenzia delle Entrate tools, and register your digital delivery address.

Do you need a commercialista?

Strictly, no. Practically, yes. Filings, F24 payment forms, INPS calculations and the annual Redditi PF return are all in Italian and unforgiving. Annual fees for a flat-tax freelancer vary widely, so ask several and get a written quote. The Cooee crowd can point you to people others have used.

How the regime forfettario works

The flat-tax regime is simple once you see the formula. You don't deduct real expenses. Instead, the law assumes a fixed percentage of your turnover is profit, depending on your ATECO code [3].

Source: TuttoCalcolato 2026 guide [3].

The rates and the cap

• 15% substitute tax on that taxable share, replacing IRPEF and regional and city surcharges.
• 5% for the first five years if you haven't run a business or profession in the previous three years and the new activity isn't a continuation of your old job [3].
• No VAT charged on your invoices.
• The €85,000 cap. If turnover goes over €85,000 you leave the regime from the following year. Go over €100,000 and you're out immediately, mid-year [3].
• Other limits. There are caps on what you can spend on staff (€20,000) and on employment income you earn on the side, and the rules change with each budget law [3]. Check the current year with your commercialista.

A worked example

Say you're a designer in Rome billing €40,000 a year under a professional ATECO code. Taxable income is 78% of that, €31,200. In years one to five at 5%, the substitute tax is €1,560. In year six it rises to €4,680 at 15%. INPS contributions come off the taxable amount before tax, so the real figures are a little lower, but the order of magnitude is right.

INPS: the bill nobody warns you about

Pension and social contributions often cost more than the tax itself.

• Gestione Separata (most freelance professionals): 26.07% of taxable income in 2026, or 24% if you already pay into another compulsory scheme or draw a pension, under INPS Circular No. 8 of 3 February 2026 [4]. Contributions apply up to a ceiling of €122,295 [4].
• Commercianti and artigiani (traders, artisans): a fixed minimum each year whatever you earn, plus a percentage above it. Flat-tax freelancers in these schemes can ask for a 35% reduction [3].
• Professional funds (casse): lawyers, architects, engineers and some others pay into their own fund instead.

Tax and contributions are paid by F24 at the income tax deadlines, normally a balance plus first instalment in summer and a second instalment in late November [4]. Your first year looks cheap because there's no history. Year two hits hard with last year's balance plus the first advance. Put aside about a third of everything you invoice from day one.

What about Australia?

The Australia–Italy social security agreement lets you add periods of Italian coverage to Australian residence to qualify for the Age Pension, and vice versa for Italian pensions [5]. It doesn't let you skip INPS. If you're living in Rome and freelancing there, Italian contributions apply.

On income tax, the Australia–Italy double tax agreement decides who taxes what. Once you're an Italian tax resident, your worldwide freelance income is normally taxed in Italy, and you'll want to settle your Australian residency position with the ATO so you're not filing as a resident in both. Our guide to Australian tax residency after moving walks through the tests.

Invoicing: the fattura elettronica

Every Italian invoice, B2B or to consumers, is an XML file sent through the Sistema di Interscambio (SdI), the tax office's exchange system. Since 2024 this covers flat-tax freelancers too [3].

What your invoices need:

• Your name, address, partita IVA and codice fiscale.
• The client's details (for Italian businesses, their partita IVA and SdI code or certified email).
• A note that the invoice is issued under the regime forfettario, with no VAT.
• A €2 stamp duty (imposta di bollo) on invoices over €77.47 that carry no VAT. It's paid electronically, quarterly.

Clients in Australia

Invoicing an Australian company is allowed. Cross-border invoices are still logged through SdI, using a generic foreign client code. Get paid into an Italian or EU account in euros where you can, and keep the AUD conversion records. Your income is declared in euros.

Mistakes we see Australians make

• Opening a partita IVA on an elective residence visa. It can put your permit renewal at risk.
• Choosing a lazy ATECO code. A higher coefficient means more tax on the same turnover.
• Spending the first year's savings. The year-two INPS and tax bill is real.
• Keeping an ABN active without thinking. Australian income, GST registration and residency all need a plan once you move.
• Forgetting the 5% conditions. If you were doing the same work as an employee, you may not qualify.

Questions about commercialisti, invoicing apps or the Questura queue? Join Cooee Italy, our Facebook group for Australians in Italy, and ask the freelancers who've already done it. Join the community.

Sources

1. Digital nomad and remote worker visa checklist (2026) – Consulate General of Italy in Sydney
2. Self-employment visa checklist (2026) – Embassy of Italy, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
3. Partita IVA forfettaria 2026: guida completa – TuttoCalcolato
4. Gestione separata INPS 2026: aliquote, minimale e massimale – InformazioneFiscale
5. Social Security Agreement between Australia and Italy – Services Australia

Keep reading

• Paying tax in Italy: IRPEF, regional surcharges and the treaty
• Opening a bank account in Rome: what Italian banks want
• Moving to Rome from Australia: the complete guide
• Super while living overseas