Esterometro in Italy will be abolished in 2022

In December 2020, a new budget law for 2021 was approved in Italy. It outlined some upcoming changes to tax reporting, especially regarding the removal of Esterometro as a reporting method.

What is Esterometro?

Esterometro is a tax reporting scheme that was originally put into place in 2019. Under this scheme, VAT registered businesses in Italy are required to report sales and purchase invoices to or from foreign businesses and non-established businesses to the Agenzia Entrate quarterly. Typical transactions on these invoices include intracommunity acquisitions, and imports and exports. This scheme was to cover those invoices that originally did not fall into the scope of the Sistema di Interscambio.

Sistema di Interscambio (SDI)

This system of electronically exchanging invoices currently covers invoices between two Italian VAT registered and established businesses. As mentioned above, as of present the invoices between an Italian VAT registered business and non-established businesses are reported to the Agenzia Entrate via Esterometro.

With a new update to come to SDI, even foreign transactions will be able to be reported with this method. In 2021, businesses can choose to report only through SDI and not have the Esterometro obligation. Those who wish to continue utilizing Esterometro can do so until 2022 when SDI reporting will become mandatory. SDI will also cover the submission of VAT returns and other VAT documents electronically.

Mark your calendar!

In case of the incorrect submission of invoices with transactions dated from 1 January 2022, taxpayers can expect fines of €2 per invoice with a limit of €400 in monthly fines. Similarly to if the taxpayer were to voluntarily regularize their outstanding VAT obligations in Italy, if the taxpayer were to submit their invoices correctly within 15 days after the established deadlines, the maximum fine would be reduced.

Get help from Marosa

At Marosa we developed a solution to issue and report your invoices to SDI directly from your billing system. We will map your native ERP file into the input file required by our system. All your invoices will then be issued and reported to SDI according to Italian e-invoicing requirements.