“They weaken the fight against tax evasion.” The Court of Auditors rejects the decree reducing sanctions and the tax collection reform

The alleged “record in the fight against tax evasion”? It depends on scrapping and fiscal peace, which have nothing to do with the ability of the Revenue Agency to reveal undeclared tax bases and taxes. The latest implementing decrees of the fiscal delegation passed by the Meloni government? “Not fully consistent with the need to induce greater tax compliance”. […]

The alleged “record in fight against tax evasion“? Depend on scrapping And fiscal peace, which have nothing to do with the ability of the Revenue Agency to reveal undeclared tax bases and taxes. The last implementing decrees of the fiscal delegation launched by the Meloni government? “Not fully coherent with the need to induce greater tax compliance”. There Court of Auditors takes the opportunity of the hearing on Economics and finance document to reject across the board the executive’s latest moves on tax matters.

The provision on administrative and criminal sanctionsalready criticized by experts because it makes it more convenient not to pay taxes, according to the president Guido Carlino risks “weakening the deterrence who is necessarily called to exercise the sanctioning system“. Because “if on the one hand a reduction in administrative sanctions appears reasonable, this must take place on the condition that they recover in effectiveness And timeliness“. Instead the government stopped at the first part. While the situation from the point of view of the “advanced use of technologies and databases” remains “unsatisfactory”, in the opinion of the accounting judiciary: “Marginal is still thereuse of financial datawhich are not used to encourage spontaneous fulfillment, developing – as would be technically possible – a constructive comparison already in the pre-declaration phase with the data of electronic invoicing and electronic payments”. And we continue to not invest enough in the tax administration, which is understaffed and “whose resources should be constantly fed over time, in such a way as to ensure the necessary continuity of action in supporting taxpayers in compliance and substantial control their behaviors.”

As for the reform of collectiona true black hole that nullifies the credibility of the fight against tax evasion, in the legislative decree approved in March “the absence of an effective strategy on the subject of compulsory collection” despite the Court having “reported i legal and organizational limits which hinder collection procedures” and the damages of installment payments and amnesties. The main result of which is to widen the number of partial or total tax evaders “or in any case of those who, following the possibilities offered by the legislator itself, comply late and without paying either interest or penalties”.

The prime minister Giorgia Meloni and its majority, however, continue to claim the results obtained in 2023 in terms of revenue recovery in the fight against tax evasion: 24.7 billion, according to Revenue. What doesn’t add up? 19.6 billion came from promotional activities compliance and ordinary control but as many as 5.1 billion are “related to proceeds from extraordinary measures” recalls the Court. The increase in payments deriving from compliance letters was positive – one of the objectives of the Pnrr – which doubled compared to 2019, rising to 4.2 billion. But the amount of payments attributable to a real payment is “limited”. assessment and rectification of the data declared by taxpayers and to the identification of greater tax bases and originally undeclared taxes”.

Overall “the Italian situation continues to be characterized by high levels of tax evasion in the field of personal income taxation, in particular with regard to independent activities“. That is, self-employed workers, whose “propensity to the Irpef gap” – the share subtracted from the Revenue compared to the amount expected if everyone paid what they owed – according to the latest Report on evasion attached to the Nadef stood at 67.2% in 2021 , which is equivalent to 30 billion hole. An abnormal value if you consider that, taking the average of all taxes, the same indicator stopped at just over 15%. Yet it was precisely to those taxpayers that the right-wing government “gave” the extension of the flat tax and the launch of the agreed biennial budget.