For centuries investing in gold has been considered an excellent business not only for the possibility of preserving capital over time protected from global risks (wars, economic crises, bankruptcies
banking), but also to obtain substantial earnings and, above all, to pass on even substantial amounts without paying taxes. Purchasing gold ingots or coins (pounds, marenghi, dollars, krugerrands, pesos) meant transforming money (often cash, perhaps the result of “black” or even illegal and
criminal) in a safe haven that can be easily stored in a safety deposit box away from eyes
indiscreet and transmittable without controls.
Let us remember that in our country it has only become possible for private individuals to buy and sell investment gold in ingots since 2000, with the law that abolished the gold monopoly by
of the Italian Exchange Office, also establishing that gold trading was exempt from VAT. As regards simple possession, the private citizen who purchases is not required to make any declaration.
An area of ”franchise” that the government has decided to remove to make the investment in gold
comparable to an investment in real estate or securities, therefore subject to capital gains tax
achieved.
An act of elementary tax justice that remedied centuries of tax evasion. The tax affects the capital gain, i.e. the profit due from the higher sales price compared to
that of purchase. The rate is the “ordinary” rate expected for any type of investment gain, i.e. 26%.
For example, if you buy an ingot for €1,000 and resell it for €1,300, on the profit of €300 you
will pay a tax of €78. As in any other investment case, the purchase and sale price must be documented with invoices issued by accredited operators.
And here a problem arises for many.
Those who have received gold thanks to an inheritance, or have accumulated the coins given to them over the years
communion, birthday or other important events certainly has no trace of the purchase.
The “presumptive” calculation then takes place, which until December 2023 provided for the payment of 26% on
a lump sum capital gain set at 25% of the sale: for example, by selling an ingot to
€1,300 not having the certification of the purchase price, you had to pay a tax equal to
€84.5. In practice, the seller paid an “equity” equal to 6.5% of the sale value.
As mentioned, however, the overall “soft” tax regime was modified with the law
budget 2024 (Article 92 ac L. 30 December 2023, n. 213), which established that for all sales of gold for which documentation relating to the initial value is not available, a tax equal to 26% of the price collected will be paid . Returning to the previous example, on €1,300 the tax shoots up to €338, four times the previous level.
