The EU Council has extended the obligation of electronic invoicing until December 31, 2024 and confirmed the extension also to the minimum and forfetari regimes
The obligation of electronic invoicing has been confirmed and can be extended also to the forfetari regimes in Italy. Italy's request has thus been approved first by the EU Commission last November 5 and now by the European Council, which gave its favorable opinion on December 13.
The Italian government in the last three years has shown that compulsory e-invoicing, introduced as a derogation from EU VAT rules, has made it possible to combat tax evasion and simplify bureaucracy. For this reason, it has asked Europe to be able to extend the compulsory nature of the measure until 2024 and to extend the range of subjects bound by the measure to include flat-rate schemes. The approval of the European Council, however, is not enough to make the obligation operational: the Italian government will have to issue an ad hoc regulation for the introduction of electronic invoicing for flat-rate schemes and certainly it will not be ready for January 1, 2022, but it will have to wait a few months.
Electronic Invoice Obligation: the EU Opinion
Since January 1, 2019, electronic invoicing has become mandatory for companies and freelancers who have a VAT number, except for those who fall under the regime of minimum and flat-rate taxpayers. The measure was introduced by the Italian government to combat tax evasion and seems to have worked, allowing in just one year to recover a revenue of more than 2 billion euros.
The introduction of mandatory e-billing came after the European Council granted it with Decision 2018/593, which, however, expires next December 31, 2021. For this reason, Italy asked for an extension of the measure until 2024, also requesting that the compulsoriness be extended also to the flat-rate regimes. A legitimate request, since the advantages of e-bills are so many that many members of the flat-rate and minimum regimes have joined the system voluntarily.
Electronic Flat Rate Invoice: the ok of the EU Council
On December 13, 2021, the European Council met and approved the EU Commission's proposal of November 5, 2021, which had already been discussed also by Coreper, i.e. the Permanent Representatives Committee. The proposal foresaw the extension of the obligation of electronic invoicing for companies and VAT numbers for another three years, until December 31, 2024.
In addition, for the three-year period 2022-2024, Italy will finally be able to extend the obligation of electronic invoicing also to the regimes of the minimum and flat-rate taxpayers, who until now had been exempt. In order to make this measure operational, however, it is necessary to introduce new legislation. The Italian government might decide to include an amendment in the year-end "DL milleproroghe", but this means that the e-invoicing obligation for minimum and flat-rate taxpayers will not take effect from January 1, 2022, but it is good to start using it now and not be found unprepared.
Among the online services that offer management software for e-invoicing for example there is Libero SiFattura, which provides users with a Free Basic plan, with which you can create and receive e-invoices, perfect to activate immediately for those who belong to the regime of minimum and flat-rate who can thus become familiar with the management software.
Electronic Invoice for Flat Rate Workers: What's Changing
The electronic invoice in Italy has turned out not to be an unwelcome obligation, but a valuable tool for companies and freelancers. The use of an e-invoice management system for issuing, sending and receiving e-invoices saves time and money, speeding up the accounting processes of your business, as well as reducing the use of paper and ink, to the benefit of the environment.
For this reason, many of those in the flat-rate scheme have chosen to adhere to e-invoicing even without the obligation to do so. This is also because those who choose e-invoicing see the deadline for tax assessments reduced from 5 to 4 years by the Internal Revenue Service. For those enrolled in the flat-rate scheme, the introduction of the invoicing requirement may not involve any changes, if you are among those who have already understood the benefits and purchased a management software for your electronic invoices.
Otherwise, with the arrival of the requirement, you need to choose one of the available services right away. Among these is SiFattura by Libero, which offers a free Basic plan to create and receive electronic invoices, and two paid plans: Lite at 29 euros per year plus VAT, to create and send e-invoices, and Pro at 49 euros per year plus VAT, which also offers the sharing of the management software with accountants and employees to have an up-to-date accounting.