General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by municipality and region and change over time; have your own situation checked by the notaio or an adviser in Italy (and in the country where you live).
Many owners abroad assume that selling an Italian home always means paying Italian tax on the profit. It does not. Under Italian income tax law, the gain on the sale of a home — the plusvalenza — is only taxable in specific situations, and the best-known rule is about time: how long you have owned the property. This guide explains the concepts, the exceptions and the role of the notaio, with links to the official texts of the Agenzia delle Entrate. It deliberately gives no rates: check the current figures at the source or with an adviser.
1. What the plusvalenza is
The plusvalenza is, simply put, the difference between what you receive for the home and what it cost you. The instructions of the Agenzia delle Entrate describe the calculation: the sale price, minus the purchase price or the construction cost, increased by the costs that belong to the property. Those costs include the taxes you paid when you bought it, the notary's fee for the purchase and expenses that increased the value of the home.
That is why your purchase deed and the invoices for improvements matter. Keep them together: without them you cannot show what the home really cost you.
2. The five-year rule
Article 67 of the Italian income tax code (TUIR), as quoted by the Agenzia delle Entrate in Circular 13/E of 13 June 2024, treats as taxable "other income" the gain on the sale of property bought or built no more than five years before the sale. Sell after more than five years and, as a rule, there is no taxable plusvalenza on a home. Building land follows different rules.
Two points are worth knowing:
- Gifted property: according to the Agenzia's instructions, for a home you received as a gift, the five years run from the date on which the donor acquired it, and the donor's purchase price counts as your cost.
- Payment in instalments: if the buyer pays in instalments and you choose the substitute tax described below, the instructions state that the tax is applied to the whole gain at the time of the deed.
3. Two exceptions: inheritance and main home
The same article excludes two situations, even within the five years:
- Inherited property (acquisiti per successione): the sale of a home you inherited does not fall under this rule.
- Main home: urban property that, for most of the period between purchase or construction and sale, was the main home (abitazione principale) of the seller or of members of the seller's family.
For owners who live abroad, the main-home exception needs care. Whether a home counts as your abitazione principale depends on where you actually lived. We have not found an official explanation of how the Agenzia applies this to non-residents, so do not assume it applies to a holiday home. Ask a tax adviser before you rely on it.
4. Homes renovated with the Superbonus
Since 1 January 2024 there is an additional rule. If works eligible for the Superbonus were carried out on the property and they were completed no more than ten years before the sale, the gain can be taxable even after five years. According to Circular 13/E, this also applies when the works were done on the common parts of the building that your apartment belongs to, and it concerns the first sale after the works. The same exceptions for inheritance and main home apply, with the main-home test measured over the ten years (or over the shorter period of ownership).
If your building had Superbonus works, ask the condominium administrator when they were completed. That date matters.
5. Non-residents are covered too
Living outside Italy does not take you out of these rules. Circular 13/E lists who can receive this type of income, and the list includes non-resident individuals without a permanent establishment in Italy, when the income is considered produced in Italy under article 23 of the TUIR. A home located in Italy is the typical case. So, as a non-resident, the five-year rule and its exceptions apply to you as well.
Your country of residence may also want to know about the sale and the gain. How the two countries share the right to tax depends on your own country's rules and on the tax treaty with Italy. Check this with an adviser in your country of residence.
6. The imposta sostitutiva via the notaio
When the sale falls within the five years, Italian law (article 1, paragraph 496 of Law 266/2005) lets the seller ask the notaio, at the time of the deed, to apply a substitute tax (imposta sostitutiva) on the gain instead of ordinary income tax. The notaio then:
- calculates and applies the tax, receiving the money from the seller;
- pays it to the State within the deadline for the registration tax, which the Agenzia's instructions give as 30 days from the deed;
- reports the sale to the Agenzia delle Entrate on a dedicated form, which you sign as well, because you are responsible for the figures on your purchase price and costs.
For a non-resident this can be practical: the tax is settled at the deed, through the notaio, in Italy. Whether it is the better choice in your situation depends on your figures and on the tax in your country of residence. The rate is set by law and has changed over time; see Circular 13/E for the current one. If you do not ask the notaio for the substitute tax, a taxable gain goes through the ordinary income tax route instead, and you need an adviser for the return.
7. A short checklist
- Find the date and price of your purchase (atto di provenienza) or the date of the inheritance or gift.
- Count: is the sale within five years of purchase or construction? Within ten years of completed Superbonus works?
- Check the exceptions: inherited, or main home of you or your family for most of the period?
- Collect the invoices for the purchase taxes, the notary's fee and improvements.
- If the gain is taxable: discuss the imposta sostitutiva with the notaio before the deed.
- Have your codice fiscale ready — the notaio needs it, also for the form. See our guide on the documents for an Italian sale.
- Ask an adviser in your country of residence how the sale is treated there.
What this guide does not cover
This guide is about the tax on the gain. The buyer's taxes on the purchase, the municipal property tax (IMU) and the inheritance tax are separate subjects, and costs such as agent's or notary's fees depend on your agreements. For the steps of the sale itself, read from compromesso to rogito.
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