Italian VAT registered firms are required since 2011 to submit an annual declaration - with the data of all domestic sales and purchases - using the internet channel of the Italian Revenue Agency, the so called “spesometro”.

In fact, on December 1^st 2016 the Italian Parliament enacted Law No. 255 (the fiscal law) which provides new measures to limit tax evasion as above. In this context also the “spesometro” changed some important facts:

• Due-date (from 2017 it is quarterly)
• Communication channel (only by electronic means)
• New penalty regime

So far so good. The problem was now, that the deadline for the spesometro was postponed already two times, because of several problems appeared and a lot of tax advisers contacted the CNDCE (National Order of Chartered Accountants and Auditors) in the person of Dott. Gilberto Gelosa, who is the Delegate for the fiscal system.

The problems most people were complaining about are the malfunctioning of the platform, with reported violations of the privacy and uncertain transmission of data. In fact, the software allowed any tax complier to see all sales/purchase data of any other VAT subject!

For this reason, Gelosa as tax responsible of Dottori Commercialisti Association, has requested "an immediate inspection of the actual situation to the Ministry of the Economy and the Revenue Agency and, if the irregularities were confirmed, the suspension of the performance until safe means of transmission are guaranteed".

However, at the same time "to leave to the individual offices of the Revenue Agency the evaluation criterion of whether the penalties for non-application of material fault and / or if the fulfilment is to be effected after October 16 - but within the 15 days from the original deadline, can only be the source of further criticisms arising from the disparities in treatment that can originate on a local basis."

In conclusion of the confusion has to be said, that there is an absolute and urgent need for a regulatory measure by the Government that revised the institute from the expiry date, to be extended further, in order to reach the total non-application of sanctions in respect of this first submission and consequently to the possible correction of errors or delays.

Both the Italian privacy and antitrust authorities committed inspections and requested clarifications.

On 27/9, a parliamentary interrogation was filed to the Chambers that, based on the considerations of which the Councillor Gelosa is responsible for the National Chamber, "since November 2017, the National Association had emphasized several times the extreme complexity and difficulty of the new commitments in question, in terms of time and necessary costs” and asking “what urgent initiatives the Government intends to take in order to resolve a situation of extreme gravity which damages taxpayers and industry professionals to restore the minimum conditions to carry out the required tax compliance in accordance with the principles of the taxpayer's statute."