Bank of Italy Regulation on acquirers reporting obligations for tax credit purposes

Background

Pursuant to Article 22 of Law Decree No. 124/2019 ("Tax Decree"), as converted into law by Law No. 157/2019, merchants may obtain tax credits of 30% of the fees charged for the acceptance of card payments or payments made with other traceable electronic payment instruments in the context of the supply of goods and services to consumers from 1 July 2020 and provided that the merchant revenues of the previous tax year do not exceed EUR 400,000.

This provision was implemented under the (i) Bank of Italy Regulation of 21 April 2020 (the "BoI Regulation") (available here in Italian only) and (ii) Italian Revenue Agency Regulation of 29 April 2020 ("Agency Regulation") (available here in Italian only).

Main provisions of the BoI Regulation

• Scope: payment service providers ("PSPs") (including those operating in Italy on a freedom to provide services basis) which have entered into an agreement with Italian merchants for the acceptance in Italy of payment cards and other traceable electronic payment instruments are required to report to the mentioned merchants specific information. The report must include, among other things, the list, number and total value of payment transactions carried out during the period of reference, a description of the fees charged to the merchant in the month of charging with a breakdown of the relevant fees according to the instructions set out under the BoI Regulation.
• Method and timing of transmission of the information: PSPs must report to the merchants electronically (e.g. by certified email or on the online banking of the merchant) the information above listed within 20 days of the month following the period of reference.

Main provisions of the Agency Regulation

• Scope: PSPs operating in Italy (including those operating on a freedom to provide services basis) are required to report to the Anagrafe Tributaria information concerning the fees charged to merchants, including among other things: the tax code of the merchant, month and year in which the fees are charged, the total number of payment transactions performed in the relevant month, the total number of payment transactions with consumers in the relevant month, the amount of fees charged in relation to transactions with consumers.
• Method and timing of transmission of the information: PSPs must file their reports on a monthly basis within 20 days of the month following the period of reference. The filing is to be performed electronically through the Italian Tax Authority's Sistema di Interscambio Dati (SDI – data interchange system) and the files submitted must comply with the technical specifications set out by the Agency Regulation.
• Foreign PSPs: nonItalian based PSPs (i.e. operating on a freedom to provide services basis) must become accredited with the SDI. In order to obtain accreditation they must first request an Italian tax code (unless they already have one) and then apply for accreditation with the SDI.

The first period of reference shall run from 1 July 2020.

Authored by Fulvia Astolfi, Jeffrey Greenbaum, Serena Pietrosanti, Claudia Colomba, Maria Cristina Conte, Elisabetta Zeppieri