How it works
In Italy an employee pays INPS pension contributions out of the gross pay (9.19% for most private-sector employees), then IRPEF on what is left. IRPEF is progressive, reduced by tax credits (detrazioni) that depend on income, and topped up by regional and municipal surcharges (addizionali). The employer withholds all of it in the payslip.
IRPEF scale 2026
- 23% up to EUR 28,000.
- 33% from EUR 28,000 to EUR 50,000 (it was 35% until 2025; the 2026 budget law, Law 199/2025 art. 1 para. 3, lowered it).
- 43% above EUR 50,000.
Employee tax credits and wage-tax cuts
- Detrazione lavoro dipendente (TUIR art. 13): EUR 1,955 up to EUR 15,000; EUR 1,910 + 1,190 x (28,000 - income) / 13,000 from EUR 15,000 to EUR 28,000; EUR 1,910 x (50,000 - income) / 22,000 from EUR 28,000 to EUR 50,000; nothing above. EUR 65 more between EUR 25,000 and EUR 35,000.
- Cuneo fiscale up to EUR 20,000: a tax-free sum of 7.1% (up to EUR 8,500), 5.3% (up to EUR 15,000) or 4.8% (up to EUR 20,000) of employment income (Law 207/2024 art. 1 para. 4).
- Cuneo fiscale from EUR 20,000 to EUR 40,000: an extra tax credit of EUR 1,000 up to EUR 32,000, falling to zero at EUR 40,000.
- Trattamento integrativo: EUR 1,200 for incomes up to EUR 15,000 when the gross tax exceeds the employee credit less EUR 75 (Decree-Law 3/2020).
INPS contributions
The employee share is 9.19% of gross pay, plus an extra 1% on the part above EUR 56,224 (the 2026 first pensionable band), with a ceiling of EUR 122,295 for employees whose contributions start after 1995. INPS contributions are deductible, so IRPEF is calculated on gross pay minus INPS.
Worked example: EUR 30,000 gross, average surcharges
net = gross - INPS - IRPEF - surcharges
- INPS: 9.19% x 30,000 = EUR 2,757; taxable income = 27,243
- Gross IRPEF: 23% x 27,243 = EUR 6,265.89
- Credits: employee credit 1,979.26 + EUR 65 + cuneo credit 1,000 = EUR 3,044.26, so IRPEF = EUR 3,221.63
- Surcharges at about 2.6% of 27,243 = EUR 708.32
- Net = 30,000 - 2,757 - 3,221.63 - 708.32 = EUR 23,313.05 per year (EUR 1,942.75 over 12, EUR 1,793.31 over 13 payments)
At EUR 60,000 gross the INPS line is EUR 5,551.76 (the extra 1% applies above EUR 56,224) and the average-surcharge IRPEF is EUR 15,612.74.
What this calculator leaves out
Regional and municipal surcharges vary by region and town (from about 1.2% to 3.3% regional, up to 0.9% municipal, often with income bands): the three options are rough approximations, not official averages, so check your own region and comune. Also left out: pension funds and other deductible expenses, 19% deductions (medical, mortgage), fringe benefits, TFR, executives, part-year contracts, and the temporary flat tax on pay increases from contract renewals. The assegno unico universale for children under 21 is paid by INPS outside IRPEF, so it is not in this result.