The tax cut on first homes will not be the only protagonist of the new Stability law, which will also contain some tax measures in favor of businesses. Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan confirmed this yesterday, recalling that "there is a tax reduction strategy that begins in 2014 and ends in 2018: within this strategy, various types of taxation will be attacked, in the sense of their reduction.
On the real estate side, "it would be strange if this strategy did not also include the elimination of the tax on first homes - continued the minister from the Ambrosetti Forum in Cernobbio - which, let's not forget, concerns around 80% of Italian citizens". even if, "other things being equal, cutting taxes on labor is more effective in terms of GDP and employment".
In any case, “it is not only the house tax that is being attacked, in the past and in this Stability law – concluded Padoan -. I won't tell you more, but it cannot be said that in this stability law we will only cut taxes on the house. We are thinking, within the limits available, of extending further tax reductions in favor of business competitiveness”.
POSSIBLE MEASURES FOR ENTERPRISES
In particular, plans are being made for an increase in incentives for the purchase of machinery (strengthening Sabatini, which has worked well) and an advance cut in Ires. So far, the plan has been to cut the corporate income tax from 27,5% to 24% in 2017.
The one-year advance could only be granted to companies in the South, whose Ires revenue is worth just 10% of the 35 billion that the tax guarantees each year to the state coffers.
If, on the other hand, the advance of the IRES cut were granted only to small and medium-sized enterprises throughout the country, the missing revenue would be much more conspicuous, so the rate might not drop to 24% in one fell swoop.
THE COVERS
In terms of financial coverage, in addition to the 10 billion resulting from the spending review and the 5-6 billion that will come from greater flexibility on European budgetary rules, the government will also be able to contract about 3-3,5 billion freed up by GDP growth higher than expected. Padoan himself announced it yesterday, suggesting that the +0,7% expected in the latest update note of the Def could be revised to +0,8 or +0,9%.
HOUSE TAXES: THE CALCULATIONS OF THE CGIA OF MESTRE…
Returning to the house, according to calculations by the Cgia of Mestre, the tax cut will affect 19 million families, who will save an average of 204 euros a year. For those who live in modest homes, those classified in the cadastral category A3, the lowest cost will be just 120 euros. However, those who own villas or stately buildings will avoid shelling out 1.830 euros a year, a figure that rises to 2.280 for those lucky enough to own a castle.
…AND THOSE OF NOMISMA
The Nomisma research center stresses instead that the cut in the tax on first homes will generate a modest stimulus for the real estate market and "small" savings for citizens, equal to about 17 euros a month for two thirds of Italian families. Furthermore, the provision would not even go in the direction of greater equity: "Having highlighted the lack of stimulus capacity, it is necessary to ask whether the provision nonetheless pursues objectives of redistribution of the tax burden in the sense of greater equity", commented Luca Dondi, managing director of Nomisma.
"In our opinion - he added -, on the basis of the data from the survey of Italian families carried out by the Bank of Italy, the answer is also negative in this case, as the beneficiaries of the measure would be families with higher average income availability . The inequality of economic availability between owned nuclei and rented nuclei emerges with evidence worthy of greater attention”.
Lastly, according to Dondi, “the only way through which a more equitable tax system can be achieved is still the reform of the Land Registry. The Government deserves credit for having escaped the umpteenth round of roulette on rates and multipliers to correct the strong inequalities of the current system, but perplexities about the reform project remain. It seems rather difficult to identify the line of economic policy that one intends to pursue”.
