Businesses support a significant portion of the financing of the 2027 budget, while interventions for competitiveness and investments remain to be strengthened. This is one of the main findings presented by Confindustria during the parliamentary hearings on the budget law, through the intervention of the general director Maurizio Tarquini. During the same day, Istat also illustrated the effects of the measures on businesses, taxpayers, pensioners and families, highlighting the benefits and penalties of the fiscal policy planned for next year.
Maneuver 2027: for Confindustria 43% of the coverage burdens businesses
One of the main critical elements highlighted by Confindustria concerns the distribution of the costs necessary to finance the budget law. According to the assessments of the industrialists’ association, approximately 43% of the overall coverage of the maneuver is borne by the companies. A substantial part of the contribution comes from interventions that affect specific production sectors, including banking, insurance, energy and gaming. Added to these are provisions which, according to Confindustria, risk impacting the liquidity of companies, limiting the resources available to support ordinary activity and plan new investments.
The general director Maurizio Tarquini recognized some positive aspects of the maneuver, but underlined the need to intervene during the parliamentary process to correct the measures that could penalize the production system. The industrialists’ request is to use the discussion on the Budget law to rebalance the weight of the interventions and strengthen the policies to support growth. The objective is to prevent the financing of budget measures from translating into a further burden for companies, especially in a phase in which the competitiveness of the Italian industrial system has to deal with high costs and economic uncertainties.
Energy and competitiveness: the priorities indicated by industrialists
Among the issues on which Confindustria requests more incisive intervention is above all the cost of energy, considered one of the main factors that influence the competitiveness of Italian companies. The association positively evaluates the measures introduced by the maneuver to contain the price of energy supplies, but believes that the interventions should be expanded. In particular, it proposes to extend the Energy Release mechanism to large companies too, going beyond the current approach which is more oriented towards small and medium-sized companies.
Another request concerns the extension of the virtual Interconnector, together with a strengthening of the measures to compensate for the indirect costs linked to the European emissions trading system, the so-called ETS. On this front, Confindustria proposes to increase the resources allocated to the compensation fund, bringing them from the current 600 million to a figure between 800 and 900 million euros. The financing could come through the proceeds of the ETS auctions, thus avoiding further burdening the public budget. The energy issue is part of a broader request: to build a medium-long term industrial strategy, capable of identifying some strategic sectors and concentrating adequate resources on them. For Confindustria, in fact, it is not sufficient to intervene with annual measures, but it is necessary to guarantee companies a stable framework that allows them to plan investments.
Superbonuses and liquidity, doubts about changes to tax credits
Another point raised during the hearing concerns the provisions that modify the conditions of operations already started. In particular, Confindustria has expressed doubts about the ten-year extension of the tax credits linked to the Superbonus.
The concern mainly concerns companies that have already accrued credits on the basis of defined collection agreements and forecasts, counting on the possibility of using or recovering the sums within the originally established times. A change in the methods of use can have consequences on the financial planning of companies, reducing available liquidity and creating difficulties in managing cash flows. The principle recalled by industrialists is that of the certainty of the rules: companies must be able to count on predictable regulatory conditions, especially when they have undertaken economic commitments on the basis of current legislation.
Istat, Flat tax up to 100 thousand euros: tax savings of 8 thousand euros
During the same day of hearings, Istat also intervened, presenting a quantitative assessment of the effects of the maneuver on the various economic subjects. Among the measures analyzed is the increase from 85 thousand to 100 thousand euros of the revenue and compensation threshold for accessing the flat-rate regime. According to estimates from the National Institute of Statistics, around 55 thousand taxpayers could benefit from the extension.
For these subjects, the average tax saving compared to ordinary taxation, based on Irpef and additional taxes, could reach around 8 thousand euros. The change would result in a reduction in revenue for the State estimated at around 400 million euros. Istat also examined the reduction of the Irpef rate of the second bracket, which for 2027 should fall from 35% to 33%, with application up to 55 thousand euros of income. The measure would affect approximately 3.7 million taxpayers and would result in lower revenue of just under 1.7 billion euros. The estimated average benefit would be around 450 euros per taxpayer.
Families, average benefit of 250 euros but almost 3 million risk a loss
Istat also assessed the overall impact of the measures aimed at families, considering the reduction of Irpef, the changes to the revaluation of pensions and the bonus intended for working mothers. Overall, the interventions would affect approximately 6.5 million families, equal to one in four, with an estimated average benefit of approximately 250 euros per year.
This data, however, hides very different situations. For almost 3 million families the effect of the maneuver would be negative, with an average loss of more than 200 euros. These are mainly families in which there are pensioners who do not benefit from the Irpef reduction, but are affected by the changes to the revaluation of the allowances. For the remaining 3.5 million families, however, the average benefit would be around 600 euros per year. The cuts in Irpef for higher incomes and the bonus for working mothers, which produce more significant effects among families with lower incomes, have the greatest impact.
The mothers bonus also has differences between the beneficiaries. In 2027 the measure should involve just under one million workers, with an average annual amount of around 1,100 euros. For the approximately 820 thousand women who already received the monthly benefit of 60 euros in 2026, the new intervention would entail an additional benefit of approximately 460 euros per year. The situation is different for the remaining 160 thousand beneficiaries: going from the previous total contribution exemption, which guaranteed an average net benefit of around 1,500 euros, to the new bonus, the economic advantage would decrease by around 400 euros.
