Risk of a false start for the pension fund reform from 1 July
The much-heralded institutional information campaign was conspicuously absent
A false start is on the cards for the new supplementary pension scheme, due to launch on Wednesday 1 July. The entire system – from the institutions to the pension funds and, consequently, employers – is not yet ready to implement and put into practice the changes provided for under the reform introduced by the Budget Law approved at the end of 2025.
As early as last February, during the conversion of the NRRP decree, it had been officially decided to postpone until 31 October 2026 the transfer of individual accounts – including the employer’s contribution – from sectoral pension funds to open-ended funds and PIPs. This is not only because it is a sensitive issue that warrants further consideration by the social partners, but also because the implementing rules are still lacking and the parties involved need time to update their internal procedures. It is therefore reasonable to expect a further extension.
The reform will therefore come into force gradually, and not merely through the extensions granted by legislation. Virtually all pension funds reached the 1 July deadline without being ready to accept the automatic enrolment of new employees who had not opted out into life-cycle investment plans or lines, based on an investment allocation strategy that is progressively adjusted to the age and retirement timeframe of the participating workers.
After all the COVIP guidelines setting out the details to be followed were published on Tuesday 23 June. And this is why the Authority has deliberately decided to turn a blind eye by introducing a 12-month transitional period, with a deadline for compliance set at 30 June 2027. Even for the new, more flexible ways of receiving a pension, the majority of workers will have to wait until after 1 July. In this regard, the Covip instructions were issued on Thursday 25 June, and a transitional regime has been put in place until 31 December 2026.
On Friday 19 June, once again at the eleventh hour, Covip published the guidelines that employers must follow to welcome new recruits and provide them with detailed information on the enrolment process, the designated pension scheme, the various options available and the relevant timelines. This obligation applies only to private-sector employers. Civil servants, as well as domestic workers, are excluded from the reform, and the public administration therefore has no new or more specific information obligations. The State is also exempt in sectors where new recruits can join sector-specific occupational pension funds such as Espero (Education), Perseo Sirio (Central Government, Healthcare, Local Authorities) or regional funds such as Laborfonds (Trentino-Alto Adige). Moreover – and more generally – the one major omission is the much-heralded institutional information campaign. And in this case – we fear – it is not merely a matter of delay, but of a structural shortfall.
