Assets abroad: financial investments up by 24.8 billion. Deposits fall, real estate stable

What is the reason for the increase in the number of Italians filling in the RW form? General data do not help to understand this and one can only speculate. Certainly, if we look at the movements abroad - main homes and other houses - we see that the number of owners is stable over time at around 120,000. Which suggests that the increase in registrants for current accounts and financial assets may also depend on investment and asset allocation choices.

Among the various items monitored by the Finances are also growing 'tangible assets' abroad, a category in which - along with social security forms - yachts, cars and works of art also fall. They are the luxury goods par excellence, indicated by less than 17,000 people, and account for 2% of all cross-border assets in the clear.

It is interesting to unbundle the figure between the categories of taxpayers, according to the type of prevailing income declared in Italy.

In financial assets abroad, holders of capital income hold EUR 3.3 million per capita. But they are few - 1,900 people - and do not make up 1% of those declaring these assets in the RW panel. In second place, with EUR 1 million per capita, are those who earn most in Italy from leases. While employees and pensioners - who account for almost 70% of those declaring financial assets - stop at lower figures: under 400,000 euros for workers and just over 500,000 for pensioners. A gap that hints at the greater savings accumulated over a lifetime.

In itself, the fact that employees and pensioners are the largest patrol of those who fill out the RW return is not surprising, as they are by far the largest income categories. However, relating those who hold assets abroad to the relevant income category reveals the frequency of these investors and their preferences.

As expected, those with predominantly capital income are the largest investors abroad: almost one in five taxpayers (18.28%) declare cross-border financial assets.

VAT-registered self-employed persons tend to have more accounts abroad than employees and pensioners: the frequency is six and eight times higher respectively (2.47% versus 0.39 and 0.32%). But even members of tax-advantaged regimes, such as flat-rate taxpayers, outnumber employees and pensioners. And they are not too different from partners in partnerships, at least as far as financial accounts and assets are concerned.

As for preferences, among pensioners those who declare real estate abroad outnumber those who have financial assets. And the same happens among those in Italy who mainly declare income in the 'Miscellaneous income' category. The figure is reversed, on the other hand, among owners of households. In this group of taxpayers, perhaps with a view to diversification, those who declare accounts and financial assets outnumber those who have houses abroad.

Of course, the same taxpayer may declare more assets, but the measure remains indicative. In any case, the lowest presence of assets is among employees, capital income holders and flat-rate taxpayers.