Soft drinks, plastic and small parcels: these are the taxes the 2027 budget must avoid
Another delay is on the cards for the sugar and plastic taxes. The future of Italia’s €2 levy on low-cost parcels, alongside the new handling fee due to come into effect in November, remains to be determined.
Key points
When considering the broad figures of the 2027 budget, we must also take into account three taxes set to come into force between the end of this year and the start of the next. The sugar tax, the plastic tax and the Italian tax on small parcels: three levies that are likely to have an impact on the businesses directly affected, with knock-on effects for consumers as well. The starting points vary, but in every case, pressure from the majority political parties is focused on finding the necessary resources to secure at least one further postponement.
Sugar tax and plastic tax
The sugar tax and plastic tax were due to come into force in 2020 (in October and July respectively), but as reported in a study by the Italian Public Accounts Observatory (CPI) at the Catholic University, they have been the subject of repeated bipartisan extensions, that is, by successive governments and parliaments of different political persuasions, from the Conte II government (which had introduced them) to the Meloni government. To be precise, there have been eight extensions for the plastic tax and seven for the sugar tax. These extensions are currently set to expire on 31 December 2026.
Scope of application
The plastic tax is designed as a levy of 0.45 euros per kilogramme on single-use plastic products; this is the meaning behind Macsi. It covers packaging as well as disposable plates and cutlery. The sugar tax has been designed to target sweetened drinks, with a rate of 10 euros per hectolitre for finished products and 0.25 euros per kilogramme for products to be diluted.
The cost of postponements
As the CPI Observatory points out, the most recent postponement was provided for in the 2026 Budget Act, resulting in a shortfall this year of 73 million euros for the plastic tax and 372 million for the sugar tax. The deferral mechanism has so far made it possible to postpone the issue of a possible repeal, which would have required greater resources, not least because of the knock-on effects on subsequent years.
The possibility of a further extension
The possibility that this might involve a further extension had also been raised by Marco Osnato (FdI), chair of the Chamber of Deputies’ Finance Committee, who just a few days ago had emphasised: ‘I do not yet know how long the postponement will last; I hope it will be for a year, but we shall see.’ However, even in light of the Draft Budget Bill (DPB), the prospects for a repeal in the forthcoming Budget Law appear to have been definitively ruled out.
