Employment, enhanced incentives and bonuses for young people and women
Contribution relief for those hiring people under 35, female workers and those in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) has been extended to 2027. Approval has also been given for the exemption for those converting fixed-term contracts to permanent ones. Super-deductions of 140 per cent and 180 per cent are being introduced. The maternity bonus has been strengthened and made permanent (but only for those with an income of up to 40,000 euros).
Key points
With a stagnant labour market, characterised by flat employment figures, rising unemployment and a renewed increase in fixed-term contracts (source: Istat, reference month: September), the government is using the budget to strengthen incentives and bonuses to boost permanent recruitment, particularly of young people and women. The 2027 Budget Law introduces a one-year extension, that is, until 31 December 2027, of the social security contribution exemptions provided for the permanent recruitment of women, young people and workers aged over 35 in Special Economic Zones, and in cases where fixed-term contracts are converted to permanent ones.
Maximum tax relief
A package of measures, supplemented, for the 2027 tax year, by an increase in the cost eligible for deduction where new staff are taken on: the coefficient rises to 80 per cent for working mothers, thus reaching 180 per cent, and to 40 per cent for young people under the age of 36, rising, in this case, to 140 per cent (this measure, it is understood, is expected to be combined with the social security contribution relief for young people). But let us proceed in order.
The Youth Bonus
As regards young people, the incentive provides, for new hires or the conversion of fixed-term contracts of no more than 12 months’ duration into permanent contracts, a 100 per cent exemption from social security contributions for 24 months, up to a limit of 500 euros per month, for each worker who must be under 35 years of age. The incentive rises to €650 if the recruitment takes place in the regions of Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Sicily, Puglia, Calabria, Sardinia, Marche and Umbria (the so-called ‘Zes Unica’). The exemption lasts for 12 months if the permanent recruitment concerns certain categories of disadvantaged workers. According to the technical report accompanying the budget, the youth bonus could encourage 41,920 new recruitments.
Incentives for women and ZES
For women who are unemployed or have never been in employment, the 24-month contribution relief of up to 650 euros per month (800 euros if the female employee hired on a permanent basis resides in the Single Special Economic Zone) is confirmed. According to the technical report, the estimated number of women affected is 32,100. Within the ZES Unica, the planned exemption is up to €650 for 24 months for those recruited up to December who are aged 35 or over and have been unemployed for at least 24 months, for the benefit of employers with up to 10 employees. Here, the technical report estimates a potential impact on around 8,000 individuals.
As with young people, recruitment of women must also result in a net increase in employment, and, in order to qualify for the benefit, the company must not have made any redundancies in the previous six months.
