Professions

Careers: the draft enabling bill includes provisions on AI training and paid work placements

Almost 10 months after its approval by the Council of Ministers, the bill has reached the Senate for the start of the debate process. Among the new provisions is the entrusting of the organisation of specialisation courses to national professional bodies and councils

by Camilla Curcio

29 July 2026

Aggiungi Il Sole 24 Ore
ai preferiti su Google

Thurstan Hinrichsen/peopleimages.com - stock.adobe.com

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Definition of competences
Consultancy and training
Specialisations and work placements
Fair remuneration
Group insurance policies and protection schemes
Professional partnerships and the limitation period

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Almost a year after its approval by the Council of Ministers and following the examination of the amendments by the Justice Committee, the draft enabling bill on the reform of professional regulations is ready to be tabled in the Senate for the first stage of the legislative process.

The text of the draft bill – signed by the Minister for Labour and Social Policies, Marina Elvira Calderone, and the Minister for Justice, Carlo Nordio – continues to pursue an ambitious goal: to update and reorganise the current legislation in order to modernise the world of the professions and bring it into line not only with European standards but also with the pace of a constantly evolving reality.

A revamp that will involve 15 professional categories (agricultural technicians, architects, social workers, actuaries, employment advisers, agronomists and foresters, geologists, surveyors, journalists, engineers, agricultural surveyors, industrial surveyors, customs agents, industrial property consultants and food technologists) and which, comprising both confirmations and new provisions, sets out a comprehensive list of amendments. Here are a few of them.

Definition of competences

To bring order to the maze of skills and duties, the draft bill aims to define activities and tasks reserved – albeit not exclusively – for each profession. In assigning competences to members of the various professional registers, it is guided both by the training pathway and by the reference frameworks adopted at national and European level. Furthermore, in the case of ‘open activities’ that are not exclusively contracted to one or more professionals, it allows anyone to carry them out.

Consultancy and training

Not only that: the range of specific skills also includes consultancy work , which has not always been formally recognised to date. Furthermore, the framework for continuing professional development is being redesigned, and will need to include a minimum number of hours dedicated to digital literacy, cyber security and AI.

Specialisations and work placements

However, the most significant changes appear to relate to academic progression and entry into the profession: the organisation of specialist courses is entrusted to national councils and regional professional bodies, including in partnership with universities. Furthermore, with regard to work placements, both the right to reimbursement of expenses incurred by trainees on behalf of the practice or professional for whom they work and, under a specific contract (except in public bodies), an allowance or remuneration commensurate with the duties performed.

Fair compensation

Shifting the focus on fair remuneration, the rules governing the agreement of remuneration remain unchanged; remuneration remains freely negotiable, but must in all cases be commensurate with the quantity, quality, content and characteristics of the service provided. Subsequently, it will be up to the individual legislative decrees to update the parameters.

Group insurance policies and protection schemes

The revamp also aims to include the strengthening of protection measures. Alongside the requirement for professionals to take out a professional liability insurance policy, national councils and pension funds will be able to enter into agreements and group policies for their members, setting out essential conditions and maximum cover limits to be updated every five years. Guarantee schemes have also been consolidated in the event of failure to meet tax, fiscal or social security obligations maternity, accidents, hospitalisation and serious illnesses.

Professional partnerships and the limitation period

Last but not least, the draft bill emphasises the regulation of gender equality on electoral lists and within the governance of professional bodies and councils, and classifies them as ‘public bodies’, thereby precluding the possibility of carrying out trade union activities.

It also addresses the regulations governing professional partnerships, specifying that holders of at least two-thirds of the share capital and voting rights must be professionals registered with one of the relevant professional bodies, and stipulating that the distribution of profits must be ‘proportional to the share of capital held’. Finally, there are significant changes in the area of disciplinary matters: for liability claims, the limitation period is reduced to five years from the previously stipulated ten.