Car tax: the suspension will not end in 2027 – here are the exempt vehicles
Meanwhile, the bill introducing the measure was approved without amendment by a committee of the Chamber of Deputies
Key points
The suspension of the motor vehicle tax will, in the end, be extended under the Budget Law. And it will be made permanent, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had stated ever since the measure was introduced (in September); she confirmed this at a press conference following the approval of the Budget Law by the Council of Ministers. “Let’s make the measure permanent,” she said, clarifying that it will apply – in addition to motorbikes and mopeds – to cars with an engine power of less than 80 kW. This accounts for around 70 per cent of vehicles on the road.
Up to 80 kW
This therefore concerns the same fleet of vehicles involved in the September operation. There are no changes to the scope of the scheme: it is simply a matter of timing. This means, therefore, having to find resources amounting to around 2.2 billion euros – every year – to fund the regions, i.e. the authorities that collect vehicle licence tax.
“Let’s make the vehicle tax a permanent measure,” said Meloni, “as we had approved at one of the most recent Cabinet meetings. So there will be no vehicle tax on small and medium-powered cars, up to 80 kilowatts, or on motorbikes. Many had tried to play down this measure, claiming it was an electoral handout – partly because it only applies in 2027 – but they will be proven wrong because they will find, in black and white, what we had already made abundantly clear: the measure is structural and permanent. At least for as long as the centre-right is in government, because we’ve discovered that the centre-left actually likes road tax.”
Funding also comes from personalised number plates
Still on the subject of cars, one option could be the possibility of having personalised number plates: ‘You’ll be able to let your imagination run wild, more or less as you see fit,’ said Meloni, emphasising that there will, of course, be a cost involved.
Expansion of the group of beneficiaries
The push to broaden the scope of beneficiaries – in other words, to include more powerful cars as well – may not be over yet. The extension will certainly not come about via an amendment to the September road tax decree, which has, in the meantime, been approved by the Finance Committee without any changes.
