How Italian Income Tax (IRPEF) Works in 2026
Italian income tax (Imposta sul Reddito delle Persone Fisiche, IRPEF) is a progressive tax applied to your taxable income. For 2026, Italy uses three brackets. Only the portion of your income in each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate.
The 2026 IRPEF brackets
The Italian parliament reduced the bracket count from four to three starting from the 2024 tax year. For 2026 the scale is as follows.
| Taxable income (reddito imponibile) | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to 28,000 EUR | 23 % |
| 28,001 to 50,000 EUR | 33 % |
| Over 50,000 EUR | 43 % |
IRPEF lorda: the progressive sum
To find the IRPEF lorda (gross tax), apply each rate only to the slice of income in that bracket. A reddito of 30,000 EUR means 28,000 EUR is taxed at 23% and the remaining 2,000 EUR is taxed at 33%. The sum is 6,440 + 660 = 7,100 EUR.
Detrazione lavoro dipendente: the employee deduction
Employees benefit from a decreasing tax deduction (detrazione per lavoro dipendente, art. 13 TUIR). It is 1,955 EUR at low incomes and tapers to zero as reddito reaches 50,000 EUR. Unlike a deduction from taxable income, this credit is subtracted directly from the tax owed.
IRPEF netta: the tax you actually owe
IRPEF netta = max(0, IRPEF lorda - detrazione lavoro dipendente). If the detrazione exceeds the lorda (possible at very low incomes), the netta is zero. This is the tax that is withheld from payslips as IRPEF ritenuta.
Worked example: reddito 30,000 EUR
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| IRPEF lorda (23% on first 28,000) | 28,000 x 0.23 | 6,440.00 EUR |
| IRPEF lorda (33% on next 2,000) | 2,000 x 0.33 | 660.00 EUR |
| IRPEF lorda total | 6,440 + 660 | 7,100.00 EUR |
| Detrazione lavoro dipendente | 1,910 x (50,000 - 30,000) / 22,000 | 1,736.36 EUR |
| IRPEF netta | 7,100 - 1,736.36 | 5,363.64 EUR |
Effective rate vs marginal rate
The marginal rate is the bracket rate that applies to the last euro of income (33% at 30,000 EUR). The effective rate (aliquota media) is IRPEF netta divided by reddito, expressed as a percentage. At 30,000 EUR reddito, the effective rate is 5,363.64 / 30,000 = 17.88%. This is always lower than the marginal rate because the lower brackets are taxed at lower rates and the detrazione reduces the total.
Try the IRPEF Calculator toolEstimate Italian IRPEF income tax for 2026 using the three-bracket scale and the standard detrazione lavoro dipendente. Enter your taxable income and see IRPEF lorda, detrazione, IRPEF netta, and effective rate.Related articles
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