Car tax reform: exemptions, regional concessions and hypotheses of abolition

The idea is to intervene on a tax that is particularly frowned upon by car owners, but the road to abolition is far from clear. Before transforming the proposal into a concrete measure, it will be necessary to identify the necessary resources and compensate for the lower revenue for the Regions. In fact, car tax ensures the Regions around 7.5 billion euros in revenue every year. A possible cancellation on a national scale should therefore also include a mechanism capable of compensating for the lost revenue, considering that there are already motorists exempt from paying.

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The main concession linked to the tax and connected to the type of propulsion is that relating to fully electric cars. National regulations provide, as a general rule, exemption from road tax for the first five years from first registration. The counting starts from the first registration of the vehicle and does not start again if the car is subsequently purchased as used. Once the five-year period has ended, the relevant national regime normally establishes a tax equal to a quarter of that applied to an equivalent petrol-powered car. However, the situation can change significantly from one region to another. In fact, territorial administrations have the possibility of providing more advantageous conditions. This is the case, for example, in Lombardy, where for exclusively electric cars the exemption has no time limit. Before considering a vehicle exempt, therefore, it is always necessary to check the provisions in force in the relevant Region.

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A further case of exemption concerns cars used for the mobility needs of people with certain disability conditions. The benefit may be recognized, among other cases, to those with permanent reduced or impaired motor skills, severe walking difficulties or multiple amputations. Also included are some forms of mental or psychological disability, blindness and deafness. However, the relief does not apply without limits: for cars there are specific thresholds relating to engine capacity and power. The limit is set at 2,000 cc for petrol models and petrol hybrids, 2,800 cc for diesel and diesel hybrids and 150 kW for electric cars. The exemption can be granted for a single vehicle, which can be registered directly to the disabled person or to the family member who is fiscally dependent on them. There is no pre-established duration: the benefit continues as long as all the required requirements remain present.

Even older cars can be included among those that are not subject to normal ownership tax. In particular, vehicles over 30 years old, provided they are not used for professional, entrepreneurial or artistic activities, are exempt from car ownership tax. The exemption is triggered automatically and, according to the indications of the Aci, is not necessarily subject to the registration of the vehicle in a historical register. However, there is an important distinction. If the vehicle that is over thirty years old is used and circulates on public roads or areas, the payment of an annual flat-rate circulation tax may be required. The amount of the latter varies depending on the Region.

For cars aged between 20 and 29 years the picture is different. In fact, at a national level there is no total and automatic exemption. When the envisaged conditions are respected, including the presence of the Certificate of historical relevance noted on the registration document, the general rule provides for a 50% reduction in the amount due. Even in this case, however, regional legislation can introduce more favorable provisions than the national regime.

However, owning a hybrid car is not enough to be automatically exempt from paying the tax. The presence of a mild hybrid, full hybrid or plug-in system does not, in itself, determine the cancellation of the tax. Any concessions are defined by the individual Regions and can be linked to various factors: the technology adopted, the power of the vehicle, CO₂ emissions, the year of registration and, in certain circumstances, even the scrapping of an older and more polluting car. For this reason, the differences between territories can be particularly marked. In Sicily, for example, for some new registrations carried out in the period 2026-2028, five-year exemptions are provided for certain fuels. In Basilicata, however, new hybrid cars can benefit from a relief lasting five years.

A final distinction concerns cars powered by LPG and methane, for which it is important not to confuse the exemption with a simple reduction in tax. For vehicles approved to run exclusively on LPG or methane, the general regulations referred to by the Aci establish a tax equal to approximately a quarter of that expected for a similar petrol car. In practical terms, this is therefore a 75% discount, not the complete elimination of the tax. For bifuel petrol-LPG or petrol-methane models, however, any additional benefits can be established by the individual regional administrations.

The possible abolition of the stamp duty therefore remains distinct from the changes already approved by the government. The legislative decree on regional taxes also provides for some changes in payment methods: from 1 January 2028, for new registrations, the first tax should be valid for 12 months from the date of registration, thus eliminating the calculation based on fixed deadlines in April, August or December for cars with more than 35Kw of power. Furthermore, for certain categories of vehicles the Regions will be able to introduce the quarterly payment. Among other changes, it is also foreseen that the tax will continue to be due for vehicles subjected to administrative detention.

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