Italian tax bills: what to do when a cartella arrives
Say who the creditor is and the year the debt was passed to the collection agency: the check says whether the bill falls within a settlement or whether another route applies.
The cartella di pagamento is the document the Italian collection agency uses to claim a debt entered on the roll by a creditor body: the Revenue Agency, INPS, prefetture, comuni, regions or other bodies. From service you have 60 days to pay, request an instalment plan or appeal; after that, late interest under article 30 of Presidential Decree 602 of 1973 builds up on the tax amount alone and the agency can start vehicle liens, mortgages or seizures. Each bill holds one or more rolls, each with tax or contribution, penalties, interest and service fees; for debts passed on before 1 January 2022 the collection fee also appears. The settlements in force only cover debts passed on up to 31 December 2023: a bill served in 2026 for a debt passed on in 2024 or 2025 is outside the quinquies, and no law text covers it today. For those bills the routes are paying within the sixty days, the ordinary instalment plan of up to 84 instalments, or an appeal where there are grounds. The date passed on is shown in the estratto di ruolo.
Settlement
Not covered
Debts passed on after 31/12/2023: no text covers them today
| Period covered | 01 Jan 2000 – 31 Dec 2023 |
| Possible route | ordinary instalment plan |
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
The items on the bill
| Item | What it is | Under the quinquies |
|---|---|---|
| Tax or contribution | The original debt | paid |
| Penalties | For non-payment or late payment | written off |
| Interest | Worked out by the creditor up to the roll | written off |
| Late interest | After 60 days from service | written off |
| Collection fee | Only debts passed on before 2022 | written off |
| Service fees | Cost of serving the bill | paid |
The official pages on the bill explain how to pay it and how to request a copy. The collection fee was abolished for debts passed on from 2022 by Law 234 of 2021.
How many days I have to pay the bill
To pay without late interest
40 days
| Deadline | 60 days from service |
| After the deadline | late interest on the principal |
| Instalment plan | can be asked later too |
Which route to choose
If the bill is old and falls within the quinquies, the item-by-item simulation shows what comes off. If it is recent, the comparison of possible instalments is on the instalment plan page. To know the hand-over dates and updated amounts of every bill in your name you need the estratto di ruolo. Texts reread on 26 October 2026.