The Italian Department of Finance (MEF) has launched a public consultation on a draft legislative decree implementing Article 2 of Directive (EU) 2025/516, part of the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) package. ViDA is intended to strengthen EU competitiveness by improving VAT collection, enhancing fraud prevention, and reducing administrative burdens for businesses.
The draft decree covers provisions due to apply from January 1, 2027. It mainly concerns the One-Stop-Shop (OSS) and Import One-Stop-Shop (IOSS) regimes, as well as measures linked to the Single VAT Registration system. The consultation forms part of Italy's process for implementing the ViDA package.
Key measures applicable from 2027
The draft decree mainly addresses OSS, IOSS and related cross-border VAT simplification measures, many of which are relevant to e-commerce. Key changes include:
- Expanding and clarifying the use of OSS and IOSS, including changes to the information businesses must provide when opting into these schemes and the extension of the non-Union OSS to certain services supplied in the EU to non-EU customers.
- Clarifying how OSS and IOSS work in practice, including when VAT becomes payable under OSS, VAT refund rules and how IOSS interacts with small-business VAT rules.
- Clarifying the EUR 10,000 EU-wide threshold for intra-EU distance sales of goods and certain digital services. For businesses registered under the Union OSS, the option to apply VAT in the customer's country would be treated as automatically exercised.
- Phasing out the call-off stock simplification, which currently allows certain stock movements between EU countries to avoid immediate VAT registration. The relevant Italian rules would be repealed from June 30, 2029.
- Clarifying when platforms may be treated as deemed suppliers, meaning when a platform may be treated as the supplier responsible for VAT, on certain intra-EU sales.
Additional changes covered by the draft include transitional rules for certain energy products treated as intra-EU distance sales of goods, as well as directive provisions that do not require changes to Italian domestic law. These measures are intended to simplify cross-border VAT compliance and support more consistent application of VAT rules across the EU single market.
Who is affected
The new rules are relevant for:
- E-commerce businesses that sell goods to customers in other EU countries;
- Businesses using OSS or IOSS to declare and pay VAT through a single EU portal;
- Marketplaces and digital platforms that facilitate sales between sellers and customers;
- Businesses using or affected by IOSS, including sellers of low-value imported goods;
- Businesses moving their own stock between EU countries, particularly those currently relying on call-off stock arrangements; and
- Small businesses and flat-rate taxpayers that may need to understand how the new IOSS and SME VAT rules interact.
For many of these businesses, the way they manage VAT identification, returns, and payments for cross-border transactions may change.
How to participate
The consultation is open to four categories of participants:
- Trade and professional associations;
- Economic operators and professionals;
- Research centers and universities; and
- Private citizens.
The draft decree is published on the MEF’s website, where interested parties may submit comments and proposals via the online form. The consultation is open from June 22, 2026, through July 6, 2026. Feedback may be considered before the decree is finalized ahead of its application on January 1, 2027.
