By Ministerial Decree of 11 April 2025, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, in agreement with the Ministry of Economy, laid down the criteria and implementing procedures for the use of:
- the full exemption from the payment of INPS social contribution due by the employer in the case of the hiring of young workers with a permanent contract,[1]
- the full exemption from the payment of INPS contributions due by the employer in the case of the hiring, with a permanent contract, of women without a regularly paid job.
Without prejudice to the fact that INPS has provided administrative and procedural clarifications on these incentives with circular messages No. 90 and 91/2025, and without indulging in the technical details and operational steps of the online procedure necessary to apply for these benefits, the main relevant regulations are described here below.
Hiring of young workers under 35 years of age
Art. 22 of Decree-Law No. 60/2024 provides for a full exemption from the payment of social security contributions due by the employer for a maximum period of 24 months where the employer hires a worker who:
- is under 35 years of age,
- has never previously held a permanent employment contract,
- already employed on an open-ended basis by another employer who has partially benefited from the same exemption, is hired under an open-ended contract by a new employer who will benefit from the exemption for the remaining period.
The exemption applies both in the case of new hires with a permanent employment contract and upon conversion of a fixed-term contract into a permanent one.
The employer is also entitled to the benefit if they enter into a permanent employment contract with a worker who was previously employed under an apprenticeship contract and was not confirmed in service at the end of the apprenticeship period.
The benefit applies where the hiring — or confirmation — occurs between 1 September 2024 and 31 December 2025.
Differently from what is established by the law introducing the exemption, the implementing regulations provide that the contribution exemption relating to the hiring or conversion of a worker on an open-ended basis at a production unit located in the Regions of Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and Sardinia may only be used for hirings carried out between 31 January 2025 — the date on which the EU Commission authorised the measure — and 31 December 2025.
The exemption does not apply in the case of:
- a permanent employment contract with a worker having Dirigente (executive) status,
- apprenticeship contracts,
- domestic work contracts,
- permanent contracts entered into before submitting the relevant online application.
The implementing decree clarifies that the benefit in question cannot be used where the employer:
- meets any of the financial conditions under which a company is considered to be in difficulty, as defined in art. 2(18) of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014,
- has received and not reimbursed or paid into a blocked account any unlawful State aid subject to recovery under a European Commission decision (art. 16 of Regulation (EU) No. 1589/2015).
The exemption may not exceed 24 months and the monthly amount of EUR 500 per worker hired or converted.
The monthly exemption limit is increased to EUR 650 where the permanent hiring involves a worker assigned to a production unit located in one of the following Regions: Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and Sardinia.
Without prejudice to these limits, the benefit may not in any case exceed 50% of labour costs, meaning the total amount actually payable by the employer, including gross salary before tax and mandatory social security and welfare contributions.[2]
The exemption is available to employers who:
- have not carried out individual dismissals for objective reasons or collective redundancies during the six months preceding the hiring at the unit where the young worker will be employed,
- hold a valid DURC certificate and are not in breach of i) labour and social legislation, ii) the rules on working conditions and health and safety at work, or other legal obligations or those arising from collective agreements signed by the comparatively most representative employer and trade union organisations at national level,[3]
- comply with the general principles for the use of incentives,[4]
- comply with the procedures, territorial restrictions and eligibility criteria established under the National Programme for Youth, Women and Work 2021–2027 aimed at promoting the employment of young people, women and people in vulnerable situations,
- act within the authorised expenditure limits set out in art. 22(7) of Decree-Law No. 60/2024, namely EUR 458.3 million for 2025, EUR 682.5 million for 2026 and EUR 254.1 million for 2027.
The benefit is not cumulative with other exemptions from social contribution duties, except for the increased labour cost deductible under art. 4 of Legislative Decree No. 216/2023 in the case of new hires with a permanent contract.
The exemption is revoked, and the benefit must be repaid, in case the worker is dismissed for objective reasons within six months of being hired. The same applies where another worker with the same job title as the subsidised worker and employed at the same production unit is dismissed for objective reasons.
Hiring of women
Art. 23 of Decree-Law No. 60/2024 provides for a full exemption from the payment of social security contributions due by the employer in the event of hiring women who have not held a regularly paid job for at least 24 months, regardless of place of residence.
The exemption applies to both new hires with a permanent contract and to the conversion of fixed-term contracts into permanent.
It applies to hires — or conversions — made between 1 September 2024 and 31 December 2025.
However, under the implementing provisions, the exemption in the case of hiring — or conversion — of women into open-ended employment at production units located in the Regions of Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and Sardinia may only be used if:
- the woman has been without a regularly paid job for at least six months,
- the hiring or conversion takes place between 31 January 2025 (the date on which the European Commission authorised the measure) and 31 December 2025.
The exemption does not apply in the case of:
- permanent contracts for workers having Dirigente (executive) status,
- apprenticeship contracts,
- domestic work,
- permanent contracts entered into before submitting the relevant online application.
The benefit is precluded where the employer:
- meets any of the financial conditions under which a company is considered to be in difficulty,[5]
- has received and not reimbursed or placed into a blocked account any unlawful State aid that is subject to recovery under a European Commission decision.[6]
As noted, the exemption applies for a maximum of 24 months. However, the Ministry indicates that this duration is reduced to 12 months where the hiring concerns women employed in occupations or sectors with a gender gap exceeding the average gender gap by at least 25%.[7]
The exemption cannot exceed EUR 650 per month per woman hired or converted. In no case may the benefit exceed 50% of labour costs, i.e. the total amount actually payable by the employer, including gross salary before tax and mandatory social security and welfare contributions (art. 2(31) of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014).
The exemption is available to employers under the same conditions mentioned above for the hiring of young workers.
The benefit is not cumulative with other contribution exemptions, except for the increased labour cost deductible under art. 4 of Legislative Decree No. 216/2023 in the case of new hires on a permanent basis.
The exemption will be revoked and the benefit repaid if the worker is dismissed for objective reasons within six months of being hired. The same applies where another worker with the same job title as the subsidised worker and employed at the same production unit is dismissed for objective reasons. Any revocation has no effect on any residual period of exemption already used by another employer.
[1] Art. 22, Decree-Law No. 60/2024, converted with amendments by Law No. 95/2024.
[2] Art. 2(31) of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014.
[3] Art. 1(1175)(1176) of Law No. 296/2006.
[4] Art. 31, Legislative Decree No. 150/2015.
[5] Art. 2(18) of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014.
[6] Art. 16 of Regulation (EU) No. 1589/2015.
[7] Art. 2(4)(f) of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014.
Under art. 1(48) of Law No. 207/2024, the 2025 Budget Law introduced new rules for calculating the fringe benefit value of the following vehicles:
- passenger cars, mixed-purpose vehicles,[1] motorcycles and mopeds,
- newly registered,
- made available to employees for both work-related and personal use under agreements entered into after 31 December 2024.
For these vehicles, 50% of the amount corresponding to a standard mileage of 15,000 kilometres, calculated on the basis of the cost-per-kilometre tables[2] as determined by ACI[3], is treated as taxable income.
Furthermore, where the vehicles are environmentally friendly, the percentage applied is reduced to:
- 20% for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles,
- 10% for fully electric vehicles.
The provision, initially marked by brevity and ambiguity, gave rise to significant interpretative doubts. However, its literal wording left little room for alternative interpretations regarding the effective date. In the end, it required a legislative amendment to clarify how the new tax and social security rules were to be applied — an amendment that, though long awaited, was surprising in both its form and its delay, considering the operational implications for employers.
In light of the principles of progressiveness and proportionality, the conversion of Decree-Law No. 19/2025 into law (Law No. 60/2025, art. 1) introduced art. 1(48-bis) into Law No. 207/2024, effective from 30 April 2025. It states that the tax regime in force as of 31 December 2024 will continue to apply to vehicles:
- assigned for mixed work-related and personal use between 1 July 2020 and 31 December 2024,
- ordered by the employer by 31 December 2024 and assigned to the employee between 1 January 2025 and 30 June 2025.
In such cases, 30% of the amount corresponding to a conventional mileage of 15,000 kilometres, based on the ACI cost-per-kilometre tables, is treated as taxable income. The relevant 2025 tables were published in the Ordinary Supplement to the Official Gazette issue No. 304 of 30 December 2024.
[1] Art. 54(1)(a), (c) and (m) of Legislative Decree No. 285/1992.
[2] Art. 51(4)(a) of TUIR.
[3] Automobile Club Italia.
The judgment examined here, although issued by an ordinary court rather than the Corte di Cassazione, highlights and confirms a broad line of case law which, over time, has also provided operational guidance aimed at ensuring the validity and enforceability of probationary clauses.
In its judgment no. 591/2025, the Court of Messina reaffirmed that, where an employee is dismissed during the probationary period for failure to pass the probation, but in practice was assigned duties different from those specified in the relevant clause, the employee is entitled either to continue the probationary period or, if that is not possible, to compensation for the damage suffered.
According to the court, a negative probation outcome and a valid termination cannot be established when the conditions under which the probation is carried out do not allow for an adequate assessment of the employee’s professional capability, particularly where the employee was tested on tasks that differ from those specified in the employment contract’s probation clause. In such cases, the employee may opt to repeat the probation on the actual duties or claim compensation for the prejudice suffered.
The probationary period is governed by art. 2096 of the Italian Civil Code, which provides in paragraph 2 that both the employer and the employee are “respectively required to allow and to undergo the probation which is the subject of the probationary agreement”. Par. 3 specifies that “during the probationary period, either party may terminate the contract without notice or compensation, unless a minimum duration has been established”, and par. 4 adds that “once the probationary period has been completed, the hiring becomes definitive”.
Thus, termination during the probationary period has distinct features that underline its discretionary nature, relieving the employer of the obligation to justify it — unlike dismissals governed by Law No. 604 of 1966.[1]
Moreover, the exercise of the right to terminate must be consistent with the purpose of the probationary agreement, which lies in the shared interest of both parties in testing the contract’s mutual benefits — with the employer assessing the employee’s abilities and the employee evaluating the nature of the work and the working conditions.
Consistently with the above (and unanimously), case law has held that a negative outcome of probation and a valid termination cannot be established “where the conditions of the probation are not adequate to assess the worker’s capabilities. This includes cases where the probation period is too short or — as is specifically relevant here — where the worker performs tasks different from those for which the probation was agreed”.[2]
As to how such duties must be defined, case law is less uniform — especially following the entry into force of the so-called ‘Transparency Decree’.[3]
According to some case law (including lower courts), it is acceptable to make a “sufficiently specific reference” to the NCBA classifications, “referring to the most detailed level of the job classification system”,[4] provided such broad and interchangeable definitions are not, in the absence of other elements, inadequate for identifying in advance the actual duties to be assigned.
However, referring to the NCBA does not exclude the potential vagueness of the assigned duties — and thus the nullity of the probationary clause — especially where the NCBA definition includes “duties of a similar nature” in addition to the assigned duties, an expression that “indefinitely expands the range of tasks actually attributable to the classification level in question”.[5]
We remain available for any further clarification.
[1] Among others, Corte di Cassazione, No. 21586/2008
[2] Ex multis: Court of Rome No. 1910/2024, Court of Appeal of Milan No. 888/2020, Corte di Cassazione No. 31159/2018, No. 2228/1999 and No. 2631/1996.
[3] Legislative Decree No. 104 of 27 June 2022.
[4] Corte di Cassazione, No. 5881/2023, No. 1099/2022, No. 27785/2021, No. 5509/2015.
[5] Corte di Cassazione, No. 1099/2022