With Circular No. 82/2026, INPS provides instructions for the application of the full exemption from mandatory social security contributions introduced by art. 1, para. 210-213 of Law No. 199/2025, aimed at promoting the employment of working mothers, in favour of private-sector employers who, from 1 January 2026, hire women who have not held regularly paid employment for at least 6 months and who are mothers of at least three children under the age of 18.
Scope of application
The exemption (introduced on a structural basis) applies to private-sector employers who, from 1 January 2026, hire, on either a fixed-term or permanent basis, women who are:
- mothers of at least three children under the age of 18, including adopted or fostered children. This requirement is fixed at the time of hiring; it is therefore irrelevant whether i) the third child is born after the incentivised hiring event, ii) one of the children turns 18 after the incentivised hiring, or iii) there are other children over the age of 18, provided that at least three meet the required age criterion;
- without regularly paid employment for at least 6 months. This concept refers to disadvantaged workers who “in the last 6 months have not carried out work attributable to an employment relationship lasting at least 6 months, or who in the last six months have carried out self-employed or quasi-subordinate work generating income below the minimum annual personal income threshold exempt from taxation” (Ministerial Decree of 17 October 2017).
Amount and duration of the exemption
The exemption, which is a structural measure and does not apply to premiums and contributions due to INAIL, is granted up to a maximum annual limit of €8,000.00, equal to €666.66 on a monthly basis, reduced proportionally in the case of part-time employment.
The incentive is also granted within the following maximum limits:
- 12 months from the date of hiring under a fixed-term employment contract, including agency work;
- 18 months from the date of hiring under a fixed-term employment contract, where the contract is converted into a permanent one;
- 24 months from the date of hiring under a permanent employment contract.
Eligibility conditions
Employers may access the exemption in question provided they comply with:
- the general principles governing access to incentives (art. 31 of Legislative Decree No. 150/2015);
- the provisions set out in art. 1, para. 1175 of Law No. 296/2006 regarding access to contribution relief measures.
Compatibility with other relief measures
The exemption, which cannot be combined with other exemptions or reduced contribution rates, is in any case compatible with:
- the increase in the deductible cost in the case of new hires (art. 1, para. 399-400 of Law No. 207/2024);
- the exemption from the IVS (invalidity, old age and survivors) social security contribution share payable by the working mother (art. 1, para. 180 and 181 of Law No. 213/2023);
- the 1% exemption on social security contributions, up to a limit of €50,000.00 per year, for employers holding gender equality certification under art. 46-bis of Legislative Decree No. 198/2006.
Submission of the exemption application
For authorisation to access the relief measure, which is granted by way of offsetting in contribution returns, employers must submit an application for admission to INPS, exclusively by completing the “ELM3” form, providing the following information:
- details of the woman hired and a declaration of her status as unemployed and as a mother of at least three children under the age of 18;
- the code of the mandatory notification relating to the employment relationship established or converted;
- the amount of average monthly pay, including instalments of the thirteenth and fourteenth month’s salary;
- the applicable part-time percentage, where the work is carried out on a part-time basis;
- the rate of the employer’s contribution subject to the exemption.
We remain available for any further discussion that may be considered appropriate.