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The so-called Italian “plastic tax” is a tax on the consumption of single-use plastic manufactured goods (manufatti con singolo impiego, hereinafter “MACSI”). It was introduced in art. 1, paragraphs 634 – 658, of Law 160/2019, in order to disincentivize the production of single-use plastic products, in implementation of Directive no. 2019/904/EU.
The application of the plastic tax has been deferred since its introduction in 2019. Contrary to what has been speculated by some in the media, Decree Law 41/2021 (the so-called “Decreto Sostegni”), published in the Official Gazette no. 70 of March 22, 2021, does not provide for a new deferment of the plastic tax. Therefore, unless further extensions are granted by future regulatory measures, the plastic tax will become effective from July 1, 2021.
Defining the concrete modalities of applying the tax has been delegated to a decree by the Director of the Customs and Monopolies Agency. This decree has not yet been issued. However, during the Open Hearing held on February 18, 2021 and dedicated to the plastic tax, the Customs and Monopolies Agency gave a preview of the draft decree. The text of the draft decrees is still subject to amendments.
On which products does the plastic tax apply?
The tax applies to products intended for the “containment, protection, handling or delivery of goods or foodstuffs” made using “plastics consisting of organic polymers of synthetic origin” and basically not designed to be used repeatedly (single-use products).
The draft decree contains a non-exhaustive list of manufactured goods that are included among the MACSI subject to tax. These include plates, preforms, bottles, caps, containers, lids, bags, packaging, films, foils, and, and all other polymeric products, however shaped or mouldable, suitable to constitute a wrapping or part of a wrapping for goods or food products.
MACSI made with the use, even partial, of plastic materials consisting of organic polymers of synthetic origin included under customs headings 3901, 3902, 3903, 3904, 3905, 3906, 3907, 3908, 3909, 3910 and 3911 of the Combined Nomenclature of the European Union will be subject to the plastic tax.
Among others, the following are considered MACSI subject to the plastic tax:
Exclusions
The following are excluded from the application of the plastic tax:
The tax is also not due on the plastic material contained in the MACSI that comes from recycling processes.
Subjects liable to the tax
Plastic tax is payable by:
The subject that produces MACSI using other MACSI on which the tax is due by another subject, without the addition of further plastic materials, is not considered a manufacturer;
Tax liability
The plastic tax is triggered by:
Plastic tax liability arises at the time of the release for consumption of the MACSI in Italy, which occurs:
The tax is not due for MACSI sold directly by the manufacturer for consumption in other EU Member States or exported.
Amount of the tax
The tax is fixed at 0.45 euro per kilogram of plastic material contained in the MACSI.
Payment and terms
For MACSI manufactured in Italy or coming from other EU Member States, the tax due must be paid:
The draft quarterly plastic tax return forms have been published, and they require a list of detailed information.
For MACSI coming from non-EU countries, the tax is assessed and collected by the Customs and Monopolies Agency with the procedures provided for border duties.
The tax is refunded when unduly paid; the refund is requested, under penalty of forfeiture, within two years from the date of payment. The statute of limitations for the recovery of the credit is five years.
Penalties
In cases of non-compliance of plastic tax obligations, administrative penalties apply as follows:
Implementing provisions set out in the draft implementation decree
The draft implementation decree sets out the obligations on all parties required to pay plastic tax.
The “manufacturer” of MACSI is obliged to:
The seller is obliged to:
EU purchasers and EU sellers, the latter through their fiscal representative, are obliged to:
Importers should indicate in the customs declaration (DAU) the tariff classification code of the goods and carry out a self-assessment of the tax with reference to the quantity of MACSI declared.