«Less risks and more savings for businesses thanks to the tutor» – Corriere.it

One of the objectives of the tax reform, according to what was declared by the government, is the simplification of relations between companies and the tax authorities. The idea is to exploit the databases available on invoices or VAT payments, which allow for a precise picture of the company’s fiscal capacity. For medium-small companies, the model on which the focus is that of the two-year arrangement with creditors: a proposal for revenue for the two years to come from the Revenue with the guarantee that, if the company were to invoice more than expected, the excess it is not taxed. For large companies, on the other hand, the path should be that of the so-called cooperative compliance, a cooperation regime in tax matters envisaged since 2015, which at the moment only applies to companies that have a turnover equal to or greater than ten billion euros.

A business mentor

This model – explains Elbano De Nuccio, president of the National Council of the Order of Accountants – provides for the inclusion within the company of a supervisory figure, a sort of tutor, who accompanies it in determining the taxes to be paid. We are moving in the direction of a model that will see accountants as increasingly strategic certifiers at the service of the public administration and link between companies and the tax authorities. De Nuccio does not hide his satisfaction with a system which, from his point of view, makes it possible to counter tax evasion through a filter ex antewhich verifies the correctness of the operations carried out within the companies and certifies them.

reward effects

The cooperative compliance mechanism guarantees a series of rewarding effects. The first is that of the abbreviated procedure of prior ruling, on the basis of which the tax authorities are required to respond within 45 days of submitting the application to the company. Furthermore, where the Revenue Agency does not agree with the company’s position, the penalties are reduced by half, explains the president of the National Council of the Order of Accountants. Another rewarding effect is that of the suspension of the collection until the finality of the assessment for the risks communicated in a timely manner. To give an example, if the Revenue Agency does not share the company’s vision with respect to promptly communicated conduct, any assessment issued by the Agency will be suspended until defined by the tax judge or the competent authority, he continues. DeNuccio. For companies that choose to join the collaborative compliance, there is also the exemption from presenting guarantees for the reimbursement of direct and indirect taxes throughout the corporate compliance regime. In the case of companies that have large turnovers, this allows them to save several million euros. In this mechanism, professionals will play a fundamental role, guaranteeing an initial check to verify if the company has behaved correctly and can access the benefits deriving from collaborative compliance, De Nuccio points out.

The president of accountants: A winning model

De Nuccio, reiterating the willingness of accountants to collaborate with the financial administration, underlined the urgency of a simplification and defined the model outlined by the tax reform being studied by the government as successful. The strategy implemented today with the ministry is a collaborative, joint, long-term strategy. The reform presents innovative instruments both in terms of the regulatory content and from an application point of view which, however, arise from experience in the field, he concludes, recalling that the draft enabling law, on which the government and in particular the Deputy Minister of Economy Maurizio Leo ( which has the delegation to the tax authorities) have been working for months, welcomes many of the proposals put forward by accountants in recent months.