Contribution exemption for those under 36
- Studio Piceci
- October 12, 2021
- Reading time: 6 min
Following authorization on September 16 by the European Commission, INPS (the Italian National Social Security Institute) has published instructions on how to take advantage of the "Under 36" contribution exemption for the hiring and conversion to permanent contracts, by December 31, 2021, of young people who have not reached the age of 36 at the date of hiring. This exemption is provided for in the 2021 Budget Law No. 178/2020, with the aim of promoting stable youth employment.
This exemption is granted to all private employers, including employers in the agricultural sector, regardless of whether or not they are entrepreneurs. The incentive is not granted to companies in the financial sector, with Ateco codes 64, 65, and 66, as they are part of section "K," which is expressly excluded from this exemption. The exemption does not apply to the public administration. Please note that the measure does not apply to apprenticeships, domestic employment contracts, or hiring under intermittent employment contracts.
Coordination with other incentives
This exemption, which draws its rules from the structural exemption for young people referred to in Article 1, paragraphs 100 to 108, 113, and 114 of the 2018 Budget Law, "cannot be combined with other exemptions or reductions in financing rates provided for by current legislation, limited to the period of application of the same."
Therefore, this measure cannot be combined with, for example:
The incentive for hiring women who have been without regular paid employment for at least 24 months or who have been unemployed for at least 6 months and belong to specific areas or economic sectors or professions referred to in Law 92/2012, Article 4, paragraphs 8 to 11;
The hiring incentive for so-called "disadvantaged" women, as provided for in the 2021 Budget Law;
Southern Italy tax relief, for the same workers.
Incentive amount
The incentive consists of a 100% exemption from the payment of social security contributions by employers, up to a maximum amount of €6,000 per year, for a period of thirty-six months. The exemption is valid for forty-eight months for private employers who hire staff at a location or production unit located in the following regions: Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Sicily, Puglia, Calabria, and Sardinia.