15 January 2026
Social safety nets
Social safety nets 2026: extensions, new measures and protections for workers and families
INPS

INPS has provided an overview of the main provisions concerning social safety nets and income-support measures for workers and families introduced by the 2026 Budget Law and the most recent legislative measures.

Among the most significant developments is the extension, for the year 2026, of extraordinary wage supplementation schemes (CIGS) for workers employed by companies located in areas of complex industrial crisis, financed with an allocation of €100 million. The exemption from the payment of additional contributions has also been renewed for production units making use of CIGS in the same areas.

The 2026 Budget Law also extends CIGS in cases of business cessation and the measures supporting companies of strategic economic importance, providing for a further period of wage supplementation until 31 December 2026, within the established spending limits.

Extraordinary wage supplementation for complex reorganization processes has also been confirmed, as well as income support for workers of companies that have been seized or confiscated and measures in favor of employees in the call-center sector.

The framework is completed by provisions on the protection of parenthood and the strengthening of instruments relating to parental leave. Overall, these measures confirm the legislator’s intention to ensure continuity in income-protection systems and employment support.

15 January 2026
Remuneration and benefits
Amount under the 2025 Budget Law: unpaid days excluded from the calculation of theoretical income
Italian Revenue Agency

A Local Health Authority asked the Italian Revenue Agency how to identify the “days of dependent work” to be considered for the purpose of calculating the amount provided for by the 2025 Budget Law for workers with a total income not exceeding €20,000. The doubt concerned situations in which the worker, although formally employed, receives no remuneration due to unpaid leave, periods of unpaid absence, or suspension from work.

The Agency clarified that, in determining the “theoretical annual remuneration,” only the days on which the worker actually received remuneration must be counted. Periods of unpaid absence are therefore excluded, even if the employment relationship formally continues.

In particular, in cases of partially paid absences during the year, the calculation must take into account only the days actually remunerated; where there are no worked and paid days at all, the benefit does not apply, even if arrears or ancillary payments not linked to actual service are paid.

This clarification follows earlier guidance on tax deductions for employment income, confirming the alignment between the calculation criteria used for tax purposes and those applicable to the new measure introduced by the 2025 Budget Law.

20 January 2026
Remuneration and benefits
Loss of chance: employer’s breach alone is not sufficient without proof of concrete opportunities
Supreme Court, Labour Section

Several employees brought proceedings claiming that their employer had failed to set individual targets for two years, as required by a company collective agreement. On this basis, they sought damages for loss of chance, arguing that the omission had prevented them from obtaining a performance bonus.

After their claims were rejected on appeal, the case was brought before the Supreme Court. The Court confirmed the decision on the merits, clarifying that damages for loss of chance cannot be presumed in itself. It is therefore insufficient merely to allege the employer’s breach of the obligation to assign targets.

According to the Court, the employee must allege and prove, including by presumptions, that—had the targets been properly assigned—there would have been real and concrete chances of achieving them. Relevant factors include the manner in which the work was performed, the type of duties assigned, and the employee’s professional characteristics and abilities.

In the absence of such allegations, the claim for damages cannot be upheld, as this is a factual assessment reserved to the trial judge and not subject to review on points of law.

16 January 2026
Pensions and contributions
Early retirement for Sicilian miners: are contributions due even if time-barred? The Supreme Court clarifies the limits of automatic entitlement
Supreme Court, Labour Section

A former worker in the Sicilian mining sector, already receiving a seniority pension, brought an action against the regional company that had managed the closure of the mines, seeking recalculation of the social-security contributions due to INPS in relation to the early-retirement allowance actually paid. The trial court upheld the claim, but the Court of Appeal rejected it, considering that a previous settlement amounted to a waiver of claims.

In an earlier ruling in 2020, the Supreme Court clarified that pension rights arising from the cessation of mining activities are not at the worker’s disposal and therefore cannot be validly waived. After the case was resumed, however, the Court of Appeal again rejected the claim on the grounds that the contributions were time-barred.

The Supreme Court confirmed this outcome: the principle of automatic entitlement to social-security benefits—which protects workers even where the employer fails to pay contributions—is not absolute and is expressly limited by the rules governing limitation periods. In particular, for contributions due after the entry into force of Law No. 335/1995, the five-year limitation period applies; a worker’s complaint does not extend this period.

The decision reiterates that, even where the employer is a public entity or a regionally controlled company, the contribution obligation remains subject to statutory limitation periods and cannot be reopened once those periods have expired.

17 January 2026
Pensions and contributions
Social-security contributions paid abroad: deductible even when conventional remuneration applies
Italian Revenue Agency

A worker tax-resident in Italy but continuously employed abroad in 2024 asked the Italian Revenue Agency whether mandatory social-security and welfare contributions paid in the foreign country could be deducted from total income, even where— for tax purposes—income is determined using the conventional remuneration rules applicable to employment income produced abroad.

Referring to recent Supreme Court case law, the tax authorities clarified that such contributions remain deductible from total income, even if they do not affect the determination of employment income calculated on the basis of conventional remuneration.

The rationale is that the rules governing the determination of individual income categories and those governing total income operate in a relationship of mutual specificity: the rule excluding deductibility from employment income does not imply exclusion from total income. Therefore, mandatory contributions paid abroad in compliance with legal provisions may be deducted in the income tax return (Form 730/2025, line E21), within the limits set by Article 10 of the Italian Income Tax Code (TUIR).

3 February 2026
Domestic work – Housekeepers / Caregivers
Domestic work contributions: updated amounts due for 2026
INPS

In a circular published at the beginning of February, INPS announced the new contribution amounts due for domestic employment relationships in 2026.

The update follows changes in the consumer price index recorded by ISTAT and results in a redefinition of the remuneration brackets used to calculate the social-security and welfare contributions payable by employers and employees. The new measures apply to all domestic employment relationships from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026.

The circular distinguishes contribution amounts according to hourly pay and weekly working hours, providing a specific regime for employment relationships exceeding 24 hours per week. It also confirms the distinction between open-ended and fixed-term contracts, for which the additional contribution payable by the employer continues to apply.

Previously recognized contribution exemptions in specific cases remain unchanged, as do the rules governing the allocation of contribution costs between employer and employee. The circular also provides allocation coefficients to ensure correct payment of contributions.

29 December 2025
Individual dismissal
Disciplinary dismissal: reinstatement protection applies where there is no disciplinary relevance
Court of Modena

An employee challenged a disciplinary dismissal imposed for contacting certain clients without involving the local sales agent. According to the company, this conduct violated duties of fairness and internal practices, justifying termination.

The court first excluded the alleged vagueness of the disciplinary charge, finding that the description of the facts was sufficient to allow the employee to exercise the right of defense. On the merits, however, it emerged that the contacts made by the employee were merely informational and preparatory, without any commercial proposal or actual interference with clients.

The Court clarified that, in cases of disciplinary dismissal, reinstatement protection applies not only when the alleged conduct did not occur but also when, although it occurred, it lacks disciplinary relevance. In such cases, the conduct is incapable of justifying termination and is treated as equivalent to the non-existence of the material fact. Consequently, the dismissal is unlawful and reinstatement protection applies, without any need to assess the proportionality of the sanction.