Is it too late to claim Italy's building 'superbonus'?
Is there still time to claim Italy's popular 'superbonus' discount for home renovations if you start your project now? Here's what you need to know about the timescales.
Italy's so-called ‘superbonus 110‘ continues to attract attention from home renovators keen to take advantage of potentially large sums of state aid available when making upgrades to property.
First introduced just over two years ago, in May 2020, it is billed as giving homeowners the chance to claim a tax deduction of up to 110 percent of the cost of renovation work.
READ ALSO: How Italy’s building ‘superbonus’ has changed in 2022
Building jobs covered by the bonus are related to making energy-efficiency upgrades and reducing seismic risk.
Other types of building bonuses existed before and are still available, but the popularity of this particular bonus stemmed from its unprecedented high value.
Due to demand, the popular scheme has been entangled in bureaucracy, fraudulent claims and consequent delays, leaving many property owners trying to use it concerned about whether they’ll able to finish their renovation projects in time.
Home renovators have more time to access Italy's building superbonus 110, following the government's announcement to extend the deadline again. But is it enough? (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI / AFP)
In response, the Italian government has rolled on deadlines for accessing the bonus several times, with its latest extension giving some extra breathing space for owners of single family homes.
So is there enough time left to benefit if you haven't started works yet? It all depends on the type of property you plan to renovate.
Here's an overview of the likelihood of accessing Italy's superbonus renovation pot now.
Single family homes
Those up against the clock are owners of single family homes.
Although the government granted a three-month extension to claim for building work on single homes, it's still a tight timescale - particularly considering the continuing widespread delays.
It means property owners now have until September 30th to complete 30 percent of the overall works.
The extension replaces the previous completion date of 30 percent of renovations by June 30th - an impending risk to those caught up in delays and unable to meet the deadline in time.
READ ALSO:
- UPDATE: How Italy will extend its building ‘superbonus’
- How to stay out of trouble when renovating your Italian property
It might just be enough time if you're already in a queue or work has started on your project, but what if you'd like to get the ball rolling now?
Although there are only four months left to meet this deadline, tax expert Nicolò Bolla of Accounting Bolla told us he gets “daily requests” for the superbonus.
However, he advised homeowners to be careful: "It is a long journey and you need to have some money to renovate your property with the bonus. It’s an expanded timeframe and there are still supply chain issues," he said.
Such issues include finding available building contractors and other professionals needed to carry out renovations, such as a geometra (civil engineer) and a termotecnico (thermal technician for heating and air conditioning).
Credit transfer problems have further delayed the scheme, meaning it could be difficult to obtain the credit in the first place needed to finance the works.
READ ALSO: Nine things we’ve learned about claiming Italy’s building ‘superbonus’
Can you find a contractor who will give you a quote? That could be an indication of being able to access the superbonus. Photo by MAX BEDENDI on Unsplash
As such, many people have been caught up in delays for months or since the superbonus began and are finding themselves still short of the 30 percent completion threshold.
Plus, even if you do meet that deadline in time, the final overall date to claim the superbonus for this category of property is still December 31st, 2022. That gives just three months to complete the remaining 70 percent of works.
Of course, the scale of the project will have an impact. If you're planning to carry out extensive works, it's unlikely there will be enough time to start the process - that is unless the government continue to roll on the scheme for this category, which they have previously done at the last minute.
READ ALSO: Do you have to be Italian to claim Italy’s building bonuses?
An indication will be if you can find a construction company available when you call your local suppliers. If they get back to you with a quote, there could be a slight chance.
Many homeowners, however, have told The Local that a lot of suppliers simply never even responded to inquiries and the ones who did came back with hugely inflated prices, due to both said high demand and increasing material costs.
Other property types
If you live in a different category of property, there are much longer timescales and more chances to benefit from the superbonus.
For work carried out on condominiums and by individuals on buildings consisting of two to four separate building units (even if owned by a single owner or co-owned by several individuals), the deadline to access the superbonus is December 31st, 2025.
However, the amount you can claim drops each year – from a maximum payout of 110 percent this year, the bonus is reduced to 70 percent for the whole of 2024 and 65 percent for the year after until December 31st 2025.
For a full list of the deadlines according to various property types, see here.
See more in The Local’s Italian property section.
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Italy's so-called ‘superbonus 110‘ continues to attract attention from home renovators keen to take advantage of potentially large sums of state aid available when making upgrades to property.
First introduced just over two years ago, in May 2020, it is billed as giving homeowners the chance to claim a tax deduction of up to 110 percent of the cost of renovation work.
READ ALSO: How Italy’s building ‘superbonus’ has changed in 2022
Building jobs covered by the bonus are related to making energy-efficiency upgrades and reducing seismic risk.
Other types of building bonuses existed before and are still available, but the popularity of this particular bonus stemmed from its unprecedented high value.
Due to demand, the popular scheme has been entangled in bureaucracy, fraudulent claims and consequent delays, leaving many property owners trying to use it concerned about whether they’ll able to finish their renovation projects in time.
In response, the Italian government has rolled on deadlines for accessing the bonus several times, with its latest extension giving some extra breathing space for owners of single family homes.
So is there enough time left to benefit if you haven't started works yet? It all depends on the type of property you plan to renovate.
Here's an overview of the likelihood of accessing Italy's superbonus renovation pot now.
Single family homes
Those up against the clock are owners of single family homes.
Although the government granted a three-month extension to claim for building work on single homes, it's still a tight timescale - particularly considering the continuing widespread delays.
It means property owners now have until September 30th to complete 30 percent of the overall works.
The extension replaces the previous completion date of 30 percent of renovations by June 30th - an impending risk to those caught up in delays and unable to meet the deadline in time.
READ ALSO:
- UPDATE: How Italy will extend its building ‘superbonus’
- How to stay out of trouble when renovating your Italian property
It might just be enough time if you're already in a queue or work has started on your project, but what if you'd like to get the ball rolling now?
Although there are only four months left to meet this deadline, tax expert Nicolò Bolla of Accounting Bolla told us he gets “daily requests” for the superbonus.
However, he advised homeowners to be careful: "It is a long journey and you need to have some money to renovate your property with the bonus. It’s an expanded timeframe and there are still supply chain issues," he said.
Such issues include finding available building contractors and other professionals needed to carry out renovations, such as a geometra (civil engineer) and a termotecnico (thermal technician for heating and air conditioning).
Credit transfer problems have further delayed the scheme, meaning it could be difficult to obtain the credit in the first place needed to finance the works.
READ ALSO: Nine things we’ve learned about claiming Italy’s building ‘superbonus’
As such, many people have been caught up in delays for months or since the superbonus began and are finding themselves still short of the 30 percent completion threshold.
Plus, even if you do meet that deadline in time, the final overall date to claim the superbonus for this category of property is still December 31st, 2022. That gives just three months to complete the remaining 70 percent of works.
Of course, the scale of the project will have an impact. If you're planning to carry out extensive works, it's unlikely there will be enough time to start the process - that is unless the government continue to roll on the scheme for this category, which they have previously done at the last minute.
READ ALSO: Do you have to be Italian to claim Italy’s building bonuses?
An indication will be if you can find a construction company available when you call your local suppliers. If they get back to you with a quote, there could be a slight chance.
Many homeowners, however, have told The Local that a lot of suppliers simply never even responded to inquiries and the ones who did came back with hugely inflated prices, due to both said high demand and increasing material costs.
Other property types
If you live in a different category of property, there are much longer timescales and more chances to benefit from the superbonus.
For work carried out on condominiums and by individuals on buildings consisting of two to four separate building units (even if owned by a single owner or co-owned by several individuals), the deadline to access the superbonus is December 31st, 2025.
However, the amount you can claim drops each year – from a maximum payout of 110 percent this year, the bonus is reduced to 70 percent for the whole of 2024 and 65 percent for the year after until December 31st 2025.
For a full list of the deadlines according to various property types, see here.
See more in The Local’s Italian property section.
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