Italy Statutory legal interest (saggio degli interessi legali)
Italy Statutory legal interest (saggio degli interessi legali) is 1.6 percent, in force since 1 Jan 2026. Last checked against the official source on 10 Aug 2026.
Italy's general legal interest rate under Codice civile art. 1284, re-fixed each December by decree of the Minister of Economy and Finance — 1.60% per annum with effect from 1 January 2026.
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| Current value | 1.6 percent |
|---|---|
| In force from | 2026-01-01 |
| Official source | Decreto del Ministero dell'economia e delle finanze 10 dicembre 2025, 'Determinazione del saggio degli interessi legali per l'anno 2026', art. 1: 'La misura del saggio degli interessi legali di cui all'art. 1284 del codice civile è fissata all'1,60 per cento in ragione d'anno, con decorrenza dal 1° gennaio 2026'; recital: the Minister 'può modificare annualmente la misura del saggio degli interessi legali sulla base del rendimento medio annuo lordo dei titoli di Stato di durata non superiore a dodici mesi e tenuto conto del tasso di inflazione registrato nell'anno' (GU Serie Generale n. 289 del 13-12-2025) |
| Last verified | 2026-08-10 |
| Verification | primary — No verification limitation recorded — read from the official source cited. |
| Provenance | source fingerprint |
What this value means
This is the GENERAL CIVIL rate — the saggio degli interessi legali of Codice civile art. 1284, the default rate for any money obligation where the parties fixed none, and the reference for tax ravvedimento operoso, restitution and compensation claims. Art. 1284(1) states a baseline of 5% but empowers the Minister of Economy and Finance to vary it annually by decree published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale no later than 15 December of the preceding year, on the basis of the average gross annual yield on government securities of up to twelve months and the year's inflation; the input figures are supplied by the Banca d'Italia (nota prot. n. 2228149 of 17 November 2025 for this decree). THE RATE IS VOLATILE — 5% in 2023, 2.5% in 2024, 2% in 2025, 1.60% in 2026 — so interest running across a year-end must be computed pro rata at each year's rate, not at the rate in force when the debt arose. MAJOR TRAP — LITIGATION RESETS THE RATE UPWARD: under art. 1284(4), inserted by D.L. 132/2014, where the parties have not agreed a rate, from the moment judicial proceedings are commenced the legal rate becomes the rate under the special legislation on late payment in commercial transactions (D.Lgs. 231/2002 — the ECB reference rate + 8 percentage points, several times higher than 1.60%); art. 1284(5) extends the same effect to the act commencing arbitration. Interest before suit runs at 1.60%, interest from the writ runs at the commercial rate. DO NOT USE FOR B2B COMMERCIAL DEBTS: late payment in commercial transactions is governed by D.Lgs. 231/2002 (Late Payment Directive), whose rate the MEF publishes half-yearly in the Gazzetta Ufficiale effective 1 January and 1 July — served separately as this API's late-payment-interest product. NEXT FIXING: a decree for 2027 is due in the Gazzetta Ufficiale by 15 December 2026, effective 1 January 2027; if no decree issues, the current rate simply continues.
Get it programmatically
curl https://euroref.dev/v1/it/statutory-interest
# $0.005 per call — x402 on Base (USDC). No key, no signup.
# History: curl https://euroref.dev/v1/it/statutory-interest/history?from=2020-01-01
# Provenance: curl https://euroref.dev/provenance/it/statutory-interestOther Italy series: Policy interest rate · Value added tax (IVA) · VAT registration threshold · National minimum wage · Public holidays · Consumer price inflation (NIC, year-on-year) · Corporate income tax (IRES) · Withholding tax rates · Personal income tax (IRPEF) · Statutory social-insurance contributions · ECB main refinancing operations rate (fixed rate) · Late-payment interest (EU Late Payment Directive)
The same figure elsewhere: Latvia · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Malta · Netherlands · all 34