Hire employees in Italy using an Employer of Record

Italy has no national minimum wage. Pay, grades, extra monthly instalments and much of the rest of an Italian job come from the national collective agreement, the CCNL, that covers the role. On top of salary, every employee builds up TFR, a deferred payment owed when the job ends.

Several rules also changed in 2026: new tax bands, pay transparency in job ads, the CCNL code on every contract and payslip, and pension auto-enrolment for first-time hires.

The rules here come from Normattiva, Italy's official legislation database, from the Ministry of Labour, from INPS, the social security institute, and from the Agenzia delle Entrate. Every source sits in one list at the bottom of the page.

Should you open a company, use contractors or use an EOR in Italy?

Those are the three options, and the answer depends on team size and how closely you'll direct the work.

An Italian company fits a permanent team. It means running Italian payroll, INPS filings and TFR in-house, under the CCNL that applies.

Contractors carry a specific risk in Italy: employment rules can apply to personal, continuous collaboration that the client organises, whatever the invoice says. For freelance work that stays independent, Hire with Columbus runs contractor agreements and payments from $22.50 per contractor per month.

An EOR carries the Italian contract, payroll and filings, and you keep control of the work. Hire with Columbus charges from $179/month per employee, with onboarding generally taking 2 to 3 days.

Check the legal basis behind the arrangement

Where an arrangement counts as labour supply (somministrazione), the supplier must be an authorised agency. In covered agency work, the worker gets conditions at least as good as comparable client employees, and the client is jointly liable for wages and contributions and keeps workplace safety duties.

Agency supply also has limits. The ordinary cap on indefinite supply is 20% of the client's permanent workforce, and since 28 June 2026, an agency's permanent employee can be assigned to the same client for up to 36 months, unless the client's collective agreement sets another limit. So ask your provider which legal basis it uses and identify the actual legal employer before you sign.

What does an Italian contract need?

Give the employee the written contract, or the required copy of the employment registration, before work starts. Any missing details follow within seven days, and certain items within one month. Since 28 June 2026, private employers must also name the CCNL by its unique code.

The employer must notify the authorities of a new hire, normally by the day before work starts. Authorised agencies follow their own monthly reporting rule.

Fixed-term contracts

An ordinary fixed-term contract can generally run for up to 12 months without a stated reason. Going longer, normally up to 24 months in total, needs an allowed ground, such as one set in the CCNL or replacing another worker. Where the CCNL doesn't provide grounds, agreed technical, organisational or production needs are accepted until 31 December 2026.

A direct fixed-term contract can generally be extended up to four times within 24 months. Agency employment has its own rules.

Probation

Probation must be agreed in writing and can last at most six months, or less if the CCNL says so. Fixed-term contracts get one working day of probation for every 15 calendar days of contract:

Renewing a contract for the same duties doesn't justify a new trial period.

Pay transparency from June 2026

Since 7 June 2026, a job advertisement must state the starting salary or range and the relevant CCNL provisions. You can't ask candidates about their current or previous pay, directly or through a recruiter.

Employees can also ask in writing for their own pay level and average pay by sex for comparable roles, and the employer must answer within two months. So agree the grade and a defensible pay range before you advertise.

How is pay set and taxed in Italy?

Salary is set by the CCNL that applies to the role and grade. Since 2026, the benchmark is the full economic package in the agreement signed by the most representative organisations: direct pay, deferred pay, additional monthly instalments and contractual welfare. A different agreement can't give less.

So before you divide an annual salary into payroll payments, check how many additional monthly instalments the CCNL requires, such as the tredicesima (13th month), and whether your quoted salary already includes them. Since 28 June 2026, every payslip must also show the CCNL code.

Average pay

The INPS annual report, released in July 2026, gives mean gross annual employee earnings of €27,649 for 2025. That figure mixes part-year and part-time work, so it isn't a full-time salary figure.

Employer contributions

INPS is clear that no single employer rate applies to every Italian hire. The rate depends on sector, employer size and legal form, the worker's classification and the contract. The headline pension contribution of 33% is a combined rate, shared between employer and employee, and not the whole cost.

If you need one planning number, the OECD's Taxing Wages data puts average employer contributions in Italy at 31.58% of gross pay. Treat it as an OECD estimate across all workers: your hire's figure depends on the factors above.

Workplace injury insurance and CCNL funds come on top. Our Italian cost calculator works it out for a given salary.

A few INPS thresholds for 2026 are worth knowing:

• The general daily minimum for contributions is €58.13.
• Employees pay an extra 1% pension contribution on pay above €56,224 a year, or €4,685 a month.
• The annual pension contribution ceiling is €122,295, for workers it applies to, such as those first insured from 1996.

TFR: termination pay that builds up every year

TFR (trattamento di fine rapporto) is deferred pay the employee earns throughout the job. The basic yearly amount is the year's relevant pay divided by 13.5. The balance from earlier years is revalued each year by 1.5% plus 75% of the ISTAT consumer-price increase.

On a €36,000 annual gross salary, the basic formula gives €2,666.67 of TFR for the year, before adjustments. Budget for it from the first month, not at exit.

Since 1 July 2026, a first-time private-sector hire generally has 60 days to choose where future TFR goes. If they don't choose, they are automatically enrolled in the designated collective pension fund, with TFR and employer and employee contributions running from the hire date. The ministry's new TFR3 form covers these choices.

Income tax

National income tax (IRPEF) is withheld through payroll. The 2026 bands are:

Regional and municipal additions and the employee's deductions and credits change the final figure, so gross salary minus one percentage is not take-home pay.

How long can people work in Italy?

The normal week is 40 hours, unless the CCNL sets fewer. Average working time, overtime included, must generally stay within 48 hours a week, usually measured over four months.

Overtime is paid separately at the rates in the CCNL. There's no single national premium. Where no collective rule applies, overtime needs agreement and is capped at 250 hours a year.

Employees get 11 hours in a row off in every 24, and at least 24 hours in a row off each week on top of that. A working day longer than six hours needs a break, which is at least 10 minutes if the CCNL doesn't set one.

Remote work and monitoring

Smart working (lavoro agile) needs a written agreement covering where the work happens, equipment, rest and the right to disconnect. The employer must notify the authorities within five days of it starting, changing or ending.

Tools that can monitor employees remotely need a permitted purpose and either a union agreement or authorisation from the labour inspectorate before they're installed. Check email logs and productivity tracking before you switch them on.

What leave do Italian employees get?

Annual leave

The statutory minimum is four weeks of paid leave a year, which is 20 days on a five-day week. At least two weeks must be taken in the year they're earned, and the rest within 18 months after that year ends.

Leave can't be swapped for cash while the job continues, only paid out at the end. The CCNL may give more.

Public holidays

Italy has 13 national public holidays from 2026, including the new St Francis of Assisi holiday on 4 October, plus the local patron saint's day where the employee works. From 2026, 4 October, the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, is also a national holiday. Holiday work and holidays that fall on a weekend are handled by the CCNL.

Sick pay

For covered employees, INPS pays 50% of the reference daily pay from day 4 to day 20 of an illness, and 66.66% from day 21 to day 180. The employer pays the first three days only if the CCNL or contract says so, and the CCNL can require a top-up. Some employee categories aren't covered by the INPS benefit.

Family leave

Employees also get three paid working days a year when a spouse or close relative dies or is seriously ill. For qualifying cancer and chronic conditions, the law allows up to 24 months of protected unpaid leave, and since 2026, 10 extra hours a year for medical visits.

How does dismissal work in Italy?

A dismissal needs a lawful reason, communicated in writing. The employee normally has 60 days to challenge it, then 180 more days for the next legal or conciliation step. Ending your EOR service agreement doesn't on its own end the employment.

Notice depends on the CCNL and the contract, so there's no single Italian notice period. Payment in lieu may be due if notice isn't worked, while dismissal for just cause can be immediate.

Dismissal is generally banned from the start of pregnancy until the child turns one, with defined exceptions. Dismissing someone for asking for or taking parental or child-sickness leave is invalid.

Resignations and agreed terminations generally go through the ministry's online procedure, with seven days to change one's mind. An informal email isn't enough. At exit, the employee receives outstanding pay, unused leave and their TFR balance.

What does a non-EU hire need?

For the ordinary work-visa route, the employer in Italy generally gets the work authorisation before the employee applies for a visa, and quotas apply. An EOR agreement isn't immigration permission.

The EU Blue Card sits outside the quotas for qualifying highly skilled jobs. It needs the right qualification or experience, a contract or binding offer of at least six months, and pay that meets the CCNL and the statutory salary threshold.

What has changed recently?

• 1 January 2026: lower middle tax band. Income between €28,000 and €50,000 is now taxed at 33%, down from 35%.
• 1 January 2026: longer family leave. Parental leave can be used until the child turns 14, and each parent gets 10 working days a year for a sick child aged 3 to 14.
• 7 June 2026: pay transparency. Job ads must show the starting salary or range, and employers can't ask about pay history.
• 28 June 2026: CCNL code. Contracts and payslips must name the collective agreement by its code, and a new 36-month rule applies to agency assignments.
• 1 July 2026: pension auto-enrolment. First-time private-sector hires have 60 days to choose where their TFR goes.
• 4 October 2026: Saint Francis of Assisi. A new national public holiday under the 2025 holiday law.

Hire with Columbus in Italy

With Hire with Columbus as employer, the Italian contract under the right CCNL, payroll, INPS contributions, IRPEF withholding and TFR are all handled. You choose the person and manage what they do.

Employment is from $179/month per employee and contractors from $22.50/month, and onboarding takes around 2 to 3 days after acceptance. Run a salary through the Italy cost calculator, see pricing, or get started.

Sources

These are the official pages behind each figure. Most are in Italian.

• Ministry of Labour, Labour supply contracts (somministrazione) (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 81/2015, article 35: agency workers' conditions (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 81/2015, article 31: agency headcount limits (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 81/2015, article 19: fixed-term contracts (as of 28 June 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 81/2015, article 21: extensions and renewals (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 81/2015, article 2: organised collaborations (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 152/1997, article 1: written employment information (as of 28 June 2026)
• Normattiva, Decree-law 510/1996, article 9-bis: hiring notifications (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 104/2022, article 7: probation (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 96/2026, article 5: pay information in recruitment (as of 7 June 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 96/2026, article 7: employees' right to pay information (as of 7 June 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, Minimum and average pay (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Decree-law 62/2026, article 7: fair pay benchmark (as of 28 June 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 4/1953, article 1: payslips (as of 28 June 2026)
• INPS, 25th INPS annual report, press release (released 9 July 2026, data for 2025)
• INPS, Contribution rates (checked 14 September 2026)
• INPS, 2026 contribution minimums and ceilings (as of 1 January 2026)
• OECD, Taxing Wages data (data year 2025)
• Normattiva, Law 297/1982, article 1: TFR (checked 14 September 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, Supplementary pensions: what happens when you are hired (as of 1 July 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, New TFR3 form adopted (September 2026)
• Agenzia delle Entrate, Personal income tax rates and calculation (as of 1 January 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, Working practices and employment (checked 13 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 66/2003, article 5: overtime (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 66/2003, article 10: annual leave (checked 13 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 81/2017, article 19: smart working agreements (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 300/1970, article 4: remote monitoring (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 260/1949: national holidays (as of 1 January 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 151/2025, article 1: Saint Francis of Assisi holiday (as of 1 January 2026)
• INPS, Sickness allowance (checked 14 September 2026)
• INPS, Maternity leave allowance (checked 14 September 2026)
• INPS, Mandatory paternity leave (checked 14 September 2026)
• INPS, Parental leave allowance (as of 1 January 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 151/2001, article 47: leave for a child's illness (as of 1 January 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 53/2000, article 4: leave for family events (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Law 106/2025, article 1: leave for serious illness (as of 1 January 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, Ending employment (checked 14 September 2026)
• Ministry of Labour, Conditions and rights in case of dismissal (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 151/2001, article 54: ban on dismissal (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 151/2015, article 26: resignation procedure (checked 14 September 2026)
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Visas for entering Italy: frequently asked questions (checked 14 September 2026)
• Normattiva, Legislative Decree 286/1998, article 27-quater: EU Blue Card (checked 14 September 2026)