What it costs to set up an innovative startup in Italy in 2026
The taxes are small and fixed. What really moves the bill is the company type you pick and everything that arrives after signing.
How much does it cost to incorporate an innovative startup in Italy?
If you come from a country where you form a company online for a small fee, two things will surprise you: an Italian notary has to draw up the deed, and some costs recur every year. The good news is that the startup status removes several of those recurring charges.
| Item | Amount | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Registration tax on the deed (imposta di registro) | €200 flat | Applies to cash contributions; due for the simplified SRL too |
| Notary fee | None for the simplified SRL (SRLS); quoted for a standard SRL | Custom articles mean more work and a higher quote |
| Stamp duty and filing fees to register the company | Nil with a notarial deed filed together with the startup registration; nil for the SRLS | Register for the startup section later and incorporation pays them |
| Startup register entry and later Register filings | Nil | Exempt from stamp duty and filing fees |
| Annual Chamber of Commerce fee | Nil | Waived while registered, up to the fifth year |
| Share capital | From €1 | Below €10,000 it must be paid in cash and in full to the directors |
| Annual tax on statutory books | €309.87 a year | Flat government fee for limited companies; not covered by the startup exemptions |
| Certified email (PEC) and digital signature | Provider's price | Mandatory for the company and for its filings |
| Accountant | Quoted | Bookkeeping, annual accounts, tax returns and the yearly startup declaration |
€200
Do you need a notary to set up a startup in Italy?
Yes. Between 2016 and 2021 innovative startups could incorporate online with a standard template and the founders' digital signatures. The Council of State annulled that route in judgment 2643/2021, and the Companies Register suspended it on 30 March 2021, as the Chamber of Commerce of Cagliari-Oristano explains. Today an Italian notary drafts the deed, registers it and files it with the Companies Register.
For founders abroad, the notary is also the first practical hurdle: ask early how they handle signatories who do not speak Italian, and what identity documents and powers of attorney they need from each shareholder.
Standard SRL or simplified SRL: which is cheaper for a startup?
The simplified SRL (SRLS) is cheaper on signing day; the standard SRL is cheaper once investors arrive. Under Decree-Law 1/2012 an SRLS pays no notary fee and no stamp duty or filing fees on its deed and registration. The trade-offs are a fixed template whose clauses cannot be changed, capital between €1 and €10,000, and one rule that matters a lot to international teams: only natural persons can form it, according to the Tuscany Region. If your shares will sit in a foreign holding company, the SRLS is out from day one.
- Pick an SRLS if the founders are individuals, you have no investor lined up and you can live with a standard template for now.
- Pick a standard SRL if a holding company is a shareholder, if you need share classes or investor clauses, or if you plan to grant equity to staff or suppliers.
- Budget for the switch: converting an SRLS into a standard SRL when the first investor arrives means going back to the notary.
Which costs does the startup register remove?
Three recurring charges disappear under article 26(8) of Decree-Law 179/2012: stamp duty and filing fees on Companies Register filings, including the yearly declaration that you still qualify, and the annual Chamber of Commerce fee, for as long as you stay registered and no later than the fifth year. The same article extends the exemption to a startup incorporated by notarial deed that applies for the special register in the same filing, so ask your notary to file both together. The Companies Register's own guide for innovative startups confirms that the exemption covers every filing from the date of registration.
Two items are not waived: the €200 registration tax and the annual tax on statutory books, which the Chamber of Commerce of Alessandria-Asti puts at €309.87 for limited companies with capital up to roughly €516,000. Whether you qualify in the first place is covered in our guide to Italian innovative startup requirements.
What will you pay after incorporation?
The big numbers are not taxes. In the first year you will pay for a certified email address (every Italian company must register a digital domicile), digital signatures, an accountant, any patent or software registration you rely on for the innovation test and, above all, the product itself.
How do you build a realistic first-year budget?
Our five-step first-year budget
Choose the company type with your first investor in mind
SRLS for individual founders with no investor soon; standard SRL if a holding, share classes or investor terms are coming.
Get two or three notary quotes on the same draft
Fees for a standard SRL vary. Compare like with like, and check that registration and filing are included.
Incorporate and apply for the startup register in one filing
That keeps stamp duty and filing fees off the incorporation itself.
Add the fixed yearly items
Statutory books tax, accountant, certified email and digital signatures. No annual Chamber fee while you hold the status.
Add recurring product costs
Hosting, licences, app stores, maintenance. If you plan to apply for public funding, check what counts as eligible: Smart&Start Italia, for example, covers software development and hosting. Our map of startup funding in Italy lists the other options.
If you pay part of the build in shares rather than cash, the maths changes again; Italian law allows it for innovative startups, as explained in paying developers with equity.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreign company be a shareholder of an Italian startup?
Yes, in a standard SRL or SPA. A simplified SRL can only be formed by natural persons, so if your shares sit in a holding company you need a standard SRL from the start.
Can I set up an Italian startup with €1 of capital?
Yes. Both the simplified and the standard SRL can start with €1, as long as capital under €10,000 is paid in cash and in full to the directors. Banks and suppliers may still look for a more solid figure.
Can I incorporate an Italian innovative startup remotely, without a notary?
No. The online template was annulled in 2021, so an Italian notarial deed is required. Ask the notary early about powers of attorney and identification for founders who cannot attend in person.
Is the yearly startup declaration expensive?
Not in fees: as a Companies Register filing it is exempt from stamp duty and filing fees for registered innovative startups. The real cost is your accountant's time to prepare it with the annual accounts.
How much does an Italian notary charge for an SRL?
For a simplified SRL the law waives the notary's fee. For a standard SRL there is no fixed tariff, so ask for written quotes on the same draft articles and compare them.
Sources
- Registro Imprese / InfoCamere, Come costituire una startup innovativa (esenzioni e adempimenti) (19 October 2026)
- Normattiva, DL 104/2013, art. 26 (imposta fissa di registro elevata a 200 euro dal 2014) (19 October 2026)
- Normattiva, DL 179/2012, art. 26 (esenzioni per le startup innovative) (19 October 2026)
- Normattiva, DL 1/2012, art. 3 (SRL semplificata) (19 October 2026)
- Regione Toscana, Società a responsabilità limitata semplificata (SRLS) (19 October 2026)
- Camera di commercio di Bologna, Le nuove SRL (19 October 2026)
- Camera di commercio di Cagliari-Oristano, Startup e PMI innovative (sospensione del modello standard dal 30/03/2021) (19 October 2026)
- Camera di commercio di Alessandria-Asti, Bollatura libri e registri (tassa di concessione governativa) (19 October 2026)
Figures and definitions checked on the dates shown.
