Tax Refund in Italy (2026): How Tourists Get Their Money Back

Updated October 6, 2026. Rules checked on the Italian Customs Agency (ADM) and Revenue Agency websites on September 24, 2026; refund methods checked on Planet’s website on October 6, 2026.

A VAT refund in Italy, often called a tax refund, is open to you if you live outside the European Union. You can get back the VAT on goods you buy in Italy when a single invoice is over €70 (VAT included), the goods travel home in your luggage, and you leave the EU by the end of the third month after the invoice date. The old €154.94 minimum no longer applies: it was lowered on February 1, 2024. Customs validation is digital, and since July 1, 2026 several invoices can be validated together in one step.

Who can claim a VAT refund in Italy?

Anyone resident or domiciled outside the EU, buying goods for personal or family use. The shop has to put your details and your passport number (or an equivalent document) on the invoice, because that is what proves you live outside the EU. Services such as hotels, meals and tours are not goods, so they are not part of this scheme.

What is the minimum spend for tax-free shopping in Italy?

The value of the goods on each invoice must be more than €70, VAT included. The threshold is per invoice, so two €40 purchases in two different shops do not add up. Until January 31, 2024 the minimum was €154.94, a figure many older guides still quote.

How much money do you actually get back?

Italy’s standard VAT rate is 22%, with reduced rates of 4%, 5% and 10% on specific goods such as some foods (Agenzia delle Entrate). VAT is already inside the shelf price, so the tax on a €100 item at 22% is €18.03, not €22. If you use a tax-free company, it deducts a fee for its service from the VAT it refunds, so the amount you receive is lower. The fee is set by each company and shown on its paperwork.

How to get your VAT refund in Italy, step by step

1. Ask for a tax-free invoice when you pay and show your passport. Tax-free invoices in Italy have been electronic since September 1, 2018.
2. Check your copy for the request code (codice richiesta). According to the Customs Agency, this code proves the invoice was sent to OTELLO, and travelers should check it is there when they buy.
3. Keep the goods with you, unused if possible: the customs office at your exit point can ask to see them.
4. Get the invoice validated when you leave the EU, by the end of the third month after the invoice date. At Italian airports and ports the customs visa is applied digitally through OTELLO.
5. Collect the refund from the shop or from the tax-free company named on your paperwork. Customs offices do not pay refunds.

What changed on July 1, 2026: single validation

The 2026 Budget Law (Law 199/2025) introduced single validation (validazione unica): all the tax-free invoices in your name can be validated in one step when you leave, instead of one at a time. The Customs Agency set the rules in determination no. 248879 of April 29, 2026, in force from July 1, 2026 (Fisco Oggi, May 14, 2026). In practice:

• Single validation was already possible at customs desks and through the Customs Agency’s VatRefund app.
• From July 1, 2026 it can also start at the counters of tax-free companies that have joined the system. It requires your consent, and that of the shops and companies involved, to share the invoice data.
• Invoices issued by shops in other EU countries are not included.

The same law extended from four to six months the time the validated invoice has to reach the seller. When we checked on September 24, 2026, the Customs Agency’s VAT refund page still showed four months, so do not leave it to the last week.

Connecting flights and checked bags

• Through check-in: if you have a single ticket and two boarding passes (a first flight within Italy or the EU, then a flight out of the EU), the Customs Agency says you can get the customs visa at the customs office of your Italian departure airport.
• Goods shipped as unaccompanied baggage: they still qualify if the airline’s air waybill matches the invoice: same goods, same sender and recipient, and the same passport details as on the invoice.

How to check whether your invoice was validated

The OTELLO section of the Customs Agency website has an online invoice lookup (Consultazione fatture online). Enter the request code from your invoice to see whether the digital customs visa has been applied. For questions, the Customs Agency lists a travelers’ office at Rome Fiumicino and a customs office at Milan Malpensa on the same VAT refund page.

Where to shop tax-free in Italy

The €70 threshold is low enough for most leather goods, shoes and Italian sunglasses. Our guides can help you plan:

• Outlets in Italy: where the designer outlets are and how to plan a day there.
• Shopping for Italian leather, plus Italian shoe brands.
• Tipping in Italy: the other money question visitors ask most.

Planning the rest of the trip? Start from our best tours in Italy guide.

Planning a first trip? Our Italy travel tips gather the entry rules, the tickets to book ahead and the local habits worth knowing in one place.

Another charge to plan for is the city tax on each night of your stay: see our Italy tourist tax guide.

Shop smart. A refund feels even better when you buy well. These guides help you choose what is worth bringing home.

• Italian jewelry brands: the great houses, gold towns and hallmarks.
• Italian watch brands: Panerai, Bulgari and where to buy them.
• what Made in Italy means: what the label really guarantees.
• Fiumicino to Rome: allow time at the airport for the refund desk.

FAQ

What is the minimum purchase for a VAT refund in Italy?

More than €70 per invoice, VAT included, since February 1, 2024. Purchases from different shops cannot be added together to reach it.

How long do I have to leave the EU with my purchases?

The goods must leave the EU by the end of the third month after the invoice date, and the invoice must be validated by customs at that point.

Do I still need a paper stamp from customs?

At Italian exit points the customs visa is digital, through the OTELLO system. Check that your invoice copy shows the request code, which proves it was sent to OTELLO.

Can I get a VAT refund on hotels and restaurants?

No. The tax-free scheme covers goods for personal or family use that you take out of the EU, not services such as hotels, meals or tours.

Who pays the VAT refund?

The shop or a tax-free company acting as intermediary. Customs offices validate the invoice but never pay the refund, and tax-free companies deduct a service fee.

Can I get my tax refund in cash or on a credit card?

Usually either. Tax-free companies such as Planet pay refunds in cash or to a credit card, and Planet caps cash refunds at €1,000 per tourist (checked October 2026). If the shop refunds you directly, ask at the till how it pays.

What is single validation?

Since July 1, 2026, all tax-free invoices in your name can be validated together when you leave, at customs desks, through the VatRefund app or at participating tax-free company counters. Invoices from shops in other EU countries are excluded.

Sources and verification

Checked on September 24, 2026: Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli, “Rimborso IVA” and “OTELLO” pages (threshold, conditions, deadlines, through check-in, unaccompanied baggage, online invoice lookup); Agenzia delle Entrate, VAT rates page; Fisco Oggi (Revenue Agency magazine), May 14, 2026, on single validation and the six-month deadline. Planet, Tax Free shopping in Italy, checked October 6, 2026, for refund methods and the cash limit. The VAT amounts in the table are our own arithmetic at 22%. Photos: Steffen Schmitz (featured image, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Thierry Caro (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.