Free Trieste

Equitalia and tax collection: a fraud of the Renzi Government

Italian Prime Minister M. Renzi.

Trieste, 23 April 2016 – On 11 April 2016 the Free Trieste Movement denounced that Equitalia s.p.a. is forcing tax payers willing to suspend enforced recoveries of tax debts pursuant to Italian Law 228/2012 (State budget) paragraphs No. 537-544 of art. 1 to use its own form. The form, which is not required by any law, does no longer include the legally backed reason at point f) of paragraph 538, namely «any other cause of non-enforceability of the collection of the debt».

The clause covers  the special and extremely relevant case of Italian taxes in the present-day Free Territory of Trieste, which since 1954 is entrusted to the Italian government under a mandate of temporary civil administration. This is why Italian laws, including taxation laws, can be only enforced if extended and adapted to it with a legislative act of the Italian Government or of its local Commissioner (Constitutional Law No. 1/1963, article 70; see: see. Italian Supreme Court of Cassation I Civil Section, judgment No. 353 of 16 February 1965).

Equitalia is now arguing agains Free Trieste claiming that, in truth, all liabilities are with the Renzi Government, which abolished point f) with a recent decree (Legislative Decree 159/2015). The decision was taken with the powers Renzi received from the Italian Parliament «to increase the efficiency of the exercise of powers of recovery of taxes, in accordance with the principle of balancing the needs of an effective collection and the rights of tax payers». Which means, not to reduce those rights.

Essentially, in breach of the Italian Constitution, the Renzi Government took advantage of the contents and letter of the Italian Parliament’s delegation of authority aiming at better organising tax recovery procedures, to deceptively deprive tax payers of the right to appeal to a wide category of legitimate reasons to interrupt unfair enforced tax recoveries. This means that, by this deceit, the Renzi Government collected any unfair taxes.

Free Trieste does therefore clarify to all tax authorities, to the concessionarie Equitalia, and to the judiciary, that in the Italian legal system this abrogative norm is manifestly anti-constitutional, because it exceeds the normative powers that the Government  has been delegated to exercise by the Parliament, as well as violating the separation of the executive and of the legislative branch, therefore it is legitimate to oppose to it under this respect.

The anti-constitutional abrogative norm, on the other side, cannot be enforced in regard to citizens, residents and enterprises of the Free Territory of Trieste, which the Italian Government is responsible for under a mandate of temporary civil administration, because it has never been extended to it with a specific, mandatory legislative act.

When it comes to the Free Territory of Trieste, both Equitalia and the Italian tax authorities should therefore note and accept, also for self-protection purposes, also the reasons of suspension of enforced recovery that fall under point f) of paragraph 538 of art. 1 of Italian Law 228/2012 do apply, also, they should not impose forms that are not mandatory and limit the exercise of the fiscal rights of the citizens, residents and enterprises.

Both Equitalia and Italian tax authorities, especially the Entrate Revenue Office, are also fully aware of the prevailing legal fact that for the same reasons, as explained in the acts of opposition and in the specific appeals, that in the Free Territory of Trieste are illegitimate and therefore null and void ab origine all tax credits levied and collected in the name of the State of Italy, which it a third Country, prescinding the extension of the related Italian laws.

Also, any dispute on the matter of the enforcement of laws regarding the Free Territory of Trieste, including fiscal laws, are not subject to the decision of an Italian Court, rather, to the specific procedures established with the Treaty of Peace of 10 February 1947, in force, as ratified and executed in the Italian legal system as a Constitutional obligation of the Republic (Law 811/1947; Legislative Decree of the Provisional Head of State 1430/1947; Law 1630/1948; Law 3054/1952; Constitution of the Republic of Italy, articles 10, first paragraph, and 117, first paragraph).

The Italian Government has one only way to legitimize tax credits and their collection in Trieste: levying these under its correct legal title of temporary civil administrator and in compliance with the legal system of the entrusted Free Territory, which is also exempted from the payment of the Italian public debt, as well as registering all tax collections in the State budget of the administered Free Territory, not to the general budget of the State of Italy.

Press Office of the Free Trieste Movement