How and when do I open a partita IVA (VAT number) in Italy as a freelancer or business?

Checked on 2026-10-25

Anyone who starts a business, art or profession in Italy must file a start-of-activity declaration with the Agenzia delle Entrate within 30 days; the office assigns a partita IVA. Professionals not registered with the business register use form AA9/12; businesses and craft activities file through the Comunicazione Unica d'impresa.

Key facts

What	The law says	Source
Who must register	Anyone who starts a business, art or profession in Italy, or sets up a permanent establishment there	DPR 633/1972, art. 35(1)
Deadline	Within 30 days of starting the activity	DPR 633/1972, art. 35(1)
What you get	A partita IVA, unchanged until the activity ends, even if your tax domicile changes	DPR 633/1972, art. 35(1)
Where to show it	In tax returns, on the home page of any website and in other documents where required	DPR 633/1972, art. 35(1)
Changes and closure	Declare within 30 days	DPR 633/1972, art. 35(3)
From 2027	The same rules are in art. 68 of the new Testo unico IVA, which applies from 1 January 2027	D.Lgs. 10/2026, arts. 68, 171
Form for professionals	AA9/12, for activities not requiring entry in the business register or REA	Agenzia delle Entrate, AA9/12 “Che cos’è”
Businesses and craft activities	Comunicazione Unica d’impresa (Infocamere), which also handles business register or REA entry	Agenzia delle Entrate, AA9/12 “Che cos’è”

The 30-day rule

The VAT law (DPR 633/1972, art. 35) requires anyone who starts a business, art or profession in Italy to declare it to an office of the Agenzia delle Entrate within 30 days, on the official form. The office gives you a partita IVA. The number stays the same until you stop the activity, even if you move your tax domicile. The declaration lists, for individuals, your name, date and place of birth, codice fiscale, residence and tax domicile, plus the type of activity and where it is carried on.

If any of these details change, or you stop the activity, you must declare that within 30 days too.

The Testo unico IVA (D.Lgs. 10/2026) repeats the same rules in its art. 68 and, under art. 171, applies from 1 January 2027.

Which form: AA9/12 or ComUnica

The Agenzia delle Entrate’s guidance says:

Professionals and other activities that don’t need entry in the business register (Registro delle imprese) or the REA use form AA9/12.
Business or craft activities open, change or close the partita IVA through the Comunicazione Unica d’impresa, an Infocamere service that also handles entry in the business register or REA in the same filing.

How to file AA9/12

According to the Agency, you file within 30 days of starting:

by PEC (certified email) to any provincial directorate, with the subject “Dichiarazione di inizio attività”; signed digitally, or by hand with a copy of the signer’s ID; the partita IVA is sent back to the same PEC address;
in person (or through a delegate) at any Agency office, booking an appointment;
by registered post to any Agency office, with a copy of a valid ID;
online, preparing the form with the Agency’s free software and sending it through the web service in your reserved area.

Declarations sent by PEC or post count as filed on the day they are sent.

If you are resident outside the EU and EEA and appoint a fiscal representative, the Agency says AA9/12 must be filed only at the provincial office for the representative’s tax domicile, with the declaration of the requirements in Ministerial Decree 164/1999 and the guarantee required by art. 17 of DPR 633/1972.

Which tax regime to pick when you open: see the Italy forfettario flat-rate regime page.
Social security once you have a partita IVA: see the Italy INPS Gestione separata page (professionals) and the INPS artisans and traders page (businesses).

Sources

Decreto del Presidente della Repubblica 26 ottobre 1972, n. 633, art. 35 (text in force on 25 October 2026, Normattiva) checked 2026-10-25
Decreto legislativo 19 gennaio 2026, n. 10 (Testo unico IVA), arts. 68 and 171 (Normattiva) checked 2026-10-25
Agenzia delle Entrate, Partita Iva persone fisiche (AA9/12): Come aprire una partita Iva checked 2026-10-25
Agenzia delle Entrate, Partita Iva persone fisiche (AA9/12): Che cos'è checked 2026-10-25

Change history

2026-10-25: Page created

This is general information, not legal advice, and Lumen is not a law firm. Rules change and offices differ: check the official sources above before you act. Found something wrong or out of date? Write to support@lumen.observer.