Forfetario or ordinary regime: which is really better, with calculated examples

Updated to 23/10/2026

In short: the forfetario regime is not always the better choice. It calculates the 15% on presumed income, so it wins when your actual costs are close to or lower than those the law presumes for your sector. The ordinary regime can cost less when your real costs are much higher, you have many personal deductions or a year at a loss: to know, the numbers must be run on your own figures.

Want to see the two regimes side by side for your case? Open the flat tax simulator, activate "I know my real costs" and enter your percentage: compare tax burden and net income under the 2026 rules, step by step.

How are taxes calculated in the forfetario and ordinary regimes?

In the forfetario regime, income is a fixed percentage of revenue, the profitability coefficient of the sector; from there contributions are deducted and the 15% is applied. In the ordinary regime, income is revenue minus documented actual costs; after deducting contributions, progressive IRPEF is applied and the self-employment deduction is subtracted.

The two calculation chains with the rules in force in 2026
Step	Forfetario	Ordinary regime
Income	Revenue × sector coefficient (from 40% for trade to 86% for construction)	Revenue − deductible actual costs
Contributions	Deducted from forfetario income (art. 1 para. 64 L. 190/2014)	Deducted from income (art. 10 TUIR)
Tax	15% substitute tax, replacing IRPEF, surcharges and IRAP; 5% for the first five years with the requirements	IRPEF: 23% up to €28,000, 33% up to €50,000, 43% above €50,000 (art. 11 TUIR)
Deductions	None on forfetario income	Self-employment and business deduction (art. 13 para. 5 TUIR), plus personal deductions
Surcharges	Absorbed by the 15%	Regional and municipal on top, varying by area

Two caveats on the figures in this guide. The regional and municipal surcharges of the ordinary regime are not included: they depend on where you live, so the real ordinary burden is somewhat higher than shown. And contributions are calculated on the income of the same year, as the simulator does, whereas by law the contributions paid during the year are deducted. For the detail of the coefficients see profitability coefficients by ATECO code.

Forfetario or ordinary: three calculated examples

Three profiles with different revenue and actual costs, calculated with the simulator engine and the 2026 rules. In the forfetario regime actual costs are not deducted but are paid anyway: for this reason net income is revenue minus actual costs minus the tax burden in both columns. These are examples, not indications of what to choose.

Tax burden (contributions + tax) and net income after costs, surcharges excluded
Profile	Revenue	Actual costs	Forfetario burden	Ordinary burden	Forfetario net	Ordinary net
Consultant in separate management	€50,000	€5,000 (10%)	€14,492.21	€19,796.47	€30,507.79	€25,203.53
Trader (INPS traders)	€80,000	€60,000 (75%)	€11,464.88	€7,603.65	€8,535.12	€12,396.35
Personal services artisan (INPS artisans)	€60,000	€18,000 (30%)	€14,237.12	€17,636.76	€27,762.88	€24,363.24

Example 1, consultant with €50,000 and actual costs of 10%. Forfetario: coefficient 78%, income €39,000, contributions in separate management at 26.07% of €10,167.30, 15% tax on €28,832.70: €4,324.91. Ordinary: income €45,000 (revenue minus €5,000 of costs), contributions €11,731.50, gross IRPEF €8,178.61, deduction €113.64, net IRPEF €8,064.97. In this example the forfetario regime takes €5,304.26 less than the ordinary one, before surcharges; the ordinary burden drops to the level of the forfetario one when actual costs reach 32% of revenue, against the 22% the forfetario regime presumes.

Example 2, trader with €80,000 and actual costs of 75%. For trade, the forfetario regime presumes an income of 40% of revenue, that is €32,000: INPS traders contributions €7,841.04 (without the 35% reduction), tax €3,623.84. With actual costs of €60,000, in the ordinary regime the real income is €20,000: contributions €4,903.44, net IRPEF €2,700.21 after a deduction of €772.00. In this example the ordinary regime takes €3,861.23 less than the forfetario one, before surcharges; the ordinary burden drops to the level of the forfetario one when actual costs reach 65% of revenue, against the 60% the forfetario regime presumes.

Example 3, artisan with €60,000 and actual costs of 30%. For example, a personal services activity (ATECO 96), which falls under "other activities" with a 67% coefficient: forfetario income €40,200, INPS artisans contributions €9,655.44, tax €4,581.68. Ordinary: income €42,000, contributions €10,087.44, net IRPEF €7,549.32. In this example the forfetario regime takes €3,399.64 less than the ordinary one, before surcharges; the ordinary burden drops to the level of the forfetario one when actual costs reach 42% of revenue, against the 33% the forfetario regime presumes.

Redo the calculation with your revenue in the simulator: the section forfetario or ordinary explains what the calculation cannot see.

When can the ordinary regime pay off?

The ordinary regime can cost less than the forfetario one in four situations: when your actual costs far exceed those the coefficient presumes, when you have significant personal deductions to claim, when the activity closes a year at a loss, when you have tax credits to use against IRPEF. Each one should be weighed on your numbers, year by year.

High actual costs. The coefficient presumes a fixed share of costs: 22% for professionals, 60% for trade. Those who buy a lot of goods or have expensive equipment may spend more than that, and in the ordinary regime those costs reduce income, as in the trader example.
Personal deductions. Medical expenses, mortgage interest, renovations, dependent family members: they are subtracted from gross IRPEF. In the forfetario regime the substitute tax does not absorb them, and they can be used only if you have other income subject to IRPEF (Revenue Agency circular 10/E of 2016, §4.4).
Losses. In the forfetario regime income is always a positive percentage of revenue: even a year in which you spend more than you collect produces tax. In the ordinary regime income is the real difference.
Tax credits. A credit is used against a tax to be paid: with a higher IRPEF there is more room to absorb it. Which credits apply in the two regimes depends on the individual incentive and must be checked case by case.

What is lost in the forfetario regime?

You lose the deduction of actual costs, the IRPEF deductions on business or professional income, and the recovery of VAT on purchases. In exchange, forfetario income still counts when a law requires an income requirement, including for family-dependent deductions: entering the forfetario regime does not make you "poorer" in the eyes of the tax authorities.

The rule is paragraph 75 of art. 1 of Law 190/2014: where the rules require holding income requirements, forfetario income is also taken into account. The Revenue Agency (circular 10/E of 2016, §4.3.7) specifies that forfetario income counts, together with total income, for the recognition of the family-dependent deductions of art. 12, para. 2, TUIR, whereas it does not count for the deductions of art. 13 TUIR: whoever also has a salary calculates the employee deduction without counting forfetario income.

On the contributions side, the forfetario regime has an advantage the ordinary one does not: artisans and traders can request the 35% reduction (para. 77), which however also reduces the pension accrued. See INPS contributions in the forfetario regime 2026 and the 35% reduction.

VAT, withholdings and electronic invoicing: what changes between the two regimes?

The forfetario regime does not charge VAT on invoices and does not deduct it on purchases, does not suffer the withholding tax and does not keep accounting records. Electronic invoicing, however, is mandatory for all forfetario taxpayers since 1 January 2024. In the ordinary regime VAT is applied and deducted, with settlements and returns, and accounting is kept.

Main obligations, art. 1 L. 190/2014 and art. 18 D.L. 36/2022
Obligation	Forfetario	Ordinary regime
VAT on invoices	No: no VAT charged on domestic transactions (para. 58), exemption from payment and from almost all VAT obligations (para. 59)	Yes, with deduction of VAT on purchases
Withholding tax on fees	No: revenue and fees are not subject to withholding (para. 67)	Yes, where the law provides for it
Withholdings as withholding agent	Not carried out, except those under arts. 23 and 24 of Presidential Decree 600/1973 (para. 69)	Yes, when you pay fees subject to withholding
Accounting records	Exempt, with retention of documents (para. 69)	Simplified or ordinary accounting
Electronic invoicing	Mandatory: from 1/7/2022 for those who exceeded 25,000 euros, from 1/1/2024 for all others (art. 18 D.L. 36/2022)	Mandatory

VAT weighs differently depending on the clients: for those who sell to businesses it is largely neutral, because the client deducts it; for those who sell to private individuals, the absence of VAT in the forfetario regime is a price advantage. The issue is explained in forfetario at €100,000 but VAT from 85,000 euros.

If I meet the forfetario requirements, can I choose the ordinary regime?

Yes. Paragraph 70 allows those who have the requirements to apply VAT and income taxes under the ordinary rules, with an option valid for at least three years, communicated with the first annual return that follows and then renewed year by year for as long as it applies. Before choosing, it is therefore worth looking at several years, not just one.

The three-year commitment is why a single year of high costs is not enough to decide: a one-off investment can make the ordinary regime win that year and the forfetario regime in the two following years. Under the rules in force, moreover, the choice is not free above certain thresholds: above €85,000 of revenue you leave the forfetario regime the following year, above €100,000 immediately (see what happens if you exceed 85,000 euros).

Does the comparison change with the 2027 flat tax?

As of 23 October 2026, no: the 2027 budget law has not been approved and the comparison is made with the 2026 rules. The press proposals, namely forfetario up to 100,000 euros and IRPEF at 33% up to 60,000 euros, would affect both sides of the balance, but until they are in an approved text they remain proposals.

Certain: entry threshold of 85,000 euros, 15% tax, 2026 IRPEF brackets, the obligations in the table above.
Proposal: threshold of 100,000 euros with VAT from 85,000 (Sky TG24 13/10/2026, Alanews 20/10/2026) and second IRPEF bracket up to 60,000 euros (Sky TG24 13/10/2026), which Informazione Fiscale on 20/10/2026 judges to be without funding. Below €50,000 of taxable income the latter would change nothing.

The full picture is in the hub flat tax 2027: what changes for VAT-registered freelancers; the effect of the 33% IRPEF rate in euro is in 2027 IRPEF at 33% up to 60,000 euros.

The three examples use hypothetical costs to illustrate the method, not yours. Enter revenue, sector, pension scheme and actual costs in the 2027 flat tax simulator: then take the result to your accountant, who knows deductions, credits and plans for the coming years.

Sources

L. 23 December 2014 no. 190, art. 1 paragraphs 54-89, text in force on Normattiva (paras. 58, 59, 64, 67, 69, 70, 75, 77), accessed on 23/10/2026
Agenzia delle Entrate, circular 10/E of 4 April 2016, §4.3 (coefficients), §4.3.7 (deductions) and §4.4 (substitute tax), accessed on 23/10/2026
D.L. 30 April 2022 no. 36, art. 18 and D.Lgs. (legislative decree) 5 August 2015 no. 127, art. 1 para. 3 (electronic invoicing for forfetario taxpayers), accessed on 23/10/2026
D.P.R. (Presidential Decree) 917/1986 (TUIR), arts. 10, 11 and 13, and L. 30 December 2025 no. 199, art. 1 para. 3 (second bracket at 33%), accessed on 23/10/2026
INPS, circular no. 8 of 3 February 2026 (separate management) and circular no. 14 of 9 February 2026 (artisans and traders), accessed on 23/10/2026
Sky TG24, 13 October 2026, Alanews, 20 October 2026 and Informazione Fiscale, 20 October 2026 (budget proposals: press sources, not normative), accessed on 23/10/2026

Frequently asked questions

Is the forfetario regime always better than the ordinary regime?

No. The forfetario regime calculates 15% on presumed income from the sector coefficient, without deducting actual costs. If your real costs far exceed the presumed ones, or if you have many personal deductions or a loss year, the ordinary regime may cost less. In the example of a trader with €80,000 and costs at 75% of revenue, the ordinary regime takes €3,861.23 less than the forfetario regime.

How are taxes compared between the forfetario and the ordinary regime?

In the forfetario regime: revenue times coefficient, minus contributions, at 15%. In the ordinary regime: revenue minus actual costs, minus contributions, progressive IRPEF at 23%, 33%, 43%, minus the self-employment deduction, plus regional and municipal surcharges. The correct comparison looks at the net income after actual costs, which are paid in both regimes.

In the forfetario regime, can I deduct medical and dependent family expenses?

Not from the 15% substitute tax. Deductions are offset against gross IRPEF only if you have other income subject to IRPEF, as clarified by circular 10/E of 2016. Forfetario income does, however, count together with total income for the recognition of family-dependent deductions, under paragraph 75 of Law 190 of 2014.

Must forfetario taxpayers issue electronic invoices?

Yes. Article 18 of decree-law 36 of 2022 removed the exemption: electronic invoicing has been mandatory since 1 July 2022 for those who had exceeded 25,000 euros of revenue or fees, and since 1 January 2024 for all other forfetario taxpayers. What remains is the absence of VAT on invoices and of the withholding tax.

If I choose the ordinary regime, how long does the choice last?

Those who have the forfetario requirements can opt for VAT and income taxes under the ordinary rules: under paragraph 70 of Law 190 of 2014 the option is valid for at least three years, is communicated with the first annual return that follows, and is then renewed year by year for as long as it applies. For this reason it is worth evaluating several years, not just one.

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