Italy is preparing a new tax regime for citizens who have lived abroad for a long time and wish to return to their homeland after retirement.
The essence of the initiative is the introduction of a preferential 4% tax rate on worldwide income for returning Italian expat retirees. The new regime is intended to become a separate tool of Rome’s tax policy and the first one specifically targeted at recipients of Italian pensions.
Italy currently has several preferential regimes in place for new residents, including a scheme for wealthy foreigners and a 7% regime for foreign retirees who move to certain small municipalities in the south of the country. However, these mechanisms did not fully address the situation of Italians who have worked and lived abroad for decades and then wish to return to Italy to retire.
Under the current scheme for foreign retirees, the 7% rate applies to foreign income if the individual transfers their tax residency to Italy and moves to an eligible municipality. In 2026, Italy expanded this scheme: the population limit for participating municipalities was raised from 20,000 to 30,000 residents, opening up access to the benefit for new towns in the south of the country.
The new 4% scheme could become a more targeted measure for Italian citizens abroad. Authorities hope it will help bring back some retirees who have income and savings outside Italy but maintain personal, family, or cultural ties to their homeland. For the government, it is also a way to support small towns and regions facing an aging population and population outflow.
For the real estate market, such an initiative could boost demand for housing in small towns and southern regions of Italy. Returning retirees tend to look not toward Milan or Rome, but toward more affordable locations with a low cost of living, a good climate, medical infrastructure, and the opportunity for a peaceful life. This could support the secondary housing market, long-term rentals, and services for senior residents.
In recent years, Italy has actively used tax incentives as a tool to attract capital and new residents. At the same time, authorities are reviewing tax breaks for ultra-high-net-worth foreigners: there have been discussions about raising the flat tax on foreign income for new wealthy residents from EUR 200,000 to EUR 300,000 per year.
Ukraine’s local budgets received 4.9 billion UAH in taxes on real estate other than land plots from January through April 2026, a 14.5% increase compared to the same period last year, according to the State Tax Service (STS).
The largest amounts of revenue were recorded in Kyiv (UAH 1.05 billion), Kyiv (UAH 547.3 million), Dnipropetrovsk (UAH 490 million), and Lviv regions (UAH 487 million). The agency noted that this tax is levied only on the area exceeding the tax-exempt thresholds: over 60 square meters for apartments, over 120 square meters for houses, and over 180 square meters for various types of housing. The tax rate is set by local authorities but cannot exceed 1.5% of the minimum wage per square meter above the threshold.
At the same time, land tax revenues for the first four months of this year increased by 14.3% compared to the same period in 2025—reaching 15.8 billion UAH. The additional revenue for local communities from this payment amounted to nearly UAH 2 billion. The leaders in land tax payments were Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (UAH 3 billion), Kyiv (UAH 2.3 billion), Odesa (UAH 1.4 billion), and Lviv (UAH 1.2 billion) Oblasts.
Land tax is a mandatory local payment made by owners of land plots, land shares, and permanent land users. For individuals, assessments are made by tax authorities, and payment must be made within 60 days of receiving the tax notice-decision. Legal entities calculate the tax themselves and file returns annually by February 20.
Land tax exemptions are available for senior citizens, individuals with disabilities of Groups I and II, war veterans, large families, and individuals affected by the Chernobyl disaster. The exemption applies within the established limits on plot size. The State Tax Service notes that the obligation to pay the tax remains with the owner even if no notice is received, and the status of payments can be checked through the taxpayer’s electronic account.
The Swiss Federal Council has approved the launch of a housing tax reform effective January 1, 2029—from that point on, homeowners who live in their own homes will no longer pay tax on the so-called imputed rental value (Eigenmietwert).
This is one of the most unique tax rules in Europe: until now, living in one’s own house or apartment in Switzerland was considered imputed income, on which income tax was levied. As part of the reform, this system will be abolished for both primary and secondary residences, while parliament simultaneously provided a constitutional option for cantons to introduce a special tax on second homes.
The reform became possible after Swiss voters supported changes to housing taxation in a referendum on September 28, 2025. According to Swissinfo, 57.7% of voters supported the reform. The Federal Council rejected requests from several Alpine cantons to postpone the launch of the new system until at least 2030, deciding to maintain the effective date of the changes as 2029.
For the housing market, this means not only the abolition of the imputed rental income tax but also a revision of related tax deductions. According to the official explanation, the current model was based on a balance between taxing imputed income and the ability to deduct mortgage interest and housing maintenance costs from the tax base. Following the reform, this mechanism will be significantly altered, and the cantons will have to adapt their own tax regimes over the coming years.
For foreign investors and real estate buyers, this news is important primarily as a signal of further adjustments to the rules governing home ownership in Switzerland. At the same time, the final impact of the reform on the tax burden will depend on the structure of real estate ownership, the presence of a mortgage, and how specific cantons exercise their right to impose a separate tax on second homes.
The State Tax Service and the State Customs Service exceeded their monthly revenue targets for the general fund in March 2026, generating a total of 9.5 billion UAH in additional revenue, according to the Ministry of Finance.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the State Tax Service exceeded its target by 1.9% (+3.1 billion UAH) in March, while the State Customs Service exceeded its target by 8.8% (+6.4 billion UAH). For the period from January to March, the State Tax Service’s revenue target fulfillment rate was 100.6% (+2.1 billion UAH), and the State Customs Service’s was 101.7% (+3.3 billion UAH).
The number of cars subject to luxury tax decreased threefold over the year
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 504 vehicles subject to luxury tax were imported into the country last year.
This is the lowest figure in the last five years. Porsche and Mercedes-Benz account for 89% of luxury vehicles, and every second such car is a Porsche Taycan. In total, electric cars account for 65% of all cars subject to luxury tax.
504 cars subject to the “luxury tax” were imported into Ukraine in 2025. This is 3.2 times less than in 2024. Overall, this is the lowest figure in the last five years.
Every second car on the “luxury” list is a Porsche Taycan: 232 cars. Overall, Porsche became the leader in the luxury segment with additional taxation: cars of this brand account for 64% of the total volume. Mercedes-Benz took another quarter of the market with 126 cars. The rest of the premium brands together account for 11% of the market: Audi, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Maserati, etc.
It is worth noting that, in contrast to overall imports, electric cars dominate the premium segment: 65% of imported luxury cars. Another 18% are hybrids that can run on electricity as well as gasoline or diesel. Pure gasoline cars, the leaders in overall imports, are at the bottom of the list with 17%. Diesel accounts for a symbolic 0.4%.
Almost half of all luxury cars are registered in Kyiv and the surrounding region: 236 cars. Another 52 cars are in Lviv region, 49 in Odesa region, and 37 in Dnipropetrovsk region.
Most of the cars in the luxury segment are registered to individuals — 82% or 413 cars. Only 18% of such cars are registered to businesses.
The ultra-premium segment deserves special attention. Last year, 21 Rolls-Royces were imported into Ukraine. Fifteen of them are the electric Spectre model, which costs about $600,000. The registry also includes seven Aston Martins and two Lamborghinis.
It should be noted that the “luxury tax” applies to cars costing more than UAH 3.2 million and less than 5 years old. The tax amount for one such car is UAH 25,000 per year.
https://opendatabot.ua/analytics/luxury-car-fee-2025
CAR, IMPORT, luxury, Porsche Taycan, TAX
The amount of value-added tax (VAT) declared by non-residents who provide electronic services to individuals in the customs territory of Ukraine and are registered as VAT payers reached 14.4 billion hryvnia in 2025, while in 2024, the budget received 29% less – 11.2 billion hryvnia.
The “Google tax” brought over 14.4 billion hryvnia to the budget in 2025. These are funds paid by non-residents who provide electronic services to individuals in the customs territory of Ukraine and are registered as VAT payers,” wrote Lesya Karnaukh, acting head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine (STS), on her Facebook page.
According to her, 150 non-residents already pay this tax: in 2025, 12 new non-residents registered as VAT payers, and at the beginning of 2026, another five companies did so.
The leaders in paying the “Google tax” remain the world’s leading digital companies: Apple, Google, Valve, Meta, Sony, Etsy, and Netflix.
“All the electronic services we use every day contribute to the state budget. These are funds for the protection of the country, social programs, and restoration,” Karnaukh noted.
