VAT on works of art, Giuli: "Regulatory hypotheses aimed at changing the rate are being studied."

During today’s Question Time live from the Chamber of Deputies, Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli responded to Stefano Candiani’s (League) question on the need for a reduction in the VAT rate applied to the supply of works of art.

“I confirm the need to take action to reduce the VAT rate on art, antiques and collectibles, and I confirm that the Ministry of Economy and Finance is actively supporting the initiative. We are already defining the necessary coverage,” the minister said. “The cultural health of our nation is a priority of the government, it is a tax measure that will favor transactions in the domestic market and enhance the competitiveness of Italian exports at the European level.”

“I agree on the distorting consequences of the provision of an unequal rate across the European territory,” he continued. “The dumping effect to the detriment of cultural operators and the entire art supply chain causes prejudice to those who create the works (artisans, restorers, scholars), those who store and deliver them (the transporters) and those who exhibit them, making the beauty knowable (the fair organizations). Sector studies, which I have thoroughly examined, show what would be the serious consequences of non-intervention for art operators: decreased investment; loss of commercial attractiveness; relocation of operators abroad to more competitive regimes.”

“Regulatory hypotheses are being studied, in synergy with the Ministry of Economy and Finance,” Giuli concluded, “aimed at modifying the VAT rate, aligning it with the preferential treatment provided for the sale of the aforementioned goods in the main European countries. The path toward the revision of this sector discipline is marked out: it is not only a matter of realigning ourselves to a continental average, but also of not holding back the dynamism of the Italian art market with anti-competitive tax burdens. Our cultural players, if put in a position to compete on equal terms could and will make Italy an international center of trade operations and increase the sector’s economic growth, thus fueling the same tax revenues.”

VAT on works of art, Giuli: "Regulatory hypotheses aimed at changing the rate are being studied."

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