On Wednesday 16 September, the Council of Ministers approved the exemption for 2027 from car tax for small and medium-power cars up to 80 kW (kilowatt), those largely used by families for daily travel, and also for motorcycles, with the prospect, said Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, of making the structural measure when the financial framework for the next budget law is clearer. It should therefore become an abolition in the strict sense. The fact is that at the moment the measure does not provide for the permanent abolition of the stamp duty, but rather the exemption for one year.
Only one concession
Each citizen, according to the text approved by the government, will be able to take advantage of the benefit only once: it means that those who own multiple vehicles will not pay just one car tax, the one for the car with the lowest power (always expressed in kW). In case of equal power, the tax will be suspended for the car for which, in the absence of the relief, the lower amount of the car tax would be due. The car must however be regularly insured. The relief can also be applied to mopeds, but only if it is not already used by the same car owner.
The Meloni Government approves the abolition of tax for cars and motorcycles: a measure that concerns approximately 14.5 million vehicles and over 70% of the cars in circulation.
To a left that persists in proposing new taxes and assets, we respond with the elimination of… pic.twitter.com/55kiWpYjn5
— Fratelli d’Italia 🇮🇹 (@FratellidItalia) September 16, 2026
The government has estimated that the vehicles affected by this decision are around 14.5 million (more than 70% of the cars in circulation). According to what we read in the draft decree examined by the Council of Ministers, the car tax exemption will cost around 2.36 billion euros but the coverage is not specified. The stamp duty is a regional tax: the government has provided compensation of 2.3 billion euros to be given to the regions for the lost revenue, but at the moment it is not clear how it will finance this measure.
Field P.2 on the booklet: who pays and who doesn’t
Having said that, which models will no longer pay car tax in 2027? And which ones will continue to have to pay it? To understand this, just look at your vehicle registration document. The official and binding data for the tax is the one written in field P.2 of the registration document, not the commercial name of the car. The most famous brands have dozens of engine/equipment/year combinations that constantly change in the price lists, so you need to check carefully before making a purchase, especially on used ones.
undefined
The maximum net power in kW is an approved data and reported on the registration document in field P.2. If the power in the registration document is up to 80 kW, you are exempt from paying the tax next year. Many car owners are more accustomed to thinking in terms of horsepower for their car: 80 kW, however, corresponds to approximately 109 horsepower. It is more difficult to make a direct comparison between kW, horsepower and displacement, because there is no direct conversion of these measurements. These are different physical quantities that measure different aspects of the engine. An 80 kW engine can therefore have very different displacements depending on the technology, power supply and type of vehicle. In the world of automobiles, 80 kW is found on engines with widely varying displacements.
Petrol, diesel or hybrid? Some examples
The exemption applies to both petrol and diesel powered cars, as well as hybrid models (for which reference is made only to the power of the combustion engine and not to the overall power). Looking at the best-selling cars in Italy, here are some models that will not pay road tax in 2027:
- Fiat Pandina;
- Citroën C3;
- Dacia Sandero;
- Toyota Yaris;
- Renault Clio;
- Hyundai i10;
- Hyundai i20;
- Mitsubishi Colt;
- Suzuki Swift Hybrid;
- Kia Picanto;
- Peugeot 208;
- Volkswagen Polo;
- Seat Ibiza;
- Renault Clio;
- Opel Corsa.
Pay attention to the model
A clarification is necessary. If for some models the exemption is always valid (such as for the Fiat Pandina or the Toyota Yaris), for others it will only be applicable to the so-called “entry-level”, i.e. the least powerful (and cheapest) model in the line. You must therefore pay close attention to what is specified in the registration document regarding kW.
Cars with engines with a power exceeding 80 kW (kilowatt) will be excluded from this provision. These are not particularly fast or famous cars, but models such as the Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Yaris Cross up to the Audi A3, BMW 1 Series or Mercedes A-Class.
And scooters?
As regards motorcycles and mopeds, the exemption is available to natural persons who, in the year 2027, are “payable subjects of the car tax or circulation tax in relation to one or more motorcycles or mopeds powered, even in combination with another source of propulsion, by petrol or diesel, provided that they are not payable persons of the car tax in relation to any car with a power equal to or less than 80 kW”. Translated: the relief will also be applied to mopeds, but only if it is not already used by the same car owner.
These are the vast majority of scooters currently on the market and in circulation in Italy, to which a few motorbikes must be added. In the case of multiple eligible motorcycles, the exemption is recognized for only one of them and with the lowest power, always expressed in kW. In the case of equal power, the exemption is applied to the motorcycle for which the lower amount of car tax is due, in the absence of the relief. If more than one moped is eligible for relief, the exemption is granted to the moped with the earliest date of first registration.