Critical Profiles of the Treatment of Socialcooperatives in the Italian Tax System

Under Italian law, social cooperatives governed by Law no. 381 of 8 November 1991 benefit fromparticularly advantageous fiscal rules, which have been specifically conceived in accordance with that provision’s “mutualistic” purpose. The reformof the third sector also introduced rules on social cooperatives. Specifically, such entities are classified as social enterprises ope legis and are also referred to as third sector entities. However, it is not clear whether that classification will have any consequences for the tax regime applicable to them.The aim of this paper is first and foremost to verify whether any aspects of the legislation on social cooperatives, including provisions on tax, have been affected by the reform mentioned above, andif so which ones. Secondly it will also seek to establish whether the tax regime applicable to social cooperatives is consistent with the role performed by them within the third sector.