British Freelancer Living in Italy

[percy333]

Hi guys,

Thank you in advance for any tips. Basically, for the past 12 months I've been working as a freelance proofreader / editor for a couple of British companies. I currently reside in Italy, on the organic farm of my girlfriend's family. In short, I'm not sure what I am supposed to do regarding taxes. The job has been lucrative enough for the past five months or so (i.e. enough money that I owe someone some taxes!) I just got off the phone with Inland Revenue and they basically told me that it's not their problem; I need to talk to the Italians.

HOWEVER, from what I understand, in Italy there's a 50% on all earnings as a professional individual (no threshold. If I make €1,000 I owe €500 in tax). Does anybody have any experience with this? This seems ridiculously high, and basically means I will not be able to afford to live in Italy. I am very keen to ensure that everything is overboard and legal, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks a lot.

[RMC]

If you work in Italy your earnings are liable to tax in Italy.

The good news is that if you remain tax-resident in the UK, perhaps because of frequent visits due to feeling unable to live in Italy, your Italian tax can be credited against UK tax charged on these earnings.

But Italian taxes are not as high as you think!