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A transfer from a parent to a child is not taxed at 8% just because it was made. It is the first point to be clarified after the order of the Court of Cassation which brought the issue back to the center of attention: the decision concerns a very particular case and, between parents and children, the tax is still paid only above one million euros.
The ruling is ordinance no. 15315 of 20 May 2026 of the tax section. The case concerned a taxpayer who had received over €8.2 million in cash and securities held abroad from her mother.
Transfer between parents and children: what the Supreme Court decided
The transfer had emerged during a tax audit of other taxes. On that occasion the taxpayer explained that the sums came from her mother and were therefore not her income. However, he had not demonstrated that there was a reason other than the gift behind the transfer of money, for example a loan to be repaid. The Revenue Agency therefore treated it as a donation, that is, as a free transfer of wealth, and the Supreme Court confirmed this approach.
The principle stated by the Court is that what matters is the actual nature of the transfer, not the name given to it. It is not necessary for the taxpayer to expressly say “I received a donation”: it is enough that his declarations show that one person has become richer and another has become impoverished, with nothing in return. Establishing whether it is a donation is then up to the tax authorities.
When does the 8% tax kick in?
8% is not the normal tax on gifts of money between parents and children. It occurs in a specific situation, provided for by the law on donations (article 56-bis of the Consolidated Law): the transfer of money has not been registered with the Revenue Agency and comes out during a tax audit on other taxes, because it is the taxpayer himself who talks about it. The bank transfer alone is not enough.
The one million euro deductible
Even when it is applied, the 8% is calculated only on the part that exceeds the deductible, i.e. the threshold below which it is not paid: between parents and children, one million euros for each child. Below that threshold, in general, the tax is not due. For normal donations, and for gifts of money that you choose to register, you pay 4% on the part that exceeds one million.
An example: on a transfer of 1.2 million euros from a parent to a child, the tax is calculated on the 200 thousand euros that exceed the deductible. With 4% it is 8 thousand euros; with 8% they become 16 thousand.
Gift or loan: the name is not enough
The decision also gives a practical indication: the way in which the taxpayer defines the transfer is not decisive. Avoiding the word “donation” does not prevent the IRS from considering it a gift, if the facts show that the money was given without anything in return. Anyone who claims that it is a loan must be able to demonstrate that the money must be repaid: in the event of an audit, the documentation can be decisive.
A case far from normal family help
The case that reached the Court of Cassation remains very far from everyday transfers: at the center there were over 8.2 million euros in money and securities held abroad. It would therefore be misleading to derive the rule according to which “every parental transfer is taxed”. The decision does not introduce any new tax on transfers between family members.