Glossary of Italian notarial terms, in plain English

Version 2 of 26/09/2026

Buying property

Preliminary contract compromesso, contratto preliminare

The binding agreement to buy and sell, signed before the deed. It fixes price, dates and conditions. It must be registered with the tax office within 30 days; if drawn up by the notary it can also be recorded in the land registry, which protects the buyer for three years (art. 2645-bis c.c.).

Deposit caparra confirmatoria

Money paid at the preliminary contract (usually 10-15% of the price). If the buyer withdraws, the seller keeps it; if the seller withdraws, the buyer can claim double (art. 1385 c.c.). Different from an “acconto”, which is simply an advance on the price.

Deed of sale rogito, atto di compravendita

The public deed signed before the notary that transfers ownership. The notary checks title, mortgages, building and cadastral compliance, reads the deed aloud, collects the taxes and files it with the land registry.

Land registry Conservatoria, registri immobiliari

The public register of ownership, mortgages and other charges on real estate. Recording (“trascrizione”) is what makes your purchase enforceable against everyone.

Cadastre Catasto

The tax inventory of buildings and land, with floor plans and a “rendita catastale” (cadastral income) used to compute taxes. Since 2010 the seller must declare that the floor plan matches the property.

Cadastral value valore catastale

The cadastral income multiplied by a legal coefficient (115.5 for a first home, 126 otherwise). For private sales of homes, the buyer can ask to pay transfer taxes on this value instead of the price (“prezzo-valore”).

Title of provenance atto di provenienza

The document by which the seller became owner (a previous deed, an inheritance, a gift). The notary reads it to check that the chain of ownership is unbroken.

Mortgage ipoteca

A charge on the property securing a loan. The buyer’s bank registers a new one at the same time as the purchase; the seller’s old mortgage is paid off with part of the price and cancelled by the bank.

Home loan deed atto di mutuo

The loan contract signed before the notary right after the sale. Taxed with a 0.25% substitute tax for a main home (2% otherwise); the notary’s fee for it is partly tax-deductible.

Usufruct usufrutto

The right to live in or rent out a property for life (or a set period) without owning it. Common in family transfers: parents give the “bare ownership” (nuda proprietà) to children and keep the usufruct.

Bare ownership nuda proprietà

Ownership without the right to use the property while the usufruct lasts. Cheaper to buy; full ownership arrives automatically when the usufruct ends.

Building compliance conformità urbanistica

The property must match the building permits on file at the town hall. Undeclared changes can block or void a sale: the notary asks the seller to declare the permits and often a surveyor to certify the “stato legittimo”.

Energy performance certificate APE

The energy class certificate (A4 to G), mandatory for sales and rentals of homes and offices, attached to the deed.

Condominium condominio

The building’s co-ownership of common parts (stairs, roof, lift). The buyer accepts the rules (“regolamento”) and the seller proves that service charges are paid up to the deed date.

Price escrow deposito prezzo

The option to leave the price on the notary’s dedicated account until the deed is recorded and no unexpected charges have appeared (L. 147/2013). It protects the buyer against charges registered between the signing and the recording; it has an extra cost, stated in the quote, and it is not compulsory.

Real-estate agent mediatore

The agent who introduced the parties. The deed must state who was paid, how much and how; the commission is partly tax-deductible for the buyer.

Taxes and costs

Registration tax imposta di registro

The main transfer tax on private sales: 2% of the (cadastral) value for a first home, 9% otherwise, minimum 1,000 euro. Plus 50 + 50 euro of fixed mortgage and cadastral taxes.

VAT sale vendita soggetta a IVA

When the seller is a builder selling within five years of completion: VAT at 4% (first home) or 10%, plus 200 + 200 + 200 euro of fixed taxes.

First-home relief agevolazione prima casa

Reduced taxes if you take residence in the municipality within 18 months, own no other home there and no other home bought with the relief in Italy. Selling within five years makes you lose it unless you buy another main home within a year.

Notary’s fee onorario

Set by a preliminary written quote, before the deed and after we have seen the documents. Fixed tariffs were abolished in 2006; the quote lists taxes, fee and expenses on separate lines. Our tools give an indicative estimate, not a quote: notaiofiorentinomarco.com/calcolatori.

Capital gain plusvalenza

The profit on a resale within five years is taxed unless the property was your main home for most of that time. You can choose a 26% substitute tax paid through the notary.

Tax code codice fiscale

The Italian personal identification number, required for every deed and every bank account. Foreigners obtain it from the Revenue Agency or an Italian consulate; we can help.

Cash limits limiti al contante

Cash payments are capped by law (5,000 euro). All payments must be traceable and are listed in the deed with their date and means.

Inheritance and gifts

Declaration of succession dichiarazione di successione

The tax return filed within 12 months of death listing heirs and assets. The notary can prepare and file it and update the cadastre.

Forced heirs legittimari

Spouse, children and (without children) parents, who are entitled by law to a share of the estate (“legittima”) whatever the will says (artt. 536-548 c.c.).

Available share quota disponibile

The part of the estate you can freely leave by will: from a quarter to the whole, depending on who your forced heirs are.

Will testamento

Either handwritten, dated and signed by you (“olografo”) or received by the notary with two witnesses (“pubblico”). A foreign will is valid in Italy if valid where it was made, but Italian forced-heirship rules may still apply to Italian assets.

Acceptance of inheritance accettazione dell’eredità

Heirs must accept, expressly or by conduct, within ten years; acceptance “with benefit of inventory” limits liability to what you inherit.

Renunciation rinuncia all’eredità

The formal refusal of an inheritance, made before a notary or the court, typically when debts exceed assets.

Inheritance and gift tax imposta di successione e donazione

4% for spouse and children with a 1,000,000 euro exemption each; 6% for siblings (100,000 euro exemption) and other relatives; 8% for everyone else. Real estate also pays 2% + 1% mortgage and cadastral taxes (fixed if first home).

Gift donazione

A transfer for free, always by public deed with two witnesses. Since December 2025 buyers of gifted property are protected from later claims by forced heirs.

Hotchpot collazione

The rule that gifts received by children during the parent’s life are brought back into account when dividing the estate, unless the gift was made with a dispensation.

Division divisione ereditaria

The deed that ends co-ownership among heirs, assigning each a share of the assets with balancing payments if needed.

Apostille

The stamp under the 1961 Hague Convention that makes a foreign power of attorney or certificate valid in Italy without further legalisation.

Power of attorney procura

Lets someone sign the deed for you. Made before a foreign notary or an Italian consulate, with apostille and Italian translation. For gifts it must name the recipient and the asset.

Companies

S.r.l. società a responsabilità limitata

The Italian private limited company: minimum capital 1 euro (10,000 euro for the standard form), incorporated by notarial deed, also online by video-conference.

S.r.l.s. S.r.l. semplificata

The simplified S.r.l. with a standard statute and capital under 10,000 euro, for individuals only; notary’s fee waived by law, taxes and fees still due.

Quota quota di S.r.l.

A shareholding in an S.r.l. Transfers are made by notarial deed (or digital signature through a notary or accountant) and filed with the Companies Register within 30 days.

Articles of association statuto

The company’s rules: object, capital, decisions, transfer of quotas (pre-emption, approval clauses), directors.

Companies Register Registro delle Imprese

The public register held by the Chamber of Commerce where deeds, directors and accounts are filed and where anyone can obtain a “visura”.

Shareholders’ meeting minutes verbale di assemblea

Decisions that change the statute (capital increase, new seat, new object, liquidation) are taken in a meeting recorded by the notary.

Business transfer cessione d’azienda

The sale of a going concern (shop, restaurant, workshop) by notarial deed: contracts, employees and stock pass to the buyer; the seller stays liable for older debts.

The deed and the notary

Notary notaio

A public official and independent lawyer appointed by the State after a national exam, who drafts and receives deeds, guarantees their legality and files them. Impartial between the parties; the fee is paid by the buyer, who is also the one who chooses the notary.

Public deed atto pubblico

A document drawn up by the notary, read to the parties and signed in his presence: full evidence of what it states, immediately enforceable.

Authenticated private deed scrittura privata autenticata

A document written by the parties whose signatures the notary certifies. Used for quota transfers and some real-estate deeds.

Interpreter and witnesses interprete e testimoni

If you do not speak Italian, the deed is received with an interpreter and two witnesses, or drawn up in two languages when the notary knows yours (artt. 54-55 L. 89/1913). We work in English.

Certified copy copia autentica

The official copy of the deed issued by the notary, needed by banks and public offices. The original stays in the notary’s archive.

Anti-money-laundering antiriciclaggio

The notary must identify the parties and the origin of funds (D.Lgs. 231/2007): bring ID, tax code and, for large payments, bank evidence. It protects you as much as the system.

Certified e-mail PEC

The Italian legally binding e-mail, equivalent to registered mail. Companies and professionals must have one; useful for sending documents to us.

Digital signature firma digitale

A qualified electronic signature (on smart card or in the cloud) with full legal value; needed for online incorporations and for signing PDFs sent to the notary.

Online consultation consulenza online

A 30-minute video call with the notary on Google Meet, Teams or Zoom, or a WhatsApp video call (we call you), followed by a written summary: the right first step from abroad.

Sources: Italian Civil Code (articles cited); D.P.R. 131/1986 (registration tax); D.P.R. 633/1972 (VAT); D.Lgs. 346/1990 (inheritance and gift tax, as amended by D.Lgs. 139/2024); L. 266/2005 (cadastral value); L. 147/2013 (price escrow); L. 89/1913 (Notarial Law); D.Lgs. 231/2007 (anti-money-laundering); L. 182/2025 (reform of gifts). Figures valid for 2026; they change with the law. Studio Notarile Marco Fiorentino · Viale Antonio Gramsci 19, 80122 Napoli (Mergellina) · open Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 18:00 · +39 352 273 7467 · segreteria@notaiofiorentinomarco.com · VAT 00362508889.

© Studio Notarile Marco Fiorentino, Naples — Written with the support of artificial intelligence and checked by the notary, who improved, added or amended parts of it. General information, not advice on a specific case (art. 13 L. 132/2025; art. 50 EU Reg. 2024/1689).