August 22, 2026
Before an Italian property purchase reaches the final deed, buyer and seller sign a preliminary contract. Italians call it the compromesso, or more formally the contratto preliminare di compravendita. It is a binding written promise to complete the sale, and it comes with its own deadline, its own taxes, and its own risks if either side changes their mind. This guide sets out what a buyer needs to know before signing.
What a compromesso actually commits you to
A compromesso obligates both the buyer and the seller to go on and sign the definitive contract, the rogito, at a later date. Under article 1351 of the Italian civil code, the preliminary contract must be drafted in the same legal form the law requires for the definitive contract, or it is void. In practice this means a preliminary contract for real estate has to be in writing. It is not a casual reservation; it is the document that fixes price, property, and the parties’ mutual promise to close.
How soon must the preliminary contract be registered with the Agenzia delle Entrate?
You have 30 days from the date you sign the preliminary contract to register it with the Agenzia delle Entrate, Italy’s tax authority. This is a fixed term set by Presidential Decree 131 of 26 April 1986, and it applies regardless of what the contract itself says about timing. Registration is not optional paperwork: it is a fixed-term obligation, and the tax paid on it counts toward the tax due on the definitive contract rather than being lost.
What taxes apply to the deposit you pay at signing
Registering the compromesso itself costs a fixed registration tax (imposta di registro) of 200 euros, plus a stamp duty (imposta di bollo) of 16 euros, charged for every 4 written pages of the contract and in any case for every 100 lines. Beyond those flat charges, tax depends on what money changes hands at signing.
If the contract includes a caparra confirmatoria, a confirmatory deposit meant to secure performance, that sum is taxed at 0.5%. If it includes an acconto, an advance payment on the price that is not subject to VAT, that sum is also taxed at 0.5%. If the contract instead provides for a caparra penitenziale, a withdrawal deposit that gives either party the right to walk away, that sum is taxed at 3%. Where a contract combines caparre and acconti, the tax due is the sum of the fixed 200 euros, 3% on any caparra penitenziale, and 0.5% on any acconto and caparra confirmatoria. In every case, this tax counts toward the principal tax due on the definitive contract, so a buyer is not paying it twice.
| Payment type | Registration tax rate |
| Caparra confirmatoria (confirmatory deposit) | 0.5% |
| Acconto (price advance, not subject to VAT) | 0.5% |
| Caparra penitenziale (withdrawal deposit) | 3% |
| Fixed registration tax on the contract itself | 200 euros |
This is general information, not tax or legal advice, and rates can change; confirm the current figures at the point you sign.
Who can file the registration
Registration does not have to be handled by any one party alone. The modello RAP, short for Registrazione Atti Privati, can be used by taxpayers, real estate agents, and other intermediaries to request that the Agenzia delle Entrate register the preliminary contract. In a typical Trevi Elite transaction, this filing is coordinated as part of the paperwork around signing, so the 30-day clock does not become the buyer’s problem to track alone.
Why register the preliminary contract with a notary
Registering the compromesso with the tax authority is a separate step from having it entered, through a notary, into the Registri Immobiliari, Italy’s property registers. This second step is called trascrizione, and it requires a notary’s involvement. According to the Consiglio Nazionale del Notariato, trascrizione is what gives a buyer full and effective protection: without it, the parties, and the buyer in particular, carry greater risk. Once the preliminary contract is entered into the property registers, any later sale of the same property, or any other act carried out or suffered by the seller, cannot prejudice the buyer’s rights. For a buyer relying on a single deposit and a signature, that protection is the difference between a promise and a registered claim on the property itself. This is also the point in the process covered in more detail in Trevi Elite’s guide to notary transactions in Italy, and it sits within the wider sequence set out in the step-by-step purchase procedure.
What happens if the seller or buyer backs out
Article 1385 of the civil code sets the rules for a caparra confirmatoria specifically. If the sale completes as agreed, the deposit is returned or credited against the amount owed under the contract. If the buyer who paid the deposit fails to perform, the seller can withdraw from the contract and keep the deposit. If it is the seller who fails to perform, the buyer can withdraw and demand double the deposit back. Either party can instead choose to sue for performance of the contract, or for its resolution, with damages assessed under the ordinary rules rather than the caparra mechanism. That choice, whether to walk away and settle on the deposit or to pursue the contract itself, belongs to the non-defaulting party.
What Trevi Elite does at this stage
Trevi Elite prepares and reviews the compromesso alongside the buyer, coordinates the modello RAP filing so the 30-day registration deadline is met without the buyer chasing paperwork, and advises on when a notarial trascrizione is worth arranging given the specific property and timeline to the rogito. Buyers who want that support can write to Trevi Elite before signing anything, and bring the preliminary contract stage into the same coordinated process covered in the complete step-by-step buyer guide.
Sources: Agenzia delle Entrate, Contratto preliminare di compravendita (Modello RAP), published 22 December 2025, accessed 11 August 2026. Gazzetta Ufficiale, Codice civile, article 1385, accessed 11 August 2026. Consiglio Nazionale del Notariato, Guida Garanzia Preliminare, accessed 11 August 2026.