CGIL asks Piedmont for a health tax solution

Context

TL;DR

• The health tax has been without implementing decrees for two and a half years
• The presidency of the Regio Insubrica has passed to Piedmont
• The 2026 refunds rose from 89 to 108 million euros
• The inter-ministerial table will meet again at the beginning of November

Key facts

• Protagonist → Giuseppe Augurusa, CGIL trade unionist for cross-border workers
• Organization → Regio Insubrica
• Refunds 2026 → 108 million euros
• Refreshments 2027 → 50% for Lombardy and full for Piedmont
• Next meeting → early November

The request after the meeting

Giuseppe Augurusa, CGIL trade unionist for cross-border workers, relaunched the issue of the health tax at the end of the annual assembly of the Regio Insubrica. The body brings together institutions and economic and social realities of the border territories.

For those who work across the border, the point raised by the union concerns the healthcare contribution expected for some of the old cross-border workers. Augurusa defines it as a health tax and disputes the fact that, despite having been in force for two and a half years, it still does not have the implementing decrees. The consequence indicated is a condition of uncertainty, made more complex by different positions between the Regions and institutions involved.

According to the CGIL, the issue cannot be separated from the institutional relations between Italy and Switzerland. It is intertwined with the refunds intended for border municipalities, a dossier that has already produced a distinction between 2026 and 2027.

For 2026, an agreement brought the refunds from 89 to 108 million euros. Augurusa evaluates the result positively, but draws attention to the following year: Ticino has precautionally blocked the refunds on Lombardy at 50%, while it has assigned them in full to Piedmont.

This choice, according to the union, is linked to the Swiss protest against the Italian introduction of the health tax. The Swiss counterpart considers it incompatible with the agreements between the two countries. For local authorities, therefore, the greatest certainty concerns 2026; the 2027 framework remains open.

The passage of the annual presidency of the Regio Insubrica to Piedmont is seen as a possible point of reopening. The CGIL representative observes that the Piedmont Region has a position on the tax that is very close to that of the trade unions. Added to the same opportunity is the reactivation of the inter-ministerial table, which occurred a year and a half after its establishment. The table met in recent weeks and a new meeting is scheduled for early November.

Hence the request to include in the comparison the various still unresolved dossiers on cross-border work. In the words of the union, the Regio should carry out a liaison and guidance function towards Italian and Swiss politics and legislators. The objective is to recompose relations on border issues, starting from the health tax. Augurusa's final hope is modest: a peaceful period.

Operational details

What changes for the cross-border worker

The issue described by the CGIL has two levels that the cross-border worker must keep distinct. The first is the health contribution referred to a part of the old cross-border workers: the source indicates it as having been in force for two and a half years, but still without the implementing decrees. The second concerns refunds, i.e. the resources allocated to border municipalities. The two dossiers are intertwined in the relations between Italy and Switzerland, but have different recipients.

For the worker, this distinction avoids reading the increase in 2026 refunds as an automatic solution to the health tax. The agreement that brought the figure from 89 to 108 million concerns local authorities. The discussion on the healthcare contribution remains linked to the missing implementing decrees and the comparison between institutions. The source does not indicate individual amounts or payment procedures: uncertainty remains, not a defined fulfillment.

The territorial difference makes the role of Piedmont significant. The Region assumes the presidency of the Regio Insubrica just as, according to Augurusa, its position on the tax is close to that of the trade unions. The presidency is not presented as a decision on the contribution, but as an opportunity to reopen the discussion and put the different protagonists around the same table.

The inter-ministerial table is also part of this possible path. For the CGIL, it should become the framework in which to bring together the still unresolved dossiers on cross-border work. Its value, in the union interpretation, is not only technical: it can connect the withdrawal, refunds and border relations without confusing the plans. To follow the dossier dedicated to the resources of the Municipalities, you can consult the guide to Ticino-Italy tax rebates.

The scenario remains open. If the institutional comparison succeeds in recomposing relations, the Regio will be able to carry out the coordination function desired by the CGIL; if the game remains at a standstill, uncertainty about the contribution and the undefined framework of 2027 refunds will continue. The source therefore describes a possibility of dialogue, not a solution already reached.

Useful tools to maximize the net

To reduce gear loss, compare the CHF-EUR exchange rate and banks for cross-border workers.

Key points

How to follow the dossier

The source does not describe a form to fill out or an individual deadline for the cross-border worker. The concrete action possible today is to separately follow the steps indicated in the institutional comparison. A small checklist helps to avoid confusing the healthcare contribution with refunds.

1. Locate the dossier. If your attention concerns the health tax, the source reference is the contribution expected for a part of the old cross-border workers. If it concerns refunds, the issue is that of the resources allocated to border municipalities. They are related plans in Italy-Switzerland relations, but described as different issues.

2. Record the full stop. On the health contribution, the CGIL reports a duration of two and a half years without implementing decrees. This is the data to keep in mind when looking for news: the source does not announce the closing of the match and does not communicate an application calendar.

3. Check the comparison schedule. The inter-ministerial table was reactivated a year and a half after its establishment, it met in recent weeks and has a new meeting scheduled for the beginning of November. For the union, this office should collect the various still unresolved dossiers on cross-border work.

4. Separate 2026 and 2027. For 2026, the agreement on refunds increased the amount from 89 to 108 million euros and gave greater certainty to local authorities. For 2027, Ticino has blocked 50% of Lombardy as a precaution and has given the full refunds to Piedmont. The framework remains open.

This sequence does not replace an institutional decision and does not allow personal amounts or unpublished procedures to be derived from the source. It is useful to read the updates in order: first the contribution and the implementing decrees, then the inter-ministerial table, finally the effects on refunds and border relations.

To organize the personal tax part, you can use the tax return guide, keeping the information available on the health tax dossier separate. For a first numerical reading of your situation, use the tax calculator.

Source: varesenews.it

Article 1(237–238) of Italian Law No. 213/2023 does not apply indiscriminately to all cross-border workers. It covers: (a) Italian residents who work and stay in Switzerland and use the Italian SSN; (b) frontier workers under Article 9(1) of the Italy–Switzerland Agreement whose income is taxable only in Switzerland and who exercised the legal right to choose health insurance; and (c) dependants of those two categories. Paragraph 238 sets a progressive 3–6% share of net Swiss salary, with a €30 minimum and an ordinary €200 maximum for each month worked from 2024. The cap may be doubled in cases of omitted payment or omitted communication specified in Article 1(100) of Law No. 207/2024. The Region of residence sets the rates and procedure each year.