Within 60 days from the notification of the tax assessment deed to the taxpayer by the tax office
There are three instances. The last one is in front of the Corte di Cassazione (Court of Cassation or Supreme Court), which is a court of legitimacy, unlike the courts of first and second instance that rule on the merit of the cases.
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First instance: The taxpayer can appeal the tax assessment deed by serving it to the tax office within the 60-day deadline mentioned above. Within 30 days from the service date, the appeal shall be filed with the tax court of first instance (Commissione Tributaria Provinciale — Provincial Tax Court).
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Second instance: The defeated party can appeal the decision of the tax court of first instance before the tax court of second instance (Commissione Tributaria Regionale — Regional Tax Court) within 60 days from the date on which the decision is served to it by the winning party or, if no notification occurs, within six months from the date on which the decision is made public through its filing with the tax court’s secretary.
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Third instance: The decision of the tax court of second instance can be appealed before the Supreme Court, within the deadline outlined in the previous paragraph, but only under certain conditions and for specific objections; as mentioned above, the Supreme Court is a court of legitimacy.
The average time necessary for reaching a final decision is eight-10 years.
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Start: MAPs may coexist with national proceedings. In principle, national proceedings shall be established before the activation of MAPs in order to prevent the amounts assessed by the tax office in the tax assessment deed becoming final and not amendable.
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Conduct of the proceedings: Suspending the national proceedings until the end of the MAP is possible upon the mutual request of the relevant parties (taxpayer and tax office) and is strongly advisable, so that no conflicting outcome occurs. While a MAP is in progress, there is the possibility to request the suspension of tax collection (although the tax office tends to condition it on guarantees). Interest will be due on the sums eventually confirmed at the MAP level.
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Completion of proceedings: Decisions originating from MAPs will generally be binding if the person directly affected accepts the decision and renounces the right to continue with the national proceedings already started and then suspended.
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Other actions: There is no possibility to nationally appeal against MAP decisions.