How to request cancellation of the RAI fee
Every year, many taxpayers look for information on how to submit cancellation of the RAI fee, often believing that it means withdrawing from a standard television subscription contract. In reality, the nature of this payment is different and requires a specific bureaucratic procedure.
Since it is, to all intents and purposes, a tax on the possession of devices suitable for receiving television broadcasts, it is not possible to stop payment with a simple communication to your Power supplier. Those who meet the legal requirements can, however, submit a substitute declaration to the Italian Revenue Agency to obtain exemption from the charge.
RAI fee cancellation: why is it not a real contractual withdrawal?
The TV licence fee is a tax introduced by Decree-Law No. 246 of 21 February 1938. Since 2016, payment has been made directly within the Power bill, assuming that anyone who holds a residential Power supply at the place where they have their registered residence also owns a television.
For this reason, using the expression “RAI fee cancellation” is technically inaccurate. There is no service to deactivate or contract from which to withdraw unilaterally.
Those who are not required to pay must send a specific substitute declaration to the Italian Revenue Agency, thereby blocking the charge of the monthly instalments on the bill.
Who is entitled to exemption from the RAI fee?
The legislation precisely identifies the subjects exempt from paying the tax. The main cases include:
Total absence of television sets in any property where a Power supply registered to the household is active. The substitute declaration must be renewed every year in which non-possession continues.
Citizens who have turned 75, with their own annual income and that of their spouse not exceeding a total of €8,000, without cohabitants with their own income, with the exception of spouse, domestic workers, housekeepers and caregivers.
Officials of international organizations and foreign military personnel belonging to NATO forces stationed in Italy.
Taxpayers for whom the fee is already charged on the Power bill registered to another member of the same registered family.
How to submit the exemption form to the Italian Revenue Agency?
To request exemption, it is necessary to use the specific substitute declaration form available on the institutional website of the Italian Revenue Agency. Citizens have four submission methods available:
electronic submission on the Italian Revenue Agency portal, accessible with SPID, CIE or CNS credentials;
paper form, sent by postal service to Ufficio Canone TV - c.p.22 Torino - by registered package without envelope together with a copy of a valid identity document.
authorized intermediaries
certified e-mail, provided that the declaration itself is signed with a digital signature, in line with the provisions of Articles 48 and 65 of Legislative Decree No. 82 of 7 March 2005, the Digital Administration Code.
Deadlines to be respected in order not to pay the fee on your bill
The timing with which the substitute declaration is submitted determines when the exemption takes effect. The law provides for strict time windows:
from 1 July of the previous year to 31 January of the reference year: total exemption valid for the entire current calendar year;
from 1 February to 30 June of the same year: partial exemption, limited only to the instalments of the second half of the year.
Declarations sent from 1 July to 31 December do not produce effects for the current year, but are valid for the entire following year. To avoid paying amounts that are not due, it is advisable to submit the declaration by 31 January.
What happens to the Power bill after the exemption request?
Once the Italian Revenue Agency receives and validates the substitute declaration, it transmits the information to the centralized information system. Power suppliers operate simply as withholding agents for the collection of the tax: they do not assess the documentation and do not decide on the right to exemption. Once the official communication has been received, they update the billing systems and stop the charge starting from the first useful bill.
If the bill continues to show the charge even after submission within the legal deadlines, the alignment of IT systems may take a few weeks. Any excess amount paid can be recovered through a refund request.
For an in-depth understanding of how this tax affects Energy costs and to monitor the individual expense items, it is useful to consult the complete guide on the RAI fee on the bill.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, if there are no televisions in the home. As long as the supply remains active, the system assumes possession of the device and charges the fee. The heir must submit the form indicating their status as heir and the data of the original holder.
No. An explanatory note from the Ministry of Economic Development clarified that computers, tablets, mobile phones and monitors without a native radio-television tuner do not fall within the definition of devices suitable for receiving signals. Watching television programmes in streaming via the internet does not trigger the obligation to pay the tax.
It is necessary to submit a formal refund request to the Italian Revenue Agency, through the electronic portal or by registered letter to the address of the Ufficio Canone TV in Turin, indicating the reason and attaching proof that the declaration was submitted within the deadlines.
Payment of the fee is linked to the holder of the Power supply contract for the property of residence. If the tenant has the bill registered in their own name and is resident in the apartment, it is up to them to submit the exemption declaration if they do not own any television set.
The taxpayer must submit a declaration of change by the end of the month in which the purchase took place. The fee will be charged on the bill proportionally, calculating the remaining months starting from the month following the purchase.
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