7. Financing and support
Italy
Last update: May, 2022
For this report, analysis was carried out using Eurostat statistics and taking into consideration the expenditure classes in COFOG accounts "08.2 Cultural services" and "08.3 Broadcasting and publishing services" included in the division "08 - Recreational, cultural and religious activities". With reference to public expenditure in the cultural sector, Eurostat statistics are updated to the year 2019. Therefore, Italian ISTAT statistics, consistent with Eurostat as regards the structural breakdown and the data costruction methodology, have been used for 2020.
Between 2014 and 2020, public spending on culture increased by more than 60% as a result of a very strong spending variation in the "broadcasting and publishing services" sector, while spending on "cultural services" grew by 9% over the same period. Expenditure on 'cultural services', in fact, underwent a strong decrease between 2015 and 2016, followed by a stable growth, however not sufficient to recover the value of 2015, the year in which the peak was recorded.
The substantial growth recorded since 2016 is largely due to the surfacing of the RAI licence fee revenue and due to the effects of an anti-evasion provision contained in the 2016 Budget Law, according to which the licence fee is collected by the electricity companies by means of a surcharge on bills. These resources then flow into a new fund (Fund for Pluralism and Innovation in Information) dedicated to supporting the publishing industry, a sector that until then had been able to count on allocations programmed in a rather disorganised manner.
Trends in public cultural expenditure by function 2014-2020 (million EUR)
As a result, between 2014 and 2020, all indicators show positive changes: Per capita expenditure, in the face of a 1.9% drop in population, increased from €82 to €135; the ratio to GDP from 0.31% to 0.49%; and the ratio to total public expenditure from 0.60% to 0.85%.
Public culture expenditure, all levels of government, per capita – 2014 -2020
| 2014 | 2019 | 2020 | Var. 2020-2014 (%) | |
| 08.2 - Cultural Services | 78,23 | 84,07 | 87,17 | 11,4% |
| 08.3 - Broadcasting and publishing services | 4,03 | 50,01 | 47,99 | 1090,7% |
| Total | 82,26 | 134,09 | 135,15 | 64,3% |
Source: Eurostat (years 2014 to 2019), ISTAT (year 2020)
Public culture expenditure in percentage of the GDP – 2014 - 2020
| 2014 | 2019 | 2020 | Var. 2020-2014 (%) | |
| 08.2 - Cultural Services | 0,29% | 0,28% | 0,31% | +0,02 |
| 08.3 - Broadcasting and publishing services | 0,0% | 0,17% | 0,17% | +0,15 |
| Total | 0,31% | 0,45% | 0,49% | +0,18 |
Source: Eurostat (years 2014 to 2019), ISTAT (year 2020)
Public culture expenditure in percentage of the total public expenditure – 2014 - 2020
| 2014 | 2019 | 2020 | Var. 2020-2014 (%) | |
| 08.2 - Cultural Services | 0,57% | 0,58% | 0,55% | -0,02 |
| 08.3 - Broadcasting and publishing services | 0,03% | 0,34% | 0,30% | +0,27 |
| Total | 0,60% | 0,92% | 0,85% | +0,85 |
Source: Eurostat (years 2014 to 2019), ISTAT (year 2020)
Trends in public cultural expenditure 2014 – 2020(% GDP, % total public expenditure)
Last update: May, 2022
Public cultural expenditure by level of government, 2014 – 2019 (million euro)
Trends in public cultural expenditure by level of government 2014 – 2020
In 2014, the downward trend in public spending on culture that had been going on since 2010 was reversed. The significant increase recorded in the 2014-2020 period (around 60%) is actually the expression of a significant imbalance in the trend of expenditure of its two sectoral components in the various levels of government. In fact, it is largely attributable to the growth of expediture since 2016 in the sector of 'broadcasting and publishing services' carried out at the central level for the reasons specified in paragraph 7.1.1. Expenditure on 'cultural services' expresses higher values at the local level with an increase of 6% in the 2014-2020 period, but a decrease in the last year; at the central level, the growth of expenditure on 'cultural services' in the same period is about 10%.
Trends in public cultural expenditure by function 2014 – 2020 – Cultural services (08.2)
Trends in public cultural expenditure by function 2014 – 2020 – Broadcasting and publishing services (08.3)
Last update: May, 2022
With reference to the central cultural administration in Italy, a more detailed breakdown of expenditure can only be provided by examining the budget of the Ministry of Culture (final allocation).
The following table shows the amount and trend of the Ministry's final allocations in 2016, 2019 and 2020. The elaboration was carried out by reclassifying the investments by "expenditure programmes" in 8 domains: Heritage, Research, Education and Training, Contemporary Art and Architecture, Libraries and Archives, Performing Arts, Film and Audiovisual, Tourism, and Administration and Interdisciplinary. It should be noted that Tourism has been the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture in two periods: from June 2013 to July 2018 and from September 2019 to March 2021.
From 2008 to 2015, allocations from the budget to the Ministry with primary responsibility for culture were increasingly reduced, both in absolute terms and as a percentage of total State budget expenditure. These allocations dropped from 0.28% to 0.19%, highlighting a constant underestimation by governments of the role of the cultural sector for the national economy and social cohesion. In the same period, however, the sector partly compensates for this condition, showing a greater capacity to obtain resources from the European structural funds.
Progressive reductions stopped in 2015 and since 2016 the annual allocations in the Ministry budget have always exceeded 2 billion euro and in 2019 they represent 0.33 of the State budget. In 2020, the budget faced again a significant decrease (-8%) but, in the final balance, due to the measures taken to counter the effects of the pandemic, there was an increase of 67% over 2019, corresponding in absolute terms to a final allocation of EUR 4.7 billion.
The total current transfers to households and social institutions, businesses and public administrations in 2016 and 2019 are unchanged in absolute terms and correspond to 0.26% of the 2019 Ministry's budget; the largest share is taken up by the Performing Arts (54%), followed by the Heritage sector (37%).
Expenditure of the Ministry of Culture by domain, 2016, 2019,2020 – Budget, final allocation (million euro)
Source: Elaborations on general government database (Openbdap); Ministry of Culture budget statement 2016, 2019, 2020
Expenditure of the Ministry of Culture by domain 2020 – Initial and final allocation
The initial 2020 distribution of expenditure, almost in line with previous years, sees the largest allocations in favour of Heritage (archaeological, historical-architectural, demo-ethno-anthropological heritage, museums) showing a large gap with respect to the Performing Arts and Film. A strong increase compared to 2019 (+178%) is recorded in the allocations to the Research, education and training sector. The allocations for Tourism, which as of 2019 is part of the Ministry's competences, and for Contemporary Arts and Architecture are undersized in relation to needs.
Starting from March 2020, the Government launched a series of economic measures of an extraordinary nature aimed to counter the negative effects of the emergency on the cultural and tourism sector, measures that will be extended and supplemented by other measures in 2021 due to the continuation of the pandemic crisis.
The following is an overview of the additional funds for managing the effects of the epidemiological emergency in the year 2020.
Additional funds allocated by General Directorates of the Ministry of Culture to manage the effects of the epidemiological emergency in the year 2020 (million euro)
Last update: May, 2022
In Italy, continuous and structured support for artists and the creative professions is mainly indirect and targeted primarily at workers in the performing arts. The main instrument is the Fondo Unico per lo Spettacolo (FUS), set up in 1985 and managed by the Ministry of Culture. The Fund has the aim of providing financial support to bodies, institutions, associations, organisations and enterprises operating in the sectors of music, dance, theatre, circus and travelling show business, historical carnivals, as well as the promotion and support of events and initiatives of national character and importance taking place in Italy or abroad. The fund (which excludes film and audiovisual as this sector has its own fund since 2017) is established since 2017, by Law 220/2016, and slightly increased in the years 2014-2020.
More than 50% of the resources in 2020 were earmarked for the 14 lyrical symphonic foundations, 21% for theatre activities and about 18% for musical activities. Far smaller shares of the Fund are directed to the other sub-sectors listed in the chart below.
Moreover, in 2016, the Ministry of Culture launched the MigrArti project, based on Lotto Funds, which, through successive editions until 2018, has promoted the integration of immigrant communities residing in Italy, through the enhancement and dissemination of their cultures of origin, with particular attention to second-generation youth. It supports theatre, dance and music projects carried out by professional performing arts organisations, as well as short films and documentaries that were also presented at the Venice Film Festival. In the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 editions, the resources allocated amounted to approximately €800,000 each.
Table Allocations to Fondo unico per lo Spettacolo 2014-2020 (million euro)
| Fondo Unico per lo Spettacolo (FUS) | 2014 | 2017 (*) | 2019 | 2020 | Var. 2017-2020 (%) |
| Allocations to FUS | 403,34 | 333,72 | 345,44 | 348,97 | + 3,5% |
(*) As of 2017, the FUS no longer supports the film sector (in 2016 the support amounted to over 77 million euro) as a specific fund was established in 2017.
Source: Annual reports on the use of the Fondo Unico per lo Spettacolo (Ministry of Culture)
Breakdown of FUS resources by activity – 2020 (million euro)
In the visual arts sector, numerous initiatives have been launched and consolidated in recent years. For a long time this sector was characterised by the absence of a solid policy and programming aimed at promoting contemporary art and in favour of artists who were, in fact, supported mainly and indirectly through the main national exhibition institutions for contemporary visual arts, the Venice Biennale, the Milan Triennale and the Rome Quadriennale, to which the Museum of XXI Century Arts (MAXXI) was added in 2010.
The fragility and precariousness that has always accompanied the professional life of contemporary artists has emerged in all its seriousness in the last two years of emergency following the pandemic and so also the contemporary art system, at least in its more structured components, has benefited from the measures taken[1].
The main measures in favour of contemporary art and in support of artistic production can be traced back to Law 717/1949, which is still in force, and to the Plan for Contemporary Art (PAC) which the Ministry of Culture prepared annually from 2002 to 2015 and was recently reactivated (2020).
Law 717/1949, which provided for a share of expenditure on public works to be earmarked for the creation of works of art (between 2% and 0.5% depending on the amount of the investment), is designed to directly support contemporary artists. It has been implemented unevenly over time but has nevertheless enabled a considerable number of important works of art/art installations to be created. A selection of these works can be viewed by consulting the platform accessible on the Ministry’s website[2]. The implementation of the law has been accompanied by heated debates on critical operational and methodological issues, starting with questions concerning the dialectic between architectural design and artwork. The latest update of the law was that of 2017 and concerns the Decree of 15 May 2017 of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport updating the Guidelines for art in public buildings.
As for the Contemporary Art Plan, Law N. 29/2001 allocated just over €5 million as of 2002 to an annual plan to increase the public contemporary art heritage. Since 2002, 50% of the resources have been allocated to the acquisitions of MAXXI, the National Museum of XXI Century Arts in Rome, and a further 50% to the Contemporary Art Plan (PAC), implemented through a public notice issued by the competent General Directorate of the Ministry. Generally speaking, the largest funding is for the Ministry's structures and institutes, such as the National Gallery of Contemporary Art (GNAM) in Rome, the Central Institute for Graphics and other important institutions. Since 2010 the PAC has introduced some interesting experimentation by also financing institutions that do not deal directly with contemporary art but are interested in experimenting with a fusion of artistic languages; this has happened, for example, with the support of projects promoted by some archaeological superintendences. Since 2017 the PAC has been de facto suspended, at least in the form in which it was implemented in previous years, and resources have been channelled towards other initiatives, again in support of contemporary art, and mainly to finance the Italian Council.
The 2020 edition of the PAC, which addresses all areas and languages of contemporary art, architecture, design and fashion, has been greatly innovated and increased in resources (approximately €3,000,000). Public places of culture that intend to expand their collections with works by Italian and foreign artists have been involved, including those not specialised in the contemporary art sector. This edition of the PAC has supported i) new acquisitions by living artists or those whose works were created less than 50 years ago; ii) public commissions of works by artists, including site-specific ones; iii) the valorisation of works of contemporary art received as donations over the last three years.
Contemporary Art Plan (PAC) - Allocated resources years 2014-2016; 2020 (euro)
| CONTEMPORARY ART PLAN | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2020 | % Var. 2014-2020 |
| Resources allocated (euro) | 964.848 | 994.000 | 962.000 | 2.999.374 | 211% |
The Italian Council is a project of the Ministry of Culture (DG Contemporary Creativity) created in 2017 aimed at supporting, promoting and enhancing Italian contemporary art worldwide. Each year, the programme funds cultural projects aimed at the promotion, production, knowledge and dissemination of contemporary Italian creation in the field of visual arts in Italy and abroad. Over the years, the Italian Council has progressively broadened the scope of its support. Until 2019 it financed projects proposed by museums, public and private non-profit organisations, university institutes, foundations and committees and non-profit cultural associations involving the production of one or more works of art by an Italian artist, with the ultimate aim of increasing public collections, after a period of promotion abroad. Since 2019, it has also included direct support for the development of talents and the international promotion of Italian artists, curators and critics who collaborate with international cultural realities; in these editions, the programme has supported participation in international events and residencies abroad; from 2020, it also gives grants for the support of artistic, critical and curatorial research.
Italian Council - Allocated resources years 2017-2020 (euro)
| ITALIAN COUNCIL | 2017 I and II ed. | 2018 III and IV ed. | 2019 V, VI and VII ed. | 2020 VIII and IX ed. | % Var. 2017-2020 |
| Resources allocated (euro) | 922.956 | 1.972.989 | 3.845.385 | 3.290.828 | 257% |
| Projects funded (n.) | 14 | 44 | 47 | 56 |
At territorial level, moreover, the Regions and Local Authorities, not only converge in many cases with the initiatives promoted by the Ministry of Culture, in particular in support of artists' mobility, but also promote artistic creativity with dedicated lines that are not easy to identify and survey precisely because of their territorial nature.
Lastly, it is worth mentioning the activities of other subjects which, for various reasons and with different aims, have been committed to contemporary art and artists for years through autonomous initiatives or by working alongside public institutions at central and local level and which often define and implement innovative policies for the sector.
The Association for the Circuit of Young Italian Artists (GAI) brings together 26 local authorities (Municipalities and Regions) and aims at documenting activities, offering services, organising training and promotional opportunities in favour of young people under 35 working in the fields of creativity, arts and entertainment, also using the portal created in 2001 http://www.giovaniartisti.it and the editorial products linked to its initiatives. It has carried out and continues to carry out numerous initiatives in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and local authorities in support of the international mobility of young artists, new design and youth creativity in urban regeneration processes.
AMACI is the Association of Contemporary Art Museums founded in 2003 with the aim of supporting contemporary art and the institutional policies addressed to the sector. The most important initiative, now in its 17th edition in 2021, is the Giornata del Contemporaneo (Contemporary Art Day), supported by the General Directorate for Contemporary Creativity of the Ministry of Culture, during which museums, foundations, associations and artists' studios in large cities and small towns open their doors to the public free of charge and a diversified programme of events is organised.
Lastly, there is the Contemporary Art Forum, set up in 2015, which has involved thousands of professionals and insiders over time to examine the main issues affecting the visual arts system. It has elaborated proposals on education, production, research, taxation, and ultimately for the legal status of artists, the absence of which has been highlighted as an element of serious criticism that has compromised the recognition of artists in the Italian welfare system in response to the pandemic.
[1] The evidence of the precariousness of the sector, generated by the pandemic crisis, has recently (March 2021) given impetus to the presentation of a draft legislation that contains “Provisions on the recognition of the professional figure of the artist and on the creative sector”, in the wake of the European Parliament Resolution of 2007 that had approved the Social Statute of Artists and promoted in the Member States the launch of policies and regulatory activities inspired by the protection of artists and creativity.
Last update: May, 2022
The Stability Law for 2016 provided for the allocation of 10% of the fees for private copying, managed by SIAE, to benefit activities favouring creativity and the national and international cultural promotion of young people.
Three editions were implemented, in 2016, 2017 (Sillumina Initiative) and 2018 (Per Chi crea Initiative), which saw a doubling of the available resources over the three-year period, through which 1,107 beneficiaries were supported.
The calls are aimed at individuals, companies, schools, organisations and associations that intend to carry out a project in support of young authors, artists, performers and performers residing in Italy who operate in the fields of Visual, Performing and Multimedia Arts - Film - Dance - Books and Reading - Music - Theatre.
10% of the fees for private copying to activities favouring creativity and cultural promotion
| Initiatives/Programmes | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
| Sillumina 2016, Sillumina 2017, Per chi Crea 2018 (euro) | 6.279.311,17 | 9.277.693,64 | 12.440.000 |
| Supported beneficiaries (n.) | 341 | 317 | 449 |
Funding was provided for i) artistic production projects aimed at the creation and promotion of new works by young authors/artists; ii) training and artistic creation through support for the creation of artists' residencies; iii) projects aimed at strengthening training and cultural promotion in Italian state schools; iv) projects aimed at the creation of public performances both in Italy and abroad, in the Dance - Music - Theatre sectors; v) projects aimed at translation into other languages and related distribution abroad, in the Film - Books and Reading sectors. The 2016 and 2017 editions also included a call for proposals aimed at supporting projects for cultural promotion and cultural activities in urban peripheries to support initiatives involving young authors and artists in terms of organisation and/or production.
Last update: May, 2022
In Italy there is a number of initiatives to support the training and mobility of young artists. At State level, support comes mainly from the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation through the Italian Cultural Institutes abroad and through the fund for the promotion of the Italian language.
In addition to what has already been mentioned in the previous sections (Italian Council), the main actions carried out by 2020 are outlined below.
Within the framework of the Fondo Unico per lo Spettacolo (FUS) managed by the General Directorate for the Performing Arts of the Ministry of Culture, a small share, equal to approximately 1% of the total allocation (approximately 3 million Euros in 2020) is programmed at a regional level, in agreement with the Regions, in favour of projects related to the establishment, promotion and development of the system of artists-in residences in order to favour processes of renewal of creativity and the national and international artistic confrontation through the mobility, in particular, of young artists.
The Ministry of Culture through other projects of a competitive nature and annual frequency promotes the mobility of young artists. Particular mention should be made of the Movin'up project, also relying on FUS resources (system actions), initiated in 1999 on the initiative of GAI, Associazione per il Circuito dei Giovani Artisti Italiani, and implemented since 2003 with the Ministry. Since 2018, the Ministry's General Directorate for the Performing Arts has launched the 2018 and 2019 editions of the Boarding Pass call (edition 21-22 is currently underway). The resources available for the 2018 and 2019 calls, respectively 300,000 euros and 400,000 euros, have been significantly increased in the current edition with an allocation of over €1 million.
There have also been several editions of the Residency Prizes dedicated to young Italian creatives in the fields of art, architecture, design and curatorship. These prizes are awarded through competitive procedures to offer the possibility of an educational and artistic experience in major international venues (New York, Berlin, Moscow, Barcelona, China). The initiative, promoted jointly by the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Cultural Institutions abroad, takes place annually and provides for the awarding of grants of varying amounts - between 2,000 and 4,000 euros per month depending on the place of residence.
Last update: May, 2022
Information is currently not available.
Last update: May, 2022
In Italy there is a consolidated tradition of support for culture and art by private individuals, which has not failed even during the years of crisis caused by the Covid 19 pandemic.
The most important items characterising the system of private donations, regularly recorded and for which exhaustive information is available, are illustrated below. In particular, strong support is provided by Banking Foundations and donations, in various forms, which are formally registered by the Ministry of Culture or by subjects linked to it.
Banking Foundations
The important subsidiary role played by Banking Foundations in the field of art, cultural assets and activities is confirmed with respect to public investments, although it is still unevenly distributed across the territory.
The XXVI Annual Report on Banking Foundations drawn up by ACRI (Associazione di Fondazioni e Casse di Risparmio s.p.a) in the year 2020 lists 86 Foundations of banking origin[1]. These Foundations operate for purposes of social utility and promotion of the economic development of the territory within the scope of 13 sectors of intervention, according to their strategic orientation, including the cultural sector; to these an additional item has been added to the Fund for combating juvenile educational poverty.
Most of the Foundations are located in the regions of Northern and Central Italy (76 Foundations out of a total of 86). Considering the strong link between these institutions and their territories and communities, the majority of grants fall in these areas, highlighting a significant territorial imbalance that is addressed through a series of initiatives and projects dedicated to the South. In particular, mention should be made of the initiatives promoted by Fondazione con il Sud, a private non-profit organisation set up in 2006 as a result of an alliance between foundations of banking origin and the third sector and the voluntary sector. One of the objectives of Fondazione con il Sud is to support the protection and enhancement of common assets (historical, artistic and cultural heritage, environment, social reuse of assets confiscated from the mafia).
Total disbursements in 2020 amounted to €949.9 million, an increase of 4.3% compared to 2019; the Arts, Activities and Cultural Heritage sector is once again in first place (23.2%), followed by Volunteering, Philanthropy and Charity (15.3%) and Research and Development (11.9%). However, the first and third sectors show a decrease in percentage terms compared to 2019, respectively -8.4% and -13.6 compared to the considerable increase in disbursements in the Public Health sector due to the support provided to cope with the spread of Covid-19.
Expenditure by Banking Foundations on Arts, Activities and Cultural Heritage - 2009-2020 (million euro)
From 2010 to 2020, the banking foundations' support for the sector fell by 47%, from €413 million in 2010 to €220 million in 2020, against a 30% reduction in the overall support provided for all missions by the foundations.
In recent years - and even more so in 2020, when the sector has been hard hit by the crisis - the Foundations' strategic choices in the cultural sphere have focused on implementing measures aimed at improving management, building local partnerships and networks, and strengthening entrepreneurship, especially among young people. The Foundations' support aimed at starting up creative, artistic and musical activities and, to a lesser extent, at restoring the historical and architectural heritage.
In 2020, the main beneficiaries of grants in the Arts, Activities and Cultural Heritage sector were "Foundations" (43%), followed by "Other private associations" (18.8%), "Local authorities" (12.3%), "Other private entities" (10.9%) and "Religious and cult organisations" (7.1%). In the same year, just under 60% of the resources were allocated to support projects relating to artistic and literary creation and interpretation and the conservation of cultural heritage.
Sub-sectors supported by Bank Foundations -2020
Art Bonus
Decree Law No. 83/2014 introduced an important measure, the so-called Art Bonus, aimed at encouraging private participation in supporting the public cultural heritage. The Art Bonus was initially a temporary measure, later made permanent by the 2016 Stability Law, no. 208 of 2015. The facility in the form of a tax credit favours liberal donations in support of culture and entertainment. The donor can enjoy a favourable tax regime in the form of a tax credit equal to 65% of the disbursements made and within the limits of 15 per cent of taxable income, in the case of individuals and non-commercial entities; while, in the case of persons with business income, to the extent of 5 per thousand of annual revenues.
As a result of a series of successive provisions aimed at refining the application of the measure, the tax credit is now available for donations made in cash and for the following purposes:
- Maintenance, protection and restoration of public cultural assets.
- Support for public cultural institutes and venues, opera and symphony foundations, traditional theatres, concert and orchestra institutions, national theatres, theatres of major cultural interest, festivals, theatre and dance production companies and centres, as well as distribution circuits, instrumental ensembles, concert and choral societies, circuses and travelling shows.
- Construction of new structures, restoration and enhancement of existing ones of public bodies or institutions that, without any profit-making purpose, carry out exclusively activities in the performing arts.
Art bonus – Donations and Patrons, 2016-2021 (million euro)
| 2016* | 2017* | 2018** | 2019* | 2020* | 2021*** | |
| Donations | 138,17 | 226,79 | 264,77 | 417,51 | 546,67 | 615,45 |
| Patrons (n.) | 4.594 | 7.458 | 10.687 | 14.902 | 21.226 | 25.121 |
| Beneficiary bodies (n.) | 2.158 | |||||
| target assets (n.) | 2.787 |
* Cumulative values as at 31/12; ** Cumulative values as at 31/07; *** Cumulative values as at 30/11/2021
At the end of November 2021, over 25,000 patrons and relate to 2787 properties donate €615.5 million since the launch of the facility in 2014. On that ammount, 63.0% of the donations have been earmarked for maintenance, protection and restoration work (group a.), 35% for the support of public cultural institutes and venues, lyrical-symphonic foundations, traditional theatres, etc. (group b.), 2% for the support of public cultural institutes and venues (group c.), 2% in favour of projects for the realisation, restoration and enhancement of structures of public performing arts bodies and institutions (group d.).
The beneficiary bodies, totalling 2,158, are mainly municipalities (51%), followed by concessionaires of cultural and public assets (14%) and, at a considerable distance, companies and theatre production centres (6%).
About 78% of the donations come from northern regions, 17% from central regions and only 6% from southern regions. The geographical imbalances are slightly reduced if we look at the location of the goods/interventions supported, 51% of which are distributed in the North, 37% in the Centre and 12% in the South.
In 2019, the highest fundraising was recorded in 2020, while in 2021 there was a sharp decrease of almost 50%, reasonably attributable to the crisis.
Donations by private individuals and corporations
Further tax benefits are available to individuals or legal entities in terms of income-deductible expenses (companies) or income-tax-deductible expenses (individuals and non-commercial entities) that make donations to the public sector or the private non-profit sector for the support of cultural goods and activities (Article 100, paragraph 2, letter m) and Article 15, paragraph 1, letter h) of Presidential Decree no. 917/1986 (see chapter 4.1.4).
The Ministry of Culture takes care of the fulfillment of the obligations relating to the tax benefits and every year it issues a decree recording the donations received by the beneficiary entities and notifying the Revenue Agency of the list of the names of the donors and the related disbursements. Donations have been decreasing over the years, as can be seen from the summary tables in the Ministry's circulars, and in 2020 they amounted to approximately €21 million for both components of the benefits provided (businesses - individuals and non-commercial entities), with a decrease of almost 60% compared to 2007 and of approximately 10% compared to 2019.
Financial donations made to State, Regions, local territorial bodies, public bodies or institutions, legally recognized Foundations and Associations
| Provided by companies | Provided by individuals and non-commercial entities | TOTAL | Var. 2016-2019 (%) | |
| 2016 | 18,27 | 8,07 | 26,35 | |
| 2017 | 16,34 | 9,44 | 25,78 | |
| 2018 | 17,68 | 6,80 | 24,47 | |
| 2019 | 18,59 | 0,71 | 19,31 | |
| 2020 | 16,97 | 4,21 | 21,18 | -19,6% |
Financial donations made to State, Regions, local territorial bodies, public bodies or institutions, legally recognized Foundations and Associations
Over the years, Southern Regions have received a very limited share of the donations collected, giving priority to the regions of the North and then the Centre, with the gap between these two categories narrowing over the years. In 2020, the regions of Lombardy, Tuscany and Lazio alone accounted for 75% of donations collected.
As far as the purpose of donations is concerned, patronage in the cultural sector is generally higher than in the entertainment sector.
5 x 1000
Since 2012 the institution of the 5 x 1000, born in 2006 for social purposes, has been extended to the cultural sector. The rule provides that the taxpayer can allocate the share of 5 per thousand of the personal income tax to finance the activities of protection, promotion and enhancement of cultural and landscape heritage (paragraph 46 of Article 23 of Law No 111 of 15 July 2011). In particular, the measure favours: a) The Ministry of Culture. b) The institutes of the same Ministry endowed with special autonomy. c) Non-profit organisations, legally recognised, which carry out, in accordance with their main purposes defined by law or by statute, activities of protection, promotion or enhancement of the cultural and landscape heritage and which can demonstrate that they have been operating in this field for at least 5 years. The Ministry of Culture takes care of the related tasks, drawing up the list of those eligible and disbursing the sums due. Through this measure, allocations have been made to the beneficiary entities from 2015 to 2018 for an amount of just under 10.5 million euros.
Funding from lotteries
Since 1996, a portion of the proceeds from the lottery draws, allocated to the budget of the Ministry of Culture, has been earmarked for the protection and enhancement of cultural heritage. Significant resources were allocated in the early years to investments in the cultural sector (154 million in 2016 and the same amount in 2017), but the flow gradually decreased to 22.5 million euros in 2014. From this year, the resources, considering the smallness of the sums available and the need to limit their excessive dispersion, have been aimed exclusively at covering the costs of the services and activities carried out by Ales spa, an in-house company of the Ministry of Culture, engaged in support activities for the conservation and enhancement of the cultural heritage and in support of activities for the technical and administrative offices of the administration. The 2021 Budget Law confirmed this measure by providing, from the proceeds of the lottery game, an allocation of €23 million for 2021 and €33 million for each of the years from 2022 to 2035.
[1] https://www.acri.it/