FT: Tens of thousands of Italians register vehicles in Poland

Tens of thousands of Italian drivers have obtained Polish license plates for their cars and motorcycles in order to avoid paying expensive road taxes, writes the Financial Times.

It is estimated that around 60,000 drivers—mainly in Naples and the surrounding area—have transferred ownership of their vehicles to fictitious companies in Poland, where they then registered the vehicles.

Now, as elections approach in Italy, the right-wing coalition of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced the abolition of the annual road tax.

For now, the government is only promising a one-year suspension—for one vehicle per owner—for the year 2027, in which Italians are to vote on whether Meloni will receive a second term.

The initial costs will be covered by savings from Italy’s EU-funded Covid recovery plan, writes FT.

Meloni says she will work on the permanent abolition of “one of the taxes Italians hate the most,” a promise her critics call an election ploy to appease voters facing slow economic growth and soaring living costs.