ITALY – The 32.7% tax-free bonus for workers who postpone retirement could be extended beyond the deadline set by the pension reform, welfare minister Roberto Maroni has announced.

In a statement published on the ministry’s website, Maroni, a member of the Northern League party, has spoken for the first time of paying the bonus beyond the 2007 deadline.

Workers eligible to get the bonus, commonly referred to as “super-bonus”, must be employed in the private sector, be 57 years of age and have 35 years of contributions, the conditions to claim pensions under the current regime.

The pension reform, which will be implemented in every aspect in 2008, envisages that such workers, who postpone retirement, would be entitled to the bonus only until December 31 2007.

Earlier this month, the National Institute of Social Security for the private sector, Inps, said that the number of applications so far amounts to 23,867, while the Italian press has spoken yesterday of 26,000 since October.

“The take-up_of the super-bonus has been more than satisfying,” Maroni said. “If the first deadline in 2005 gives again such positive results, we can already say that the inspection due in June 2007 will be positive and we could think of postponing the deadline to beyond 2007.”

A welfare ministry official told IPE that it would also be a question to find enough money to finance the tax-free bonus for longer.

Maroni went on to say that the bonus deal could also be extended to “old-age” pensioners allowed to retire at 65, men, and 60, women. But old age pensioners would need to seek the employer’s consent before claiming the bonus.

Last week the welfare minister made headlines when he criticised the last draft of the €24bn 2005 budget, hours before it was passed by the Senate.

“The economy ministry has let us know that in the latest amendments to the_budget there will be no coverage for pensions in 2005 despite the repeated assurances to the_contrary given until the day before yesterday,” Maroni was then quoted as saying by the Italian press.

The economy and finance minister Domenico Siniscalco eventually said that resources to fund the development of the second pillar would be found through “up-coming measures.”

An official for the finance ministry also told IPE on that occasion that the 2005 deadline set by the reform to start investing workers’ end of career indemnities in pension funds, would be met.

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