The new Operational Guidelines issued by Italy’s National Council of Chartered Accountants and Accounting Experts (CNDCEC) provide further guidance on the certification of the Tax Control Framework (TCF), the system for identifying, measuring, managing and controlling tax risk under Italy’s cooperative compliance regime.
Initial certification focuses on the adequacy of the system’s design. The certifier identifies the relevant control processes and assesses their design, examining both the company’s tax governance and the controls addressing individual tax risks.
Particular attention is paid to accounting controls in companies without standalone internal control systems over financial and accounting reporting. These controls must be proportionate to the company’s size, operations and organisational complexity.
Certification renewal, required at least every three years, focuses on the operating effectiveness of the TCF. Specifically, the certifier must verify that controls have operated properly and consistently throughout the period under review.
For businesses, this means establishing clear responsibilities, effective information flows and evidence collection procedures from the outset, ensuring that tax risk management remains verifiable over time.
