The 2022 Budget Law earmarked in the budget of the Ministry of Economy and Finance—for subsequent transfer to the autonomous budget of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers—the “Extraordinary Fund for Support Measures in the Publishing Sector”, with an allocation of EUR 140 million for the year 2023. These resources were allocated by the Prime Minister's Decree on 10 August 2023, issued jointly with the Minister of Labour, the Minister of Economic Development, and the Minister of Economy and Finance. 

Article 2(1) of the aforementioned Prime Minister's Decree provided as a support measure for newsstands a one-off, lump-sum grant of up to EUR 2,000, within the limit of EUR 4 million, which constitutes an expenditure ceiling, in compliance with the applicable EU 'de minimis' regulation. The grant is increased to EUR 3,000 for exclusive sales outlets located in the inland areas listed in the 2020 Inland Areas Map, valid for the 2021-2027 programming cycle, updated by the Interministerial Committee for Economic Planning and Sustainable Development (CIPESS). It should be noted that "Inland Areas" refers to "minor urban centres", typically small in scale, which often provide limited access to essential services for residents. Specifically, those municipalities classified as Intermediate, Peripheral, and Ultraperipheral on the aforementioned map (see the letters "D" to "F" in the columns named "COD_AI_2020" and "DES_AI_2020" in the Map) encompass all of the country's Inland Areas. 

Decree of the Head of the Department for Information and Publishing dated 28 November 2023 then defined, in Article 1, the modalities for the use of this aid. 

The grant is intended to encourage the implementation of projects for the home delivery of daily newspapers and periodicals, the Sunday opening, the supply of publications to neighbouring businesses, and the establishment of additional sales outlets, and is granted to businesses operating exclusive newspaper and magazine outlets: 

• that have 47.62.10 as their primary ATECO classification code recorded in the Business Register;
• that are not subject to voluntary, compulsory or judicial liquidation proceedings

The grant is lump-sum and is awarded to the business irrespective of the number of retail outlets. In the case of multiple points of sale, only one should be indicated. If this point of sale is located within a municipality included in the "Inland Areas" as defined by the 2020 Map of Inland Areas, an increased grant of EUR 3,000 (instead of EUR 2,000) will be awarded. 

The grant contributes to taxable income and is therefore paid net of withholding tax. 

Entities wishing to access the grant for the year 2023 may apply to the Department from 10.00 am on 8 February to 5.00 pm on 8 March 2024. 

Only one application per business applicant is permitted. The application must be digitally signed by the legal representative of the business applicant, exclusively with a CAdES signature. In case of an error, it will be possible, throughout the period during which applications are open, to submit a new application that replaces the previous one. 

The procedures for application, it contents and the documentation required to submit an application for access to the benefit are governed by the aforementioned Decree of the Head of the Department for Information and Publishing dated 28 November 2023. 

More details on the aid measure can be found on the dedicated page on the Department for Information and Publishing website. 

Download the user manual (updated 06/02/2024) useful for filling in the application. 

For technical assistance in accessing the web portal or in filling in the application, please contact the Help Desk at 06 64892717 from Monday to Friday from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm 

Any queries or requests for clarification should be sent exclusively by ordinary e-mail to the following dedicated mailbox: credito.edicole@governo.it.