Usury in Italy: the rate is fixed by law, not by agreement
Italy does not leave the limit of a lawful interest rate to negotiation. Threshold rates are fixed by ministerial decree every quarter, by category of transaction, and anything above them is usury regardless of what the borrower agreed. The offence carries two to ten years and a fine.
How the threshold works
The thresholds are published quarterly and vary by type of credit. What counts towards the rate is not only the interest but the whole cost of the transaction — commissions, expenses and charges connected to the loan, however they are labelled.
That is where lenders who consider themselves compliant get caught: the headline rate is below the threshold, and the total cost of the operation is not. The calculation is technical and it is the core of every defence and every prosecution in this area.
| Element | Rule | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Objective usury | Rate above the quarterly threshold | Art. 644 Criminal Code |
| Subjective usury | Disproportionate advantage taken of difficulty | Art. 644(3) |
| What counts in the rate | Interest, commissions, expenses linked to the loan | Art. 644(4) |
| Penalty | Two to ten years and a fine | Art. 644 |
| Aggravated forms | Including where the victim is in business | Art. 644(5) |
| Civil effect | No interest is due at all | Art. 1815 Civil Code |
The last line is the one borrowers rarely know: where interest is usurious, none is owed. Not a reduced rate — none.
Usury without exceeding the rate
The second form does not depend on the threshold. It applies where a disproportionate advantage was taken of someone in a condition of economic or financial difficulty, and it reaches transactions whose rate is technically compliant.
It is the form charged in informal lending between individuals and in the restructuring of business debt, and it turns on what the lender knew about the borrower's situation.
Loans between individuals
A great many of these prosecutions concern money lent privately — between acquaintances, within a business relationship, in a community. The lender's position is frequently that they were helping and were then not repaid; the borrower's is that the terms grew impossible.
Two things decide it: the documentation of what was actually agreed, and what was done to recover the money. Pressure applied to obtain repayment can turn the matter into extortion, dealt with in the guide on enforcing a debt.
If you are the borrower
Usury is prosecuted of the authority's own motion, so a report does not have to be maintained by the person who made it. There are also support measures for victims, including relief from enforcement proceedings, and the civil consequence above is often the most valuable part.
The route for injured parties is in the guide for victims of crime in Italy.
Frequently asked questions
Who decides what rate is usurious in Italy?
The thresholds are fixed by ministerial decree every quarter, by category of transaction, and they are not open to negotiation.
The interest rate was below the threshold.
The rate includes commissions, expenses and charges connected to the loan. A compliant headline rate with a non-compliant total cost is the usual pattern.
Can it be usury if the rate is lawful?
Yes. The second form applies where a disproportionate advantage was taken of someone in economic difficulty, regardless of the threshold.
What happens to the interest?
Where it is usurious, no interest is owed at all — not a reduced rate, none.
If a rate is in question
The calculation of the effective rate, with everything that counts towards it, decides the case. First contact is free and covered by professional privilege.