New rules for meal vouchers. From tomorrow the decree of the Ministry of Economic Development comes into force which allows you to spend up to eight meal vouchers at a time to go shopping, for example in a supermarket, and which also broadens the possibilities of their use. They can in fact be used in markets, in farmhouses, in company outlets, in fish farms as well as bars, restaurants, pizzerias, shops. "Being able to use them for shopping in the countryside and in the agritourisms that will join, could be a new opportunity for producers and consumers", comments Cia-Agricoltori Italiani, while Coldiretti stresses that it is "an opportunity for 4 out of 10 Italians who shop at the farmer's farms and farmers' markets ”.
Until now, officially, it was possible to use only one ticket a day for shopping, but in reality it has been a long time that customers have bought more than one meal voucher to pay for shopping in supermarkets. So the Mise decree, published last August 10 in the Official Gazette, makes a practice that was already widespread and sets a cumulative threshold of eight tickets "lawful". However, the prohibition to transfer them to third parties remains in force and the possibility of having the change is also excluded. The meal vouchers, states article 4 of the decree, "are not transferable" or "marketable or convertible into money", they are "usable only by the holder" and "usable exclusively for the entire face value", ie the value of the amount specified on the ticket. The same rules apply to electronic vouchers. The Ministry's provision then specifies that “the issuing companies are required to adopt suitable anti-forgery and traceability measures for the meal voucher”. “Well, it was time. Since August 2015 we have been asking for the liberalization of meal vouchers, making them cumulative and allowing the worker to spend them even in a single solution ", states the National Consumers Union, underlining that this also puts an end to the" crest " that some merchants did, withholding a percentage, usually 10%.
Critical, however, the Codacons that calls for a "total liberalization" of meal vouchers that "allows citizens to choose when and how to spend them, without limitation" and judges the ceiling of the eight tickets "incomprehensible". Originally, meal vouchers were to replace the canteen service of companies but over the years they have become a new form of income support for millions of Italians. In fact, according to the data, about 80 companies distribute them to 2,5 million employees in the public and private sector, generate a turnover of three billion euros and are accepted by 120 affiliated businesses, a number that is destined to increase with the entry into force of the new regulations of the Mise. Paper tickets are tax free up to € 5,29 while electronic tickets are up to € seven.
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