The government’s cashless plan: refunds of up to 3,000 euros for card payments and raffles

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The cashless plan the government is studying also includes a lottery. A reward mechanism that can push citizens to pay for everything with cards and payment instruments, starting with coffee.

The plan provides for the recognition of a bonus of 3,000 euros each for the first 100,000 people who, in the period of 6 months, from December 1, 2020 (when the cashless plan should start) until the end of May 2021, will have made the largest number of transactions with cards and other payment instruments. All of this will be added to the cashback that, as it has already come out in recent weeks, provides for the return of 10% of the expenses incurred (in semi-annual installments) with this type of transaction for a maximum amount of 3,000 euros. The refund is only recognized if a minimum of 50 transactions are made every 6 months. The government estimates that 10 million people participate in the plan in the first 6 months. If the membership is less consistent, you might consider increasing the maximum refund amount and therefore also the percentage refunded.

The plan the government is studying

These indications are starting hypotheses on which the government is working and which were illustrated during the meeting that took place in recent days between the premier, Giuseppe Conte, and the operators of the sector. Numbers and percentages are subject to adjustment but the system is the one that is tracked.

The cashless plan will pivot on the public administration application Io. To access the plan, the user must register: the tax code will be the main vehicle for identifying the citizen and the associated cards (the transactions calculated are those accumulated between the different cards). Each member of a household can participate individually in the cashback, so a family of three could have a return of 450 euros every six months. Most likely, the reimbursement of 10 percent of the expenses will be made in the form of cash, with a credit to a current account (for which the Iban must be provided). In the App it will also be possible to consult in real time the classification in terms of the number of transactions for the purpose of the prize of 3,000 euros, renamed as supercashback, also paid in semi-annual installments. This was designed to incentivize people to use the card even when the € 3,000 maximum limit for a 10 percent refund has been reached. Participation in the cash back plan also allows you to participate in the receipt lottery, with prizes of up to 5 million.

How the refund is calculated

A clarification is required regarding the calculation of the amount on which the reimbursement is measured. The maximum threshold of 3,000 euros is not related to the actual expenses incurred but represents a ceiling. This is given by the sum of the economic value that will be given to each transaction: for example, the value of a penny could be recognized when paying one euro for a coffee.