by InTrieste
Italy’s national social security agency, INPS, has opened applications for a new financial support program aimed at working mothers with two or more children, introducing what officials are calling the “New Mothers’ Bonus.”
The initiative provides a monthly payment of €40 to eligible workers and temporarily replaces a previously planned social-security contribution exemption, which has been postponed to 2026. The benefit is designed to support mothers balancing employment and family responsibilities in a country grappling with one of the lowest birthrates in Europe.
The bonus is available to mothers with at least two children. Those with two children will receive support until the youngest child turns 10, while mothers with three or more children will be eligible until their youngest child turns 18.
Eligibility extends to both salaried and self-employed women enrolled in mandatory social-security schemes, including professional pension funds and the separate national insurance system. Domestic workers are excluded. Applicants must earn no more than €40,000 annually from work.
Women with permanent employment contracts will not be able to access the bonus, as they remain eligible for a full social-security contribution exemption through the end of 2026 under Italy’s 2024 budget law.
Applications can be submitted online through the INPS portal using digital identification credentials, through the agency’s call center, or with the assistance of authorized patronage institutions. The deadline is December 9, 2025, although those who become eligible later in the year may apply until January 31, 2026, provided they meet requirements by December 31, 2025.
The benefit, tax-exempt and excluded from means-testing calculations such as ISEE, will be disbursed as a lump sum in December 2025, or by February 2026 for later approvals. Depending on eligibility across the year, recipients may receive up to €480 for 12 months.
The measure was introduced under decree-law No. 95/2025, later converted into law in August 2025. Full program details are outlined in INPS Circular No. 139, issued on October 28, 2025.
