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How you could win €1,500 just for making electronic payments in Italy

The Local Italy
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How you could win €1,500 just for making electronic payments in Italy
A customer pays at an Italian supermarket during the coronavirus crisis. Photo: AFP

The Italian government on Monday launched a new "cashback" scheme, including a lottery aimed at encouraging people to make more electronic payments.

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The Italian government has since last year been pushing for more digital rather than cash payments to fight widespread tax evasion.

'Project Cashless': Could coronavirus push Italy to adopt card payments at last?

As well as smaller reimbursements, there will be two 1,500 euro prizes a year for the first 100,000 people who rack up the highest number of digital payments (not the highest value).

The first cashback payout will come on Christmas buying, in February 2021, according to a draft of the rules seen by Italian news agency Ansa.
 
Reimbursements in the scheme will then come at six-monthly intervals: in July 2021, January 2022 and July 2022, it said.
 

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To enter the draw, you'll need to make at least 50 digital payments in one period and enter using the government's 'IO' app for accessing public services.

READ ALSO: What's the IO app and what can you use it for?

The only other requirements for taking part in the scheme are that people have to be over 18 and have a bank account, though it is not yet clear whether that has to be with an Italian bank.
 
The government is hoping to increase the use of credit cards, also for small payments, in order to fight tax dodging.
 
Tax evasion costs the state billions of euros every year, and has long been viewed as both a symptom and a cause of Italy's long-standing economic problems.
 
The Italian state last year lost 35.4 billion euros in VAT revenue, meaning it topped the table for tax-dodging in Europe again.

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