Social leasing at 100 euros a month: what it means for used-car buyers and sellers

What social leasing is and why it matters now

On 23 July 2026, Italy's Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (Mimit), led by minister Adolfo Urso, officially launched noleggio sociale, or social leasing - the scheme set out in the 10 June 2026 DPCM Automotive decree that lets lower-income families drive a brand-new car for a flat fee of 100 euros a month, all-inclusive. The experimental program is run by ACI, backed by 50 million euros, and will stay active until 30 June 2030, with a possible extension if results are positive. It sits inside the broader DPCM Automotive plan, which reshuffles roughly 1.35 billion euros of the 2026-2030 Automotive Fund to support Italy's car supply chain and the shift to lower-emission vehicles.

For anyone following the used-car market, this is not a minor detail. Social leasing is explicitly aimed at the segment of the population that, today, almost always turns to used cars when replacing a vehicle: households with a modest Isee, Italy's means-tested income indicator, driving an older car who cannot access ordinary financing. It is the first time the state has organized a mobility channel designed as a direct alternative to buying used, not just to buying new at full price.

The rules: income limits, scrappage and eligible cars

To qualify, applicants need an Isee below 30,000 euros. They - or a cohabiting family member - must also own a vehicle rated up to Euro 4, registered for at least 12 months, which is scrapped as part of signing the contract. On the other side, the cars supplied through the scheme must be new, rated at least Euro 6, with CO2 emissions no higher than 135 g/km - recent, low-emission models rather than the cheapest entry-level cars.

Contracts run for a minimum of 36 months with a 12,000-kilometer annual mileage cap, in line with standard long-term leasing but at a far lower monthly cost.

What the 100-euro fee actually covers

The 100 euros a month, VAT included, is not just for the use of the car. The fee bundles road tax, insurance, routine maintenance and roadside assistance - the costs that typically weigh most heavily on someone running an older, budget used car. After the 36-month term, drivers can buy the car outright at a 10% discount to market value, or hand it back.

Set against the real running cost of a 10-to-15-year-old used city car - more frequent servicing, inspections, full road tax and often higher premiums for older vehicles - the figure can be genuinely competitive, provided the applicant fits the eligibility criteria and stays under the mileage cap.

Social leasing or a used car: which actually makes sense

For someone who meets the Isee threshold and owns a car to scrap, the choice comes down to a fixed, predictable fee versus the usual uncertainty of buying used: no surprise repair bills, no unexpected garage visits, a consistently recent and safer car. The trade-off is not owning anything for three years, a mileage cap that is tight for anyone driving a lot for work, and mandatory scrappage that rules out privately selling the car currently owned.

For everyone else - anyone above the Isee threshold, without a car to scrap, or wanting a specific model or immediate ownership - the used market remains the more flexible option: broader choice, negotiable prices, and no income or scrappage strings attached.

The knock-on effect on the used market and dealers

Social leasing arrives at a moment when leasing and rental already account for roughly one in three new registrations in Italy, after topping 520,000 registrations in 2025, up almost 11% year on year. Cars coming back from rental fleets at contract end, with low mileage and competitive pricing, are already squeezing dealer margins, which some industry analyses put below 1%.

With its initial 50-million-euro budget, social leasing is small next to the overall market, but it introduces two dynamics worth watching. First, mandatory scrappage of vehicles up to Euro 4 gradually removes very cheap cars from circulation, which could nudge up prices at the bottom end of the used market. Second, in roughly three years the first cars to complete their social-leasing contracts could reach the used market as low-mileage, low-emission near-new vehicles, widening supply in that segment.

What it means if you are buying or selling used

Anyone currently running a car rated up to Euro 4 and considering a private sale should weigh scrappage against that option first: low-emission zones in major Italian cities keep tightening, and access to a new car at a fixed monthly fee can be worth more than what a private sale of an aging, increasingly restricted vehicle would fetch.

For anyone shopping the used market today, the fundamentals have not changed: check service history and real mileage, favor cars with documented maintenance, and weigh total cost of ownership - road tax, insurance, upkeep - not just the sticker price. Social leasing widens the options for one specific slice of Italian households, but for most people shopping for a car in Italy, used remains, in 2026, the most common and flexible choice.