From 1 January 2026 one of the best-known levers for business digitalisation changed shape. The 4.0 tax credit, which for years supported investments in interconnected assets, has been replaced — together with Transizione 5.0 — by super-depreciation (iperammortamento) 2026-2028, which MIMIT names “Nuovo Piano Transizione 5.0 - Iperammortamento”. The mechanism changes — and so does a detail that matters directly to anyone running a fleet: 4.0 software is eligible again, after being excluded from incentives in 2025.
This article explains how the new measure works, what a fleet management platform needs to count as a 4.0 asset, and how it differs from the old credit. It’s an orientation map: classifying a specific investment and calculating the benefit must be done with your accountant and a technician, against the official requirements.
From tax credit to cost uplift
The most important difference is the mechanism. The old 4.0 credit was a tax credit to use as an offset via the F24 form. Super-depreciation instead works as an uplift to the tax-deductible cost of the asset: for income tax purposes, the investment’s cost is “worth more” than the actual spend, generating a larger deduction over the depreciation period.
Set by the implementing decrees of 7 May and 10 June 2026 — with the GSE booking platform live from 12 June — the rules apply to investments made from 1 January 2026 to 30 September 2028. For 4.0 assets the uplift is tiered, applied to the portion of investment that falls in each band: 180% up to €2.5m, 100% above €2.5m and up to €10m, 50% above €10m and up to €20m. It’s a recent framework: rates and rules should still be checked in the version in force at the time of the investment.
⚠️ Unlike an offsettable credit, super-depreciation delivers its benefit through lower taxes over the depreciation period: the impact therefore depends on the company’s tax capacity and the asset’s depreciation term. It’s a calculation worth doing with your accountant before deciding, not after.
4.0 software is eligible again
The point that affects fleets: in 2025 software had been excluded from 4.0 incentives; under super-depreciation it’s back among eligible assets, and can qualify even on its own, provided it’s interconnected with company systems. Eligible software typically includes management systems integrated with company systems (ERP, MES, WMS, TMS) and supply chain workflow automation platforms — categories a fleet management and telematics platform can fall into. What remains is meeting the requirement that qualifies an asset as “4.0”: interconnection with the company’s production management system or supply network.
The interconnection question
An asset is 4.0 when it’s interconnected: it exchanges data bidirectionally and automatically with the company’s information systems (management software, ERP and the like) through standard communication protocols. It isn’t enough for the software to collect data — it has to talk to the company’s information system in a structured way.
For a fleet management platform, this becomes a set of practical questions: do the vehicle data (trips, mileage, vehicle status) flow into the company systems? Is the exchange automatic and bidirectional? Does the integration use standard protocols? A platform like Optivo, which connects vehicles and integrates operational data into company workflows, lends itself to this framing — but verifying interconnection, usually via a technical appraisal, is the step that determines eligibility, and it must be done by someone qualified to certify it.
What you need, in practice
Three things to pin down before counting on it:
- The software’s 4.0 characteristics, interconnection first of all, documented against the measure’s technical requirements;
- Tax capacity, because the benefit lands as lower taxes: without enough taxable income, the uplift delivers less;
- Documentation, a technical appraisal or attestation where required, and correct accounting treatment of the investment.
The final classification belongs to the tax adviser and the technician who certifies the 4.0 requirements: as with any incentive, the “4.0 software” label isn’t enough — the actual characteristics and documentation are what count.
How it fits with the Nuova Sabatini
Super-depreciation and the Nuova Sabatini work on different, complementary planes: super-depreciation acts on the tax deduction of the asset, the Sabatini on the cost of the financing you buy it with. In many cases they can coexist on the same investment — within the EU State aid ceilings and the ban on double-funding the same cost — combining the two levers. For the financing side of software, see the article on the Nuova Sabatini and fleet management software; for the full picture of 2026 measures, the map of fleet digitalisation incentives.
The bottom line
Super-depreciation 2026-2028 has replaced the 4.0 credit by changing the mechanism — from offset to deductible-cost uplift — and has brought 4.0 software back among eligible assets. For anyone digitalising a fleet that’s good news, but with two conditions that decide everything: the software must be genuinely interconnected with company systems, and the company must have the tax capacity to use the deduction.
The right way to use it is to assess it in advance with your accountant and technician, alongside the platform choice. If you’re considering a fleet management solution that integrates with your systems, let’s talk: we can help you understand how Optivo interconnects with company workflows, leaving the 4.0 and tax assessment to you and your advisers.
Frequently asked questions
Is fleet management software eligible under 2026 super-depreciation?
It can be: 4.0 software, excluded from incentives in 2025, is among the eligible assets under super-depreciation, provided it meets the 4.0 requirements — interconnection first. Eligibility of a specific case must be checked with a technician and the tax adviser.
What does “interconnection” mean?
It means the asset exchanges data bidirectionally and automatically with the company’s information systems through standard communication protocols. For fleet software, it means vehicle data flows into and talks to the company management systems in a structured way, not in isolation.
How big is the uplift?
For 4.0 assets it’s tiered: 180% up to €2.5m, 100% above €2.5m and up to €10m, 50% above €10m and up to €20m, applied to the portion of investment in each band. The rates should be checked in the version in force: the 2026 framework is recent.
How is it different from the old 4.0 credit?
The 4.0 credit was a tax credit to offset via F24; super-depreciation is an uplift to the deductible cost, delivering the benefit as lower taxes over the depreciation period. The impact therefore depends on the company’s tax capacity.
Official sources: MIMIT — Capital goods tax credit. Super-depreciation 2026-2028 is governed by the 2026 Budget Law and its implementing legislation: rates, bands, technical requirements and obligations must be checked in the version in force, with your accountant and a qualified technician, before starting an investment.