Work out an estimate of your 2026 ISEE in two minutes, with the allowances and equivalence scale currently in force. You need your 2024 income and your assets as at 31 December 2025: the same figures the DSU asks for.
This is an estimate, not a valid ISEE. An official ISEE only comes from the DSU (single substitute declaration) filed with INPS, which cross-checks your figures against the tax office and the banks. You need it for any benefit application.
How the ISEE is calculated
The ISEE is not your household income: it is income plus a share of your assets, divided by a figure that reflects how many people live on that money. There is a single formula, set out in DPCM 159/2013:
ISEE = (ISR + 20% of ISP) ÷ equivalence scale
- ISR, the income indicator: you add up the household's 2024 income and subtract the allowances, that is 20% of employment income up to €3,000, or 20% of pensions up to €1,000, plus rent up to €7,000.
- ISP, the asset indicator: financial assets as at 31 December 2025 less an allowance that starts at €6,000, plus property at its IMU value, less the outstanding mortgage and less the allowance on your main home.
- Only 20% of the ISP enters the calculation: €50,000 of assets weigh on your ISEE like €10,000 of income.
- The total is divided by the equivalence scale, which grows with the number of household members: the same ISE split between four people gives a far lower ISEE than split between two.
A worked ISEE example for a family
Three common situations with the figures in the open, worked out by the same engine as the calculator above. They show how much the house, the bank account and the number of children really weigh.
Household of three on one salary, renting
Two parents and one child under 18. A single employment income of €24,000, rent of €6,000 a year, €4,000 in the bank, no property. The employment allowance is worth €3,000 and the rent is deducted in full; the account stays under the €10,000 financial allowance, so assets weigh nothing. The increase for children under 18 does not apply because only one parent works.
- Income (ISR)
- €15,000.00
- Assets (ISP)
- €0.00
- ISE (ISR + 20% of ISP)
- €15,000.00
- Equivalence scale
- 2.04
ISEE for family benefits
€7,352.94
Household of four with a home they own and a mortgage
Two working parents and two children under 18, one of them under three. Income of €32,000 from employment, a home with an IMU value of €120,000 and €40,000 of mortgage outstanding, €15,000 between account and investments. Here the two indicators part ways: with the ordinary €52,500 allowance the house enters the calculation, with the €91,500 one it disappears.
- Income (ISR)
- €29,000.00
- Assets (ISP)
- €23,333.33
- ISE (ISR + 20% of ISP)
- €33,666.67
- Equivalence scale
- 2.76
ISEE for family benefits
€10,489.51
A pensioner living alone, house paid off
One person with a €14,000 pension, a home owned outright with an IMU value of €70,000, €12,000 of savings of which €5,000 in postal savings certificates. The pension allowance is worth €1,000, the postal certificates leave the asset base and only two thirds of the part above the allowance counts for the house. Living alone, they divide by 1: this is why a pensioner on a small income can end up with a higher ISEE than a large family.
- Income (ISR)
- €13,000.00
- Assets (ISP)
- €12,666.67
- ISE (ISR + 20% of ISP)
- €15,533.33
- Equivalence scale
- 1.00
ISEE for family benefits
€13,200.00
The examples leave out the items listed under the calculator, such as the notional return on savings: they are there to show the weight of each item, not to replace the DSU.
Which income and which assets count
Income includes
- each member's total taxable income, including children who work
- income under substitute or flat-rate tax, such as agreed-rent lettings and the flat-tax self-employed
- income exempt from income tax and welfare, social-security and compensation payments, including study grants
- the single universal allowance and any maintenance received for children
- the cadastral value of property that is not let, increased by 5%
Assets include
- current accounts, deposit accounts, passbooks and cards with an IBAN, at their balance or average holding
- securities, shares, funds, managed portfolios and, from 2026, cryptocurrencies and foreign accounts too
- life and capitalisation policies, for the premiums paid net of any amounts surrendered
- the IMU value of every property, in Italy and abroad, less the outstanding mortgage
- the net assets of sole traders and holdings in companies
What does not count
- your car and motorbike: the registration goes in the DSU, but it is there for INPS checks and is not added to your assets
- government bonds and postal savings products up to €50,000 per household: only the excess counts
- death-benefit policies and any other policy that cannot be surrendered as at 31 December
- the mortgage outstanding on your home, which is taken off the property value before any allowance
- furniture, jewellery and anything else that is not an account, a security or a property
The two periods do not match and are not yours to choose: the 2026 ISEE looks at income for 2024, but at assets as at 31 December 2025. If your income collapsed after that, there is the current ISEE, which uses the last few months.
ISEE and your bank account: balance or average holding
This is where most of the confusion lies. An account is not valued only at its 31 December 2025 balance: that balance is compared with the average holding for the year, and the higher of the two wins. Emptying the account in late December therefore does not lower your ISEE.
- the average holding is the average of the sums in the account over the year, stated on a twelve-month basis: your bank issues it on request, or you find it in the year-end paperwork
- the balances and holdings of every account of every member are added together, including accounts closed during the year and prepaid cards with an IBAN
- on a joint account each holder's share counts: half each between two holders
- the calculator lets you enter both figures and uses the higher one, exactly as INPS does
Your main home, the mortgage and rent in the ISEE
The home you live in does enter the ISEE, but almost never in full: first the mortgage comes off, then an allowance, and only a slice of what is left counts. Here is the exact order of operations.
- you start from the IMU value, not the market price nor what you paid: it is the cadastral value increased by 5% and multiplied by 160 for homes
- you subtract the mortgage capital outstanding at 31 December 2025, not the instalments already paid
- you subtract the allowance: €52,500 in the ordinary ISEE, €91,500 in the one for family benefits (€120,000 in the main city of a metropolitan area), plus €2,500 for each child living with you beyond the second
- only two thirds of what is left enters the ISP, and only 20% of the ISP in turn
If you rent instead
The annual rent on a registered tenancy is deducted straight from income, up to €7,000, plus €500 for each child living with you beyond the second. It is an alternative to the allowance on a home you own: one or the other, never both.
The equivalence scale
This is the divisor that makes households of different sizes comparable: €30,000 supporting one person is not €30,000 supporting five. It starts at 1 for someone living alone and grows with each extra member.
| People in the household | Parameter |
|---|
| 1 | 1.00 |
| 2 | 1.57 |
| 3 | 2.04 |
| 4 | 2.46 |
| 5 or more people | 2.85 |
+0.35 for each member beyond the fifth
The increases that lower your ISEE
- +0.20 with three children, +0.35 with four, +0.50 with five or more (in the ISEE for family benefits already +0.10 from two children)
- +0.20 with children under 18 when both parents, or the only parent present, worked at least six months in the reference year
- +0.30 instead of +0.20 if at least one child is under three years old
- +0.50 for each member with a moderate or severe disability, or who cannot live independently
What the ISEE is for
The ISEE is the key to almost every means-tested benefit: without a valid ISEE an application is rejected, or granted at the minimum amount. It lasts one year, from the day the DSU is filed to 31 December.
- the single universal allowance for children: without an ISEE you only get the minimum
- the inclusion allowance and the training and employment support
- nursery bonus, newborn bonus and council contributions towards school meals
- study grants, exemption from or reduction of university fees
- the social bonus on electricity, gas and water, and reductions on waste charges and transport
- social housing, council maternity allowances and the psychologist bonus
From 2026 there are two ISEEs
The 2026 budget law created a second indicator, the ISEE for specific family and inclusion benefits, which raises the allowance on your main home to €91,500 (€120,000 in the main city of a metropolitan area) and improves the increases for children. It applies only to the inclusion allowance, the training and employment support, the single universal allowance, the nursery bonus and the newborn bonus: everything else still uses the ordinary ISEE. The calculator shows both, because with a home you own the difference can run into thousands of euros.
ISEE online, pre-filled ISEE and the DSU at a CAF
An online calculation like this one helps you know where you stand in advance; to get the certificate there are two routes, and they differ in how much work stays with you.
- Pre-filled ISEE on the INPS portal: you sign in with SPID or CIE and find the tax office and bank figures already there, but you have to accept them, fill in what is missing and answer for any mistakes. You need authorisation from the other adults in the household.
- DSU at a CAF: you bring the documents and we fill it in, checking the items that most often go wrong, namely the average holding, the mortgage outstanding and who counts as part of the household.
- Either way the certificate is issued by INPS, and it lasts until 31 December of the year you file the DSU.
Frequently asked questions about the ISEE calculation
How do you work out the ISEE?
You add up the whole household's income for 2024, subtract the allowances on employment, pensions and rent, and that gives the ISR. Then you add up accounts, investments and property as at 31 December 2025, less mortgages and allowances, and that gives the ISP. The ISE is the ISR plus 20% of the ISP, and the ISEE is the ISE divided by the household's equivalence scale parameter.
What does an ISEE of €40,000 mean?
It is a high figure: it falls outside almost every benefit threshold, because the main ones stop well below (the full single universal allowance under €17,227, the higher nursery bonus under €25,000, the social bonus on utility bills under €9,530). Be careful not to read it as a salary, though: €40,000 of ISEE can come from two average incomes and a home you own, not from €40,000 in the bank. With the single universal allowance you still get the minimum amount, which everyone receives.
When do you file the 2026 ISEE?
From 1 January 2026: the DSU can be filed at any point in the year and the certificate lasts until 31 December 2026. It is worth doing it in January if you need benefits that start at the beginning of the year, such as the single universal allowance, because amounts are adjusted from the month of the application and arrears cannot always be recovered.
Which years does the 2026 ISEE look at?
Income for 2024, that is two years earlier, but assets as at 31 December 2025, that is the year before: the two periods do not coincide, and this is a common mistake. If things got worse after that, you need the current ISEE, which is based on the last few months' income.
Does your main home count towards the ISEE?
Yes, but with an allowance. From the IMU value you subtract the outstanding mortgage, then the allowance (€52,500 in the ordinary ISEE, plus €2,500 for each child beyond the second), and only two thirds of what is left enters the calculation. Many main homes weigh nothing at all on the ISEE.
Does emptying your account before 31 December lower your ISEE?
No. An account is valued at its 31 December balance or, if higher, at the average holding for the year: the larger figure always wins. Moving the money to another account changes nothing, because every account in the household is added together, and the figures reach INPS straight from the banks.
Does this calculator replace the DSU?
No. It gives you a useful estimate to see whether you fall within a threshold and to prepare for your appointment, but a valid ISEE is issued only by INPS after the DSU, cross-checking your figures with the tax office, the banks and the vehicle register. No benefit application can be filed with an estimate.
Why is my ISEE higher than someone who earns the same?
Almost always because of assets or the equivalence scale. Accounts and property add 20% of their value to the ISE, and a smaller household divides by a smaller parameter. Two families on the same salary can end up with very different ISEEs.
Which ISEE you need
The calculation is the same, but the DSU changes with its purpose: for university, for a health and social care benefit, for a child whose parents do not live together. Pick the service and you will find documents, price and timings.
See all ISEE services →
Where these figures come from
Official sources only: the ISEE regulation, the budget laws that amended it and the INPS messages that apply them. The allowances change every year, so the date of each rule is always shown here.
