TIM Received €1 Billion Refund on 1998 Licence Fee

Telecom Italia received a €1 billion payment from the Italian state, a refund for a charge from the late 90s. The operator has been battling through the courts for years to get back the funds.

TIM paid just over €500 million in a licence fee in 1998 and has been contesting that payment for over 20 years. The final sum awarded to the operator comprises the original amount with inflation and interest added. In December 2025, the country’s Court of Cassation finally ended a long-running legal row, ratifying a decision made in 2024 to award the sum.

Telecom Italia noted that the payment had been flagged in its accounts last year and will have a net positive impact on the financial position for the current financial year. The payment draws a line under what has been a lengthy battle for the operator to get a refund on a fee paid in the wake of the Italian telecoms market being opened up. In a statement made in 2024 on the issue, TIM argued that courts in Europe had intervened on this issue on several occasions, with a court in Rome eventually ruling in its favour.