Law No. 2 of December 2025, No. 182 – Transitional Provisions and Six-Month Deadline

by | Dec 15, 2025 | inheritance law

The recent reform of the regulation governing donations directly impacts the circulation of real estate properties acquired via deeds of gift and the protection of forced heirs (legittimari).

In particular, a strict six-month deadline has been introduced, within which swift action must be taken to preserve the rights deriving from the previous legal regime.

 

What Changes with the Reform

With Article 44 of Law No. 182 of December 2, 2025, the legislature has overhauled the previous system of in rem protection (tutela reale), which allowed forced heirs to recover donated assets even from third-party purchasers. The new regulatory framework prioritizes an obligatory-type protection (tutela obbligatoria), established as a credit claim.

The amendments specifically concern Articles 561, 563, and 2652 of the Italian Civil Code, carrying significant effects on the stability of property acquisitions and mortgage guarantees.

 

In summary:

  • Mortgages and encumbrances registered by the donee remain effective;
  • Acquisitions by third parties for consideration (a titolo oneroso) are definitively protected;
  • The protection of the forced heir is converted into a credit claim;
  • The terms and conditions for real estate publicity (pubblicità immobiliare) are altered.

 

⚠️ Attention: Six-Month Deadline

For successions that have already opened and for deeds of gift executed prior to the entry into force of the law—specifically before December 18, 2025—the previous legal regime continues to apply only if the forced heirs take active legal steps within six months.

This deadline is absolute and mandatory (perentorio): once it lapses without action, the new regime will apply in its entirety, resulting in the permanent loss of the right to bring an action for restitution against third parties.

 

Immediate Actions Required

Within six months from December 18, 2025, it is necessary to:

  • Serve and record (notificare e trascrivere) the claim for reduction (domanda di riduzione), if the succession has already opened;
  • Serve and record an act of opposition to the donation (atto di opposizione alla donazione), if the donor is still living;

Failing to do so means the new legal framework will automatically extend and apply to all past donations and successions.