260 pharmacies for seven months. For the first time in Italy a group of pharmacies clears the VAT rate on sanitary towels, removes the tampon tax. Until the end of December LloydsFarmacia nationally eliminates VAT, pending a law that eliminates this gender tax discrimination.
There are more than 40 types of products that they will not have the rate at 22%, the highest, now applicable. “We are talking about a fully-fledged asset that can be defined as primary, which makes no sense to equate the taxation of luxury ones” said Domenico Laporta, CEO LloydsFarmacia.
«We considered it a necessary and urgent choice. Why the inclusive and equality choices they belong to us, they are part of our identity and our daily work. We are therefore particularly pleased to launch this initiative, with the hope that it may be a further signal, towards an upcoming national measure ».
A European directive has existed since 2006 that allows member countries to reduce VAT on these goods. However, not everyone has adopted it. France, Belgium, Holland and Portugal have taxes between 5 and 7%, Poland, Estonia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Austria, and Spain go towards 10%. Germany lowered its taxation last year. Costs in Sweden and Denmark are higher than Italy.
There are various initiatives around the world. Canada has already eliminated the tax on sanitary towels and also on sanitary towels since 2015 menstrual cups. In Australia they are taxed as basic necessities. The government of Jacinda Ardern in New Zealand has allocated 25 million New Zealand dollars to distribute sanitary pads and other menstrual hygiene products free of charge in all schools from this June.
The goal is to fight the menstrual poverty. Premier Ardern cited a statistic that one in twelve female students is forced to skip school days because she does not have the funds to buy pads and medicines for menstrual pain. Numbers on the rise during the Covid period.
Since November 2020, the Period Products Bill, the first regulatory measure in the world that guarantees the free and universal supply to women of sanitary pads and all the basic products needed during the period of menstruation, is law in Scotland.
In the rest of the UK, where 10% of girls between the ages of 14 and 21 cannot afford sanitary pads, currently the tampon tax is 5%, however lower than the Italian tax at 22%, such as luxury goods, sanitary napkins. Razors, on the other hand, are basic necessities. Only compostable and biodegradable absorbents, the most expensive and difficult to find, have 5% VAT after a long battle between associations and parliamentarians.
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