From May 2026 the pay slip will change: the mandatory code of the collective agreement arrives. Here’s where to find it and why it should be checked.
From May 2026, Italians’ paychecks will change their face. Not in its main function, which remains that of describing in black and white the salary, deductions, contributions and rights accrued, but in the amount of information it will have to contain. With the entry into force of the legislative decree of 30 April 2026, n. 62, it becomes mandatory to indicate on the payslip the unique alphanumeric code of the national collective labor agreement applied to the employee.
An additional acronym, apparently technical, which however can make a lot of difference. Because that code serves to precisely identify which contract regulates the employment relationship, which minimum wages must be respected, which protections the employee is entitled to and which classification has been applied by the company.
The new mandatory code on the pay slip
The change concerns pay slips issued starting from 1 May 2026. The identification code of the CCNL applied by the employer must also appear alongside the information already present on the payslip.
The code can be inserted next to words such as “applied contract”, “CCNL”, “contract code” or “CNEL code”. Its function is simple: to make the collective agreement that governs that employment relationship immediately recognisable.
In the past, for many employees, understanding which contract actually applied was not always straightforward. The acronyms, generic formulations and unfamiliarity with the technical language of pay slips could create confusion. With the new obligation, however, the worker should be able to identify more clearly the contractual reference on which salary, level, protections and rights depend.
Because the CCNL really matters
The National Collective Labor Agreement is not a bureaucratic detail. It is the document that establishes a fundamental part of the economic and regulatory conditions of the employee.
The minimum wage foreseen for the level of classification, the increases for overtime, shifts and night work, holidays, permits, the thirteenth salary and, in cases where it is foreseen, the fourteenth salary depend on the CCNL. But the collective agreement also affects sickness, maternity, paternity, severance pay and social security contributions.
For this reason, knowing which contract is applied is not just a formal question. It is the first step to understand if your pay slip is correct and if the treatment recognized by the company really corresponds to that expected for the sector and the tasks performed.
The knot of pirate contracts
The measure is also part of the attempt to counter the phenomenon of so-called pirate contracts, i.e. collective contracts signed by organizations that are not very representative and often less favorable for workers.
The risk, in these cases, is that behind an apparently regular acronym, lower economic conditions, reduced protection, classifications that are not consistent with the actual duties and lower contributions are hidden. All elements that can have immediate consequences on the monthly salary and, over time, also on the future pension.
The indication of the alphanumeric code of the contract therefore aims to make the relationship between company and worker more transparent, but also to facilitate any checks by the competent bodies.
What the worker must check
The first thing to do, from the May payslip onwards, is to check whether the code of the CCNL applied appears on the pay slip. The worker should also check that the indicated contract is consistent with his sector, with the company’s activity and with the tasks actually performed.
Particular attention must also be paid to the level of classification. It is not enough that the contract is indicated: it is necessary to verify that the level assigned really corresponds to the role, responsibilities and activities carried out every day.
In case of doubt, it is possible to contact a union, a labor consultant, a patronage or a qualified professional to compare the indicated contract with the correct one and verify the adequacy of the salary.
An acronym that can be worth a lot
The new paycheck entry will not automatically increase your salary, but it may make it easier to understand if your salary is the right one. And it is precisely here that the most important game is played.
For years many workers have looked at the net at the bottom of the payslip without really being able to decipher everything that came before: withholdings, contributions, levels, codes, ancillary items. The obligation to indicate the code of the collective agreement goes in the opposite direction: to make a document more readable that is often perceived as difficult, but decisive for the economic life of millions of people.
From May, therefore, the pay slip must not only be received and archived. It should be read carefully. Because that new code can say much more than it seems: which contract is applied, what rights are available and whether the employment relationship is really built on correct foundations.
