Goodbye cash, the date is here: either you have a credit card or you don't buy anything at all | Mark it on your calendar.

Now we have the definitive date, we can say goodbye to cash that can no longer be used to purchase anything.

A moment that seemed promised for several years, but now could be definitively confirmed: the end of cash in Italy has arrived. A true revolution that will change the habits of millions and millions of citizens.

The transition may not be merely symbolic and could rewrite the daily lives of each of us, considering that without electronic payment methods, it will be impossible to make any payments.

Everything needs to go through digital payment methods, a truly epochal change that is increasing the controversy.

This would be the date when everything would change radically, and not all Italians are ready for this transition.

The Countdown: Life Without Banknotes

In short, experts are now more than convinced that cash will soon be overtaken by electronic payments , but this isn't just a hypothesis, it's a certainty. In just a few years, Italy has gone from seemingly remaining faithful to banknotes to undergoing a radical shift. A remarkable leap, especially considering the pandemic, which likely triggered the shift.

Today, digital transactions already represent a huge portion of daily spending, and more and more merchants are refusing cash, prompting customers to take decisive action. Meanwhile, commission costs have also dropped, making the transition more sustainable for merchants, thanks to the growing security afforded by new technologies.

Digital will overtake by 2025

There won't be an outright ban, but the trend seems quite clear and irreversible: digital payments are growing very rapidly and it won't take long for them to surpass cash payments. 2025 was seen as the year they'll overtake, but we're slowly moving toward 2026. There's no official ban, but an almost natural progression, which could make physical cash quite rare.

This trend is confirmed by the growth seen in recent years, with the value of electronic transactions doubling in five years and now involving not only large purchases but also small ones. The transition could happen much faster than one might think; at the moment, many cases still require payment by electronic means rather than cash.