# Istat: Italy's non-observed economy reached €218.2 billion in 2024

> Italy's non-observed economy was valued at €218.2 billion in 2024, while its share of GDP fell to 9.9%, Istat reported. The institute reports the underground economy and illegal activities as separate components.

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- Publisher: Newsverum
- Section: Business
- Country: Italy
- Published: 2026-10-16T08:19:51+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-16T08:19:51+00:00
- Source review period: 2024
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The value added of Italy's non-observed economy reached €218.229 billion at current prices in 2024, according to national accounts released by Istat on October 16. The amount rose 0.3% from 2023, while current-price GDP grew 3.2%; as a result, the non-observed economy's share of GDP declined from 10.2% to 9.9%. The figures refer to 2024, within a 2021–2024 series.

Istat separates the 2024 total into a €198.444 billion underground economy, excluding illegal activities, and €19.785 billion in illegal activities as a distinct component. Agriculture's irregular-work rate rose from 17.6% to 18.4%; the change reflected a 1.1 percentage-point rise among self-employed workers, while the rate for employees fell 0.3 points. These are national-accounts estimates, not a directly observed tally of registered production.

## Data

### Italy's non-observed economy, 2024

Istat's current-price national-accounts estimates distinguish the underground economy, illegal activities and irregular employment.

Methodology: Istat reports current-price value-added and GDP estimates for 2021–2024. The non-observed economy covers market production not directly observed; illegal activities are a separate component and are not included in the underground-economy amount. Agriculture's irregular-work rate is irregular full-time-equivalent labour units as a share of all labour units in the sector.

| label | value | unit | period | basis | value_qualifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-observed economy, 2024 current prices | 218.229 | billion EUR | 2024 | estimate | exact |
| Non-observed economy as a share of GDP, 2024 | 9.9 | percent | 2024 | estimate | exact |
| Underground economy, excluding illegal activities, 2024 | 198.444 | billion EUR | 2024 | estimate | exact |
| Illegal activities, separate component, 2024 | 19.785 | billion EUR | 2024 | estimate | exact |
| Irregular-work rate in agriculture, 2024 | 18.4 | percent | 2024 | estimate | exact |

Sources: <https://www.istat.it/comunicato-stampa/economia-non-osservata-nei-conti-nazionali-anni-2021-2024/> · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/italy-unobserved-economy-2024-istat/data/italy-unobserved-economy-2024?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/italy-unobserved-economy-2024-istat/data/italy-unobserved-economy-2024?lang=en&format=csv)

## Sources

- [Italian National Institute of Statistics (Istat)](<https://www.istat.it/comunicato-stampa/economia-non-osservata-nei-conti-nazionali-anni-2021-2024/>) (Source checked: 2026-10-16; Published: 2026-10-16)

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