Italian postal bonds: prescription deadlines and up to 4% yields

Italian postal savings bonds (Buoni Fruttiferi Postali) cease to be payable ten years after their maturity date. The right to redemption expires regardless of whether the holder knows the exact expiry, and the prescription period runs independently of the bond’s advertised interest rate.

A recent case in Ferrara illustrates the rule: a saver who bought five bonds in 2001 believed they would mature in 2021, but the bonds actually expired in March 2007. Because she claimed the funds only in 2023, the ten‑year prescription period had already ended in March 2017, and she lost €50,000 plus accrued interest. The Tribunale di Ferrara, applying a Cassation ruling of 3 March 2025, upheld the prescription deadline despite the bank’s failure to provide the informational sheet.

Current offerings from Poste Italiane include a range of products—from the Buono Minori to the Premium 4‑year bond—with yields updated to a maximum of around 4 %. Savers are advised to verify the exact maturity by consulting the relevant ministerial decree published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale.