Abstract
Due to the rise in the number of tax audits dealing with transfer pricing there is an increasing concern about the possibility to apply criminal penalties to infringements of the relevant legislation. It is easy to rule that these offences do not trigger the penalties provided by articles 2 and 3 of the legislative decree n. 74/2000. It is more difficult to take a position on the applicability of the penalties provided by article 4, since there is uncertainty on the construction of the words "effectiveness" and "fictitious" used in the provision.