Turin for Nordic vehicle and component makers: hiring automotive engineers

Sweden and Finland have strong vehicle, truck, bus and component industries. Turin has been the centre of Italian automotive engineering for more than a century. When a Nordic company needs engineers who know Italian suppliers, Italian testing practice or simply Europe’s second automotive tradition, Turin is the first place to look.

What the talent pool looks like  

Turin and Piedmont offer:

• vehicle engineering, powertrain and chassis specialists from the long presence of large car makers and their suppliers;
• electrical and electronic engineers working on electrification, battery systems and vehicle software;
• aerospace and space systems engineers;
• industrial automation and manufacturing engineers;
• a growing ICT and software sector.

The Politecnico di Torino trains mechanical, aerospace, electronic and computer engineers, and the Università di Torino adds sciences and economics. Many senior engineers have spent years inside large industrial groups and know how suppliers, homologation and quality systems work.

Why it fits Nordic companies  

• Supplier proximity. Many Nordic OEMs and tier-one suppliers buy from Italian component makers. An engineer in Turin can manage supplier quality, development and launches on the spot.
• Electrification. The overlap between Nordic electrification programmes and Piedmontese engineering is growing.
• Same time zone as Gothenburg and Stockholm, one hour from Helsinki.
• Lower cost than Milan, with comparable engineering depth.

Local income tax  

Employees in Turin pay the national IRPEF plus regional and municipal surcharges. Turin is unusual: its city surcharge is progressive, in four brackets of 0.8%, 0.8%, 1.1% and 1.2%, with an exemption threshold of €11,790 (pmi.it, 730/2026 table, secondary source). The Piedmont regional surcharge starts at 1.62% up to €15,000, with increases planned for 2026 to 2028.

For a senior engineer, the city surcharge in Turin is somewhat higher than in Milan or Bologna at the same gross. Lower housing costs usually more than offset it. It changes net pay, not your employer cost.

The usual contract  

Engineering roles in this sector normally fall under the Metalworking agreement (CCNL Metalmeccanico industria). It sets levels, pay tables, travel rules, shift premiums and a supplementary health fund. Employer contributions are a little higher than under Commerce and services, and INAIL injury insurance is higher for technical roles than for office ones.

Practical points  

• Travel. Supplier and plant visits are part of most roles. The CCNL governs travel allowances and travel time.
• Trips to Sweden or Finland. Training at your plant is a business trip. Longer assignments need a posting notification; we handle it.
• Safety training. Required before site visits.
• Confidentiality and IP. Our contracts assign inventions and designs to your company.
• Senior roles. Experienced engineers can be hired at “quadro” level.

Hiring without an Italian entity  

With an Employer of Record (EOR), we employ the engineer in Italy under the right CCNL and run payroll, while your engineering organisation manages the work. Cost: the employment cost plus €250 a month, invoiced in SEK or EUR.

Questions we hear from Nordic companies  

Can the engineer work on our programmes from Turin full time? Yes. Many work remotely on Nordic programmes with regular trips to suppliers and to your sites. The working-time and travel rules of the CCNL apply.

Are Turin engineers used to English? Engineers from international programmes and large suppliers usually work in English daily. Check during the interview, as you would anywhere.

What about security clearance or export control? If the work involves controlled technology, check export-control rules with your compliance team before hiring. The employment structure does not change those obligations.

Can we hire a team, not one engineer? Yes. Several engineers in Turin can be employed through the EOR under the same CCNL, each with their own contract, and managed as one team from your organisation.

In short  

Turin offers Nordic vehicle and component makers deep engineering experience at a lower cost than Milan, in the same time zone. Hire under the Metalworking CCNL, write travel and IP terms into the contract, and remember that the progressive city surcharge affects the net pay of senior engineers. Through an EOR the engineer can start within days for EU citizens, managed entirely by your engineering organisation.

See the Turin city page and the industrial engineers page . Estimate a salary in the cost calculator .