A precise change to the Fiscal Code 

Law no. 285 as of 29 November 2018 for the amendment of Art. 453 letter b) of Law no. 227/2015 on the Fiscal Code (Official Gazette No. 1028 as of 3 December 2018).

Specifications:

• Building definition has been amended as to include wind towers in the category of buildings subject to building taxes.

Approval of the CASS cancellation procedure 

The order of ANAF President no. 2846 as of November 16, 2018 for the approval of the Cancellation Procedure for the payment obligations set out in the "Taxation Decision on the Social Insurance Contribution of Individuals under Article 180 paragraph (1) letter a) of the Fiscal Code" as well as for the approval of the model and content of some forms (Official Gazette no. 1032 as of 5 December 2018).

Specifications:

• The procedure applies to persons who have filed Form 604 "Statement of establishment of payment obligations as a CASS due by individual persons who do not generate income or by other categories of persons provided under art. 180 of the Fiscal Code" and to whom were issued and communicated "The tax decision on CASS due by individual persons according to art. 180 par. (1) letter a) of the Fiscal Code";
• The request for the cancellation of payment obligations in relation to CASS established by the tax decision is made by submitting one of the following forms, as the case may be: "The unique statement on income tax and social contributions due by individual persons" or "Notification on the cessation of payment obligations established by the taxation decision regarding the social health insurance contribution due by the individual persons according to art. 180 par. (1) letter a) of the Fiscal Code";
• The cancellation of the payment obligations regarding the social health insurance contribution is made starting with the month of submission of the above documents;
• For individual persons who do not express the CASS payment option by submitting the unique statement or the notification, the cancellation of the CASS payment obligations established and communicated by means of a tax decision is made by ANAF ex officio. In this case, CASS's payment obligations are waived from the month of the legal term of submitting the unique statement in 2019, respectively.

Rules on the application of the reduced VAT rate for restaurants 

The order of the minister of Finance registered under no. 3659 as of 26 November 2018 for the approval of the Instructions for unitary application of the provisions of art. 291 par. (2) letter e) and of par. (3) letter e) of Law no. 227/2015 on the Fiscal Code (Official Gazette No. 1037 as of 6 December 2018).

Specifications:

• We would like to recall that, as of November 1, 2018, a reduced VAT rate of 5% was set for restaurant and catering services, except for alcoholic beverages other than beer falling within NC code 22 03 00;
• This order details / explains the food services that benefit from the 5% reduced VAT rate, by also providing specific examples in this respect ;
• At the same time, a number of clarifications are made in order to clearly set out the food activities carried out by the economic agents, as follows:

a) supplies of services for which a VAT rate of 9% applies;
b) provision of restaurant or catering services for which a VAT rate of 5% applies.

• For a correct VAT assignment of an operation as a supply of goods or services, consideration should be given to the qualitative examination of the operation, namely, the preponderance of the service provision items preceding and accompanying the delivery of the food has to be appraised;
• Where a taxable person delivers dishes at a location mentioned by the customer without providing additional service, or where the delivery of the dishes represents a predominant element of the transaction, the latter is considered a delivery of food.

The amendment of the list of payment obligations to the state budget 

The order of ANAF President no. 3105 as of December 11, 2018 regarding the amendment and completion of ANAF President's Order no. 587/2016 for the approval of the model and the content of the forms used for declaring taxes and obligations with self-imposition or withholding tax (Official Gazette 1067 as of December 17, 2018).

Specifications:

• The list of payment obligations to the state budget was amended as follows:

- Item 21 on "Income tax on gambling practiced in Romania by non-resident individual personss" was removed;
- Three new positions were introduced as follows: (i) Tax on extra offshore revenue; (ii) Compensations relating to the right of passage in exchange for limitations to the right of use; (iii) Compensation for all damages caused by the exercise of the right of passage. In this respect, the completion instructions have been amended accordingly.

Increase in gross minimum wage 

Government Decision no. 937 for determining the minimum gross basic salary on the level of the country, guaranteed as for payment (Official Gazette no. 1045 as of December 10, 2018).

Specifications:

• As of January 1, 2019, the basic gross minimum wage guaranteed was increased to 2,080 lei, but without including bonuses and other compensations and under normal working hours;
• By way of exception, for staff assigned to positions requiring a higher education level and with a minimum of one year's seniority in higher education, this level increases to 2,350 lei, under normal working hours.

A single account for the payment of fines 

The order of minister of finance registered under no. 3893 as of 27 December 2018 regarding the opening of the unique account for the payment of the contravention fines according to the provisions of Law no. 203/2018 on measures to increase the efficiency of the payment of fines (Official Gazette No. 1105 as of 27 December 2018).

Specifications:

• At the State Treasury units, the following accounts have been opened:

- 50.09.01 – "The unique account for contraventional sanctions applied to individual persons residing in Romania";
- 50.09.02 – "The unique account for contraventional sanctions applied to individual persons non-residing in Romania".

• These accounts will be used only for the collection of the contravention fines imposed on individual persons by the investigating agents within the bodies that have implemented the series of unique records of the contravention minutes as well as the means of taking over and transmitting in the information system of data necessary for the creation of the electronic debt title.

Filling in the table of agricultural activities according to the norm

Law no. 354 as of 27 December 2018 for the completion of Art. 105 par. (2) of the Law no. 227/2015 on the Fiscal Code (Official Gazette No. 1110 as of 28 December 2018).

Specifications:

• The table of agricultural activities imposed on the income norm together with the activity of cultivating medicinal and aromatic plants has been filled in;
• The area up to 2 hectares will be non-taxable and what exceeds will be subject to taxation according to the approved annual income rules;
• This law enters into force on 1 January 2019.

Facilities for hiring young people in agricultural field 

Law no. 336 as of 21 December 2018 on the approval of the Program for the stimulation of young people employment in the agriculture, aquaculture and food industry sectors (Official Gazette no. 1107 as of 28 December 2018).

Specifications:

• The "Program for stimulating the employment of young people in the agriculture, aquaculture and food industry sectors", which runs during the period 2018-2020, has been approved;
• This program aims at providing financial support to employers in the above-mentioned sectors for employment of young people for a period of at least 1 year, full-time;
• The financial support is granted only to farmers who employ at least 2 young people;
• For each employee the farmer will receive a monthly allowance of:

i. 1,000 RON for employees on higher education;
ii. 750 RON for employees on high school education;
iii. 500 RON for employees without education.

• At the same time, the young people employed under the program benefit from the exemption from the payment of the income tax on the gross salary stipulated in the labor contract.

Fiscal amendments 

Government Emergency Ordinance no. 114/2018 regarding the establishment of measures in the field of public investments and fiscal-budgetary measures, the amendment and completion of some normative acts and the extension of some deadlines (Official Gazette No. 1116 as of December 29, 2018).

The new gambling fee

Specifications:

• Starting January 1, 2019, the online gambling organizers provided in Government Emergency Ordinance no. 77/2009 have the obligation to pay a monthly fee representing 2% of the total participation fees which are monthly collected;
• The monthly fee is calculated, declared and paid to the state budget by the 25th of the month following the one in which the participation fees were collected.

The refunding of car taxes

Specifications:

• The car taxes will be refunded as follows:

I. From 1 January 2018 to 30 June 2019, the special tax for cars and motor vehicles, the pollution tax for motor vehicles, the tax on pollutant emissions from motor vehicles will be refunded;
II. Between 1 September 2018 and 30 June 2019, the environmental stamp duty for motor vehicles will be refunded.

Activities carried out by the day laborers

Specifications:

• A person cannot perform day-to-day activities for more than 120 days during a calendar year, irrespective of the number of beneficiaries;
• In this case, the exception is represented by the daily laborers who provide extensive livestock farming activities through the seasonal grazing of sheep, cattle, horseradish, seasonal activities in the botanical gardens under the accredited universities, as well as in the wine sector, for which the period can be of 180 days during a calendar year;
• The beneficiary can not use a person for more than 25 calendar days on a continuous basis in day-to-day activities;
• Occupational unskilled work can be done in the following areas:

i. Agriculture, hunting and related services;
ii. forestry, except for forestry exploitations;
iii. fishing and aquaculture.

Amendments to the Fiscal Code

Income tax

Specifications:

• We mention that a new income tax exemption for individual persons who earn salary and salary-like income has been introduced as of January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2028, includingly, for which the following conditions are met:

a. the employers carry out activities in the building or building materials manufacturing industry (the NACE codes are expressly mentioned);
b. the employers make turnover from the activities referred to in letter a) up to at least 80% of the total turnover, which is cumulatively calculated from the beginning of the year, including the month in which the exemption applies;
c. the monthly gross earnings from wages and assimilated to wages, earned by the individual persons for whom the exemption applies, are between 3,000 and 30,000 RON per month, inclusively, and are made on the basis of the individual labor contract.

• In the category of benefits assimilated to wages were included the food allowance and the holiday allowance granted according to the provisions of the Framework Law no.153 / 2017 regarding the salaries of the staff paid from public funds;
•  It was established that there is no obligation to submit the Unique statement - Chapter I "Income data" by individual persons who have received income from the disposal of the use of goods for which the rent is denominated in RON and who have not opted for establishing the annual net income in the real system and at the end of the previous year did not meet the conditions for qualifying income in the category of self-employed income;
• The associations, except those who earn income from agricultural activities imposed on the basis of income rules, have the obligation to submit to the competent fiscal body, by 15 February of the following year, the annual income statements according to the model established by order of the president of ANAF, which will also include the distribution of the net income / loss related to the associated entities;
• The competent tax authority grants the 5% bonus for online submission of the 2018 unique statement and the full tax payment until 15 March 2019 for individual persons who receive annual income for which there is no obligation to complete and submit the unique statement  - Chapter I "Income data", up to the legal deadline for submission.

CAS – Social security contribution

Specifications:

• For the period 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2028 inclusively, in case of individual persons who earn salary income and incomes assimilated to salaries based on individual labor contracts signed with employers who carry out activities in the construction sector and who meet the conditions set out in art. 60 pt. 5, the share of the social security contribution stipulated in art. 138 letter a) is reduced by 3.75%.

CASS – Contribution for social health insurance

Specifications:

• For the period 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2028 inclusively, in case of individual persons who earn salary income and incomes assimilated to salaries based on individual labor contracts signed with employers who carry out activities in the construction sector and who meet the conditions set out in art. 60 pt. 5, the share of the social security contribution stipulated in art. 138 letter a) will be exempted from the CASS payment;
• In order to establish the maximum level for deciding whether or not CASS is due by persons earning non-wage income, the interest earnings are taken into account and, in the case of dividend income, there are to be taken into account the dividends distributed and received as from 2018.

CAM - Work insurance contribution

Specifications:

•  In the case of employers who carry out activities in the construction sector and who meet the conditions set out in art. 60 point 5, between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2028 inclusively, the CAM rate shall be reduced to the level of the rate considered to be income by the Guarantee Fund for the payment of salary claims.

Excises

• A new level of excise duty on manufactured tobacco - cigarettes has been established.

Amendments to the Fiscal Procedure Code

Specifications:

• We mention that new provisions have been introduced regarding the central fiscal body's access to information on combating money laundering;
• At the same time, the conditions for maintaining the validity of the rescheduling payment as well as for the possibility of amending the payment rescheduling decision during the period of validity of the rescheduling have been amended.

Establishment of a tax on financial assets

Specifications:

• Banking institutions are required to pay the financial asset tax, called the asset tax, if the ROBOR quarterly average exceeds the 2% threshold, which is also called the reference threshold;
• Banking institution refers to the credit institutions, Romanian legal persons, defined in accordance with the law on organization and functioning, and the branches in Romania of the credit institutions corresponding to foreign legal persons;
• The asset tax is due on a quarterly basis.