Legal & Tax Updates

Tax Flash No. 2/2015

Order 17/2015 establishing the criteria for the VAT registration was published in Official Gazette 16/2015

• The VAT registration criteria for companies requesting the VAT registration as per art. 153, para. (1), letter a) and c) and art. 153, para. (91) of the Fiscal Code are modified
• The main amendments are:
  • The removal of the control of registered office;
  • The evaluation of the intention and capability of the taxable person to perform economic activities would be performed based on a sworn statement (Form 088);
  • Annex 2 and the mention regarding the scoring that should be obtained by the taxable person, function of fulfilling the criteria, are removed;
  • The procedure for solving the VAT registration requests in case the submitted documentation is not complete or the taxable person does not fulfill/partially fulfills the evaluation criteria, is provided. In case of partial fulfillment of the criteria, an evaluation by the antifraud general directorate would be performed, as the case may be;
  • The decision approving or denying the VAT registration may be issued within one to 30 working days from the submission of the complete documentation, but not prior to the date when the registration certificate from the Trade registry is communicated, as the case may be
• The provisions of the present Order shall be applicable for the VAT registration requests submitted after 1 February 2015

Order 19/2015 for the amendment and completion of Order 3.331/2013 approving the procedure for the amendment, by default, of the fiscal period for VAT purposes, as well as the format and content of certain forms was published in Official Gazette 19/2015 (“Order 19/2015”)

• Order 19/2015 amends Order 3.331/2013 in order to align its provisions to those of the Fiscal Code, respectively provides the procedure for the annulment by default of the VAT registration in case the taxable person established in Romania according to Law 31/1990 does not justify the intention and capability to perform economic activity according to the criteria and deadlines established by the legislation in force (hereinafter referred to as the “Procedure”)
• The Procedure shall apply for the taxable persons requesting the VAT registration according to art. 153, para. (1), letter b) of the Fiscal Code, after their registration, and to those that change their registered office or the shareholders and/or administrators’ structure
• In order to identify the taxable persons subject to the Procedure, the competent fiscal authority shall proceed for the monthly identification, as the case may be, of the taxable persons referred to above, which shall be accordingly notified in order to submit the Form 088. Based on the evaluation performed by the competent fiscal authority, the removal from the evidence of the VAT registered taxable persons might be decided
• The date of the annulment, by default, of the VAT registration shall be the date of the communication of the annulment decision
• The provisions of Order 19/2015 shall be applicable starting 1 February 2015

Order 1.820/2014 regarding the Decision of the central fiscal Commission 6/2014 was published in the Official Gazette 20/2015

• Decision of the Central fiscal commission 6/2014 amends the provisions of Decision of the Central fiscal Commission 2/2011 for the unitary interpretation and application of art. 137, para. (1) letter a) and art. 140 from the Fiscal Code, with the subsequent amendments and completions and of point 23, para. (1) and (2) from the Methodological Norms for the application of the Fiscal Code, with the subsequent amendments and completions
• The price shall be considered as including VAT if the supplier does not have the possibility to recover the VAT from the beneficiary, in case the price was established without any mention regarding the VAT and the supplier owes it for the respective transaction
• These provisions shall apply for all taxable supplies of goods/services performed in the specific conditions provided by the Decision
• The amendments intend to align the legal provisions following the decision of the European Court of Justice in Joined Cases C 249/12 and C 250/12 Tulică/Plavoșin

Order 18/2015 approving the VAT Registration procedure, upon request, according to art. 153, para. (9¹) of Law 571/2013 regarding the Fiscal Code, with the subsequent amendments and completions, and approving the model and content of certain forms was published in Official Gazette 32/2015

• Order 18/2015 repeals Order 3.330/2013 in order to align to the provisions of the Fiscal Code
• Special provisions regarding the VAT re-registration following the annulment of the registration as per art. 153, para. (9¹) of the Fiscal Code are introduced
• Among the documents necessary for the VAT re-registration it is also mentioned Form 088
• The provisions of Order 18/2015 shall be applicable starting 1 February 2015

Order 112/2015 approving the model and content of certain fiscal forms used by certain taxable persons in the field of value added tax was published in Official Gazette 40/2015.

• The Order approves the model and content of Form 098 “Request for the VAT registration according to art. 153, para. (1), letter a) of the Fiscal Code” and of Form 088 “Statement on own responsibility for the evaluation of the intention and capability of performing economic activity involving transactions subject to VAT”
• The provisions of Order 112/2015 shall be applicable starting 1 February 2015

Government Decision 20/2015 amending para. (6) of point 23 from Title VI “Value added tax” from the Methodological Norms for the application of Law 571/2003 regarding the Fiscal Code, approved through Government Decision 44/2004, was published in Official Gazette 46/2015

• Clarifications regarding the applicability of the 9% VAT reduced rate for the types of accommodation in the structures of tourists’ reception with accommodation, provided at art. 21 of Government Ordinance 58/1998 regarding the organization and rendering of the tourism activities in Romania, approved with the subsequent amendments and completions are brought
• In this respect, the VAT reduced rate of 9% shall apply for both accommodation and meal, sold at a total price