Romania to impose stricter penalties for tax evasion behaviors

The Romanian government has approved a draft law that aims to curb tax evasion by imposing stricter penalties for economic operators who do not issue tax receipts or hold unjustified amounts in cash registers. The draft law, which has not yet been published in the Official Gazette, establishes a gradual system of applying fines and suspending activities for those who fail to comply with the tax regulations. The fines vary depending on the amount and percentage of the unjustified cash found in the cash registers, as well as the number of previous offenses committed within 12 months (in the case of multiple offenses, the penalties are higher).

In essence, this concerns traders and providers who do not issue tax receipts or who issue them with values below real sales prices, as well as those who introduce sums of money into or out of units without supporting documents.

The fines range from 2,000 lei to 30,000 lei, plus the confiscation of the unjustified amount. If the economic operator commits more than one offense within 12 months, the fine is doubled or tripled, and the activity is suspended for 15 days. However, the economic operator can resume the activity within 24 hours if it pays ten times the fine and five times the unjustified amount.