Tax consolidation & Taxation

• - Procedures of establishing prices in compliance with the regulations of European Union and OCDE;
• - Long-term stability due to the alignment of the internal tax system to the “community acquis”
• - The possibility of further transferring tax losses up to 7 years;
• - Accelerated equipment and car amortization;
• - Exemptions from  land and building taxes applied by the local councils in Romania, based on the state support schemes;
• - Tax incentives granted for research and development; an additional 20% deduction from eligible expenditures for research and development activities;

Fixed Taxes

• - 16% flat tax;
• - 5% dividend tax;
• - 19% standard VAT rate;
• - 9% VAT reduced rate for:
  1. Delivery of prosthetics and accessories, defined by the methodological norms according to the specific legislation, excepting the dental prosthesis exempt from VAT;
  2. Delivery of orthopaedic products;
  3. Delivery of human and animal drugs;
  4. Accommodation within the hospitality industry or similar industries, including the renting of developed lands for camping;
  5. Delivery of the following goods: foods, including drinks but excepting alcohol, for human and animal consumption, living animals and birds from domestic species, seeds, plants and ingredients used in food preparation, products used for completing or replacing foods. Through the methodological norms the NC codes are established suitable for these goods;
  6. Restaurant and catering services, excepting alcohol, other than bear, which falls into NC 22 03 00 10 code;
  7. Delivery of still water and irrigation water for agriculture.
• - 5% VAT reduced rate for:
1. Textbooks, books, newspapers and magazines, excepting those exclusively or mainly for publicity;
2. Services consisting of access to castle, museums, memorial houses, historical monuments, architecture and archaeological monuments, zoos and botanical gardens, expositions and cultural events, sports events, cinemas other than those exempt from VAT;
3. Delivery of houses as part of the social policy, including the land which are built on. The land which the house is built on also includes the footprint of the house.

Accountability and audit

In compliance with the Law of Commercial Society, all juridical persons are obliged to make annual financial reports, at the end of each year. The annual financial reports must comply with Law no. 82/1991 Law of Accountability.

Commercial societies quoted on BVB (regulated market) have the obligation to apply the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The internal audit is mandatory for companies with annual financial reports that are subject to financial audit, according to the law. These companies are obliged to organize and ensure the performance of the internal audit, in compliance with the legal norm in force.

For autonomous administrations, the national companies and national societies, as well as other economic entities where the state hold a majority stake, the internal audit must me organized in compliance with the legislation regarding the internal audit for public entities.

The companies obliged to perform a financial audit in compliance with the Romanian legislation are:

- Societies that, at the end of the fiscal year, meet at least 2 out of the 3 following criteria:

• - Have total actives over euro 3.650.000;
• - Record a turnover over euro 7.300.000 euro;
• - Have an average number of 50 or more employees during the fiscal year;

- Societies of public interest: credit institutions, insurance/reinsurance companies, companies regulated and supervised by CNVM (National Securities Commission), commercial societies whose securities are accepted for transaction on a regulated market, national companies and societies, juridical persons who belong to a group of societies and joins the consolidation perimeter of a mother company which applies International Financial Reporting Standards,   leasing companies and juridical persons, other than the ones mentioned above, who benefit from non-refundable loans or Government guaranteed loans.

Romanian legislation in the field contains the Finance Minister’s Order no. 1752/2005, which adopts the accountability provisions compliant with the European Directives, Finance Minister’s Order no. 907 from 2005 and Finance Minister’s Order 28/2006(for leasing companies).

Litigations

In the Romanian law system, the general competence norms for international litigations settlements are provided by Law no. 1055/1992 regarding international private law, the Code of Civil Procedure and the Commercial Code, as long as those previously mentioned are not modified.

In relations with the state members of the European Union, the norms provided in Regulation (EC) no. 44/2001 are applicable, regarding judicial competence, recognition and enforcement of civil and commercial decisions.

The International Court of Commercial Arbitration is attached to Romania’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry and settles commercial litigations under its Regulations on the Organisation and Operation of the Court of International Commercial Arbitration and has the power to organize ad hoc arbitration, at the parties’ request. The average number of cases settles annually is 400 internal cases and 50 international cases.

Under its Regulations on the Organization and Operation of the Court of International Commercial Arbitration, the Court settles international disputes, its jurisdiction being based on the agreement concluded by businesses in their contracts. The Court of Commercial Arbitrations also settles domestic disputes.