How to Register the VAT number in Romania?

This is an older version of the article regarding VAT Registration in Romania. For the updated article, please go to VAT REGISTRATION IN ROMANIA.

Hello, I am the owner of a Romanian SRL and I need to register my VAT number. 

Answer: According to the Tax Code, the taxable person who has established their business in Romania and made or intends to undertake an economic activity involving taxable transactions exempted from value added tax with rights to deductibility and / or operations resulting from economic activities for which the place of delivery / provision shall be deemed to be abroad, if the tax would be deductible, in the case that these operations were carried out in Romania, must apply for registration for VAT purposes to the tax authorities, as follows:

a) previous to the operations, if:

1. he/she declares that will achieve a turnover that meets or exceeds the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei;

2. he declares that they shall obtain a turnover below the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei, but opts to apply the normal tax regime;

b) when during a calendar year, it equals or exceeds the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei - within 10 days after the month in which equaled or exceeded that ceiling;

c)  when the turnover achieved during a calendar year is less than the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei, but opts to apply the normal tax regime;

d) when it carries out tax exemption operations and opts to tax these operations according to art. 141 para. (3) of the Tax Code.

A taxable person who has established his business outside Romania but is established through a fixed registered office, must apply for registration for VAT purposes under the terms of the Tax Code.

With regard to taxable persons not established in Romania nor registered for VAT purposes in Romania, they will require registration for VAT purposes to the competent authorities for operations that are tax deductible, conducted in Romania, other than transport services and services ancillary thereto, prior to the operations, except for the case that the person liable to pay tax is the beneficiary.

According to the Tax Code, the taxable person who has established their business in Romania and made or intends to undertake an economic activity involving taxable transactions exempted from value added tax with rights to deductibility and / or operations resulting from economic activities for which the place of delivery / provision shall be deemed to be abroad, if the tax would be deductible, in the case that these operations were carried out in Romania, must apply for registration for VAT purposes to the tax authorities, as follows:

a) previous to the operations, if:

1. he/she declares that will achieve a turnover that meets or exceeds the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei;

2. he declares that they shall obtain a turnover below the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei, but opts to apply the normal tax regime;

b) when during a calendar year, it equals or exceeds the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei - within 10 days after the month in which equaled or exceeded that ceiling;

c)  when the turnover achieved during a calendar year is less than the exemption threshold of 220,000 lei, but opts to apply the normal tax regime;

d) when it carries out tax exemption operations and opts to tax these operations according to art. 141 para. (3) of the Tax Code.

A taxable person who has established his business outside Romania but is established through a fixed registered office, must apply for registration for VAT purposes under the terms of the Tax Code.

With regard to taxable persons not established in Romania nor registered for VAT purposes in Romania, they will require registration for VAT purposes to the competent authorities for operations that are tax deductible, conducted in Romania, other than transport services and services ancillary thereto, prior to the operations, except for the case that the person liable to pay tax is the beneficiary.

What is the VAT registration procedure?

In order to register for VAT, you must complete and submit an application for registration found on NAFA's official website, under the conditions and criteria set out in Order no. 17/2015 on establishing criteria for conditioning the registration for VAT purposes.

The form under which the taxable person requires re-registration for VAT purposes is form 099 "Application for VAT purposes according to art. 153 para. (9^1) b) - d) of the Law no. 571/2003 on the Tax Code ". If such an application is not submitted within 180 days from the date of cancellation, the tax authorities will not approve any subsequent applications for registration for VAT purposes.

For registration of legal entities in the Trade Register, when predicting overruns of the 200,000 lei threshold, the documentation required for VAT registration ( form 098 and form 088) is deposited on the same day as filing the documentation with the Trade Register.

However, a company that performs economic activities can opt to register for VAT after the registration in the Commercial Register, even if the threshold that obliges the company to register for VAT purposes is not met, by filing Forms 010 and 088 to the tax authorities.

The ascertainment of the conditions of registration for VAT purposes under art.153 of the Tax Code is carried out by the department responsible for tax registration based on information present in the financial semester/annual statements, statements and other documents filed by taxpayers. These conditions envisaged by the fiscal authorities are:

a) the legal person is not in a position to not do business in the space designated for headquarters and / or secondary offices or outside them;

b) none of the managers and / or associates of the taxable person applying for registration for VAT purposes in Romania, nor the taxable person himself/herself applying for registration don’t hold in their tax record crimes and / or facts referred to in art. 2 para. (2) a) of the Government Ordinance no. 75/2001 on the organization and functioning of the tax record;

c) the assessment, based on an analysis conducted by the tax authorities, of the intention and ability of taxable persons to carry out economic activities involving taxable transactions and / or exempted from VAT with rights to deductibility, as well as operations for which the place of delivery / provision is considered to be abroad if the tax would be deductible if these operations would take place in Romania.

If the taxpayer meets the evaluation criteria in part, the responsible department in assessing the intention and ability to conduct business invites the legal representative of the taxpayer to its headquarters. If the latter does not provide the accurate and complete data and information required and doesn’t clarify the intention and ability of the taxable person to carry out economic activities involving economic activities that consist in transactions within the scope of VAT, the compartment competent in assessing the intent and ability to carry out economic activities forwards the request for VAT purposes registration, with all the documentation that represented the basis of the analysis, to the competent regional fraud directorate, which issues the proposal to approve or refuse the registration for VAT purposes

Addressing the request for VAT purposes registration ends with the decision to approve / reject the registration for VAT purposes and the decision to approve or reject it is communicated to the taxable person.

Is the annulment of the registration of VAT purposes possible?

It is possible to cancel the registration for VAT purposes?

Yes, the tax authorities may withdraw the registration of a person for VAT purposes in the following situations:

a) if it is declared inactive;

b) if entered into temporary inactivity, registered in the trade register;

c) if the taxpayer’s associates or managers or the taxpayer hold in their tax record criminal tax offenses and / or other facts provided by the Law on the organization and functioning of the fiscal record.

d) if there was no deposit of VAT return provided by the Tax Code, under certain conditions;

e) if the tax returns filed for 6 consecutive months, for some persons, did not reveal the purchase of goods or services or supply of goods or services;

f) if the taxpayer was not required, nor had the right to request such registration;

g) for taxable persons requesting removal from the records of persons registered for VAT purposes in order to apply the special exemption regime provided by the Tax Code;

h) if a company established in Romania subject to registration in the commercial register has no intention and ability to conduct economic activity.