Real estate investments in Romania by EU citizens and legal persons
The acquisition of land by EU citizens and EU legal persons was regulated anew by Law no. 312/ 2005 (the “Law”) when Romania joined the European Union on 01.01.2007. The Law regulated certain intermediate time frames of 5 years (for building land) and respectively 7 years (for farmland, forests and forest land), starting with the date Romania joined the European Union; during these periods, the acquisition of land by persons from the EU area was only permitted under certain restrictive conditions
NEWSFLASH Unilateral gas price increases might be contested as ANRE sanctions suppliers
Following several complaints of final customers who received notifications from gas suppliers regarding the intention to unilaterally increase the price of natural gas, ANRE initiated control actions to verify the way in which the legal obligations regarding contract and pricing transparency were observed.
Government Simplifies Approval Procedures for Fire Safety
On the 30th of June 2021, the Government has simplified the legal framework regarding the procedure for fire safety approval by means of the Emergency Ordinance No. 80 (“EO 80”). We shall briefly discuss below what the most important changes consist in.
Protection against the insolvency of the construction company
Just like anywhere, the nightmare of any investor in the construction area in Romania is the insolvency of the construction company. The illiquidity of the construction company during the execution of construction works or during the warranty period draws serious effects for investors: the blockage of the construction works leads to the impossibility of completing the project in due time, financial loss threatens, the remedy of identified defects on the account of the construction company becomes difficult or even impossible, and so on.
Important Tax Changes this Fall: Pt 2 – Fiscal Procedure Code
In addition to the recently described amendments of the Fiscal Code, interesting amendments of the Fiscal Procedure Code have been published. The most important regulations, included in the Emergency Regulation (“EO“) 11/2021, are synthesized below.
Important Tax Changes this fall: Pt. 1 – Fiscal Code
At the end of August 2021, the two important laws elated to taxes – the Romanian Fiscal Code and the Fiscal Procedure Code – have been changed. This implies clarifications, additions and amendments which require a certain lead time for preparation. We shall briefly present some of the relevant aspects according to Ordinance 8/2021 amending the Fiscal Code below.
Whistleblower protection: are reporting systems on group level allowed?
Companies will soon have to take concrete measures to protect persons that anonymously disclose unlawful activities (“Whistleblowers”). EU member states will have to implement the Whistleblower Directive by 17.12.2021
Tax groups in Romania – regulated, yet not common
Companies pertaining to a group have the option to form so-called „tax groups “(Ro: grup fiscal) for tax purposes. In German-speaking countries, such groups are known as “Organschaft“.
NEWSFLASH - New price adjustment possibilities in public procurement law - short deadlines!
On the 31st of August 2021, the Government Ordinance no. 15/2021 (“GO”) was published in Romania. It entered into force three calendar days later. The GO came as a reaction to the significant price increases for construction materials; it regulates the adjustment of contract prices under public construction contracts.
NEWSFLASH - REMINDER: Statement Regarding the Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) must be filed in September
NEWSFLASH - REMINDER: Statement Regarding the Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) must be filed in September Based on the amendments of Romania's legislation against money laundering and terrorism financing (Law No. 129/2019) as of 30 April 2021, among others, the obligation for companies to file with the Commercial Register the annual statements regarding their beneficial owners (beneficiari reali, - “UBO”) was reinstated. We informed you in May that the term for the filing had been extended until 1 October 2021. Please click here. Many were hoping for a cancellation of the obligation to file a statement in case no changes related to the UBO occurred. Currently it seems however that all companies have to comply with the filing term for the annual UBO statement. Considering that such term will soon expire, all concerned parties should take action in order to submit the statement with the Commercial Register in September. Please also note that in the meantime the form of this statement was amended. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have in this respect. Sincerely, The STALFORT Legal. Tax. Audit. team