VAT registration
VAT Registration in Romania for New and Foreign-Owned SRLs
The VAT section filed with your company's formation, or a declaration of changes later, with the company first checked against what ANAF reviews after registration.
- VAT valid from the trade register registration date
- 395,000 lei threshold since 1 September 2025
- ANAF registers first, analyses risk afterwards
- Forms filed under your power of attorney
Prepared for your signature, then filed under your power of attorney.
VAT registration in Romania, filed with the company or added later
A Romanian VAT code (cod de înregistrare în scopuri de TVA) comes by one of two routes. At formation, the VAT section of the fiscal registration request goes with the ONRC application, through our formation service, and VAT runs from the date of registration in the trade register (Fiscal Code art. 316(11)(a)). Later, a declaration of changes is filed at ANAF.
Registration is the easy part. Under art. 316(9) ANAF registers first and analyses risk afterwards, and it can cancel the code of a company with high fiscal risk. Choices made at formation decide most of what it reviews. We prepare and file; the decision to register stays with your tax consultant, the books with your accountant.
What's included
Administrative work and filing under your power of attorney.
VAT in the formation filing
The VAT section of the fiscal registration request (Cerere de înregistrare fiscală), completed for the founders' signature and filed with the ONRC application under their power of attorney.
VAT for a registered company
The declaration of changes (declarație de mențiuni, form 010 on paper or 700 online) with the VAT section, signed by the legal representative and filed by us at ANAF.
The art. 317 special code
Forms and filing for a company under the small-enterprise regime that supplies services to, or buys them from, EU businesses under reverse charge.
A check against the Annex 6 criteria
Seat contract, accountant's contract, staff, the administrator's tax residence and the capital, listed before filing: the profile ANAF will review.
A fiscal representative, arranged
For a business not established in Romania: the norms' file (pt. 89), filed with the representative's tax office, which decides within 30 days. We arrange the appointment.
Tracking until the certificate
Liaison with ONRC and ANAF until the VAT registration certificate (Certificatul de înregistrare în scopuri de TVA) is drawn up with its date and RO code.
The steps tied to the code
The payment account, the accountant's contract and RO e-Factura, coordinated; where a licence follows, such as the MiCA application file, we keep both files in step.
What stays with your advisers
Whether and when to register is tax advice, reserved to CCF tax consultants (OG 71/2001 art. 8(6)). Your CECCAR accountant prepares and signs returns; we can submit them. A contestation goes to a lawyer or tax consultant.
When a company needs a VAT code
Each card is a condition the Fiscal Code sets, not a recommendation.
From the first day
A new company may opt in with its ONRC filing; VAT then runs from its registration in the trade register (art. 310(3), 316(11)(a)).
On crossing the ceiling
Above 395,000 lei, the ceiling since 1 September 2025: apply by the day it is exceeded, or ANAF registers the company ex officio and assesses the VAT due (art. 310(6), (61)).
EU business services under the ceiling
An art. 317 special code before the first reverse-charged service supplied or received; it does not make the company a normal VAT payer (art. 317(10)).
Online sales to EU consumers
Above EUR 10,000 a year (46,337 lei) of distance sales and e-services, the customer's state's VAT applies; a company seated in Romania can use the OSS union scheme (art. 2781, 315).
A business not established in Romania
A non-EU business that must register appoints a fiscal representative (reprezentant fiscal), optional for an EU business. A Romanian SRL with a foreign owner registers itself (art. 316(7)).
Whether and when to register is settled with the company's tax consultant; a call with us sets out the file.
How VAT registration works
Two routes that meet at ANAF's review, with who acts and the term a statute sets.
law a term set by statute none we found no official time
- I
Structure check
Founders and us
- II
Seat and accountant
Founders and us
- III
Route A, at formation: ONRC filing with the VAT section
Us and the ONRC registrar
- one working day, the statute's term (2022 text)
- art. 105(1) Law 265/2022
- IV
The code and the VAT certificate
ANAF
- VAT valid from the registration date
- no official time for the certificate
- V
Route B, after formation: declaration of changes
Us and ANAF
- by the day the ceiling of 395,000 lei is exceeded
- art. 310(6)
- VI
ANAF's risk analysis, after registration
ANAF
- art. 316(9)
- no timetable found
- VII
First months with the code
The company and us
- payment account: 60 working days
- e-Factura: 5 working days
- form 300: by the 25th
- VIII
Hand-over
Us and your accountant
Route A runs with the formation; route B follows for a company already registered. Both end in the same ANAF review.
The structure check
We list the Annex 6 profile and expected turnover against 395,000 lei; the founders decide with their tax consultant. Capital and administrator are fixed when forming an SRL in Romania.
Seat and accountant
A seat contract that is not a comodat (free loan for use) of one year or less, and an accounting contract signed before filing. See why a one-year comodat is a VAT risk criterion.
Route A, at formation: the ONRC filing
The VAT section goes with the application, under the founders' power of attorney. The registrar's term is one working day (Law 265/2022 art. 105(1), 2022 text): the law's term, never a promise.
The code and the certificate
ANAF assigns the CUI on the data ONRC sends (Law 265/2022 art. 126(2)) and draws up the VAT certificate with its date and RO code. We found no official time for the VAT certificate in the texts we read.
Route B, after formation: the declaration of changes
The application is due by the day the ceiling is exceeded (art. 310(6)); we file form 010 or 700 at ANAF, or the opt-in, as soon as the signed declaration and your accountant's turnover figures reach us. The general term for a request is 45 days (Fiscal Procedure Code art. 77); applying it here is our reading.
ANAF's risk analysis, after registration
ANAF reviews the Annex 6 criteria and can cancel the code for high fiscal risk (art. 316(9), 316(11)(h)). We found no timetable for that review in the texts we read.
First months with the code
Payment account in Romania within 60 working days, a duty since 1 January 2026 (Law 239/2025; our business bank account overview). E-Factura within 5 working days (OUG 120/2021 art. 10(7)); form 300 by the 25th; changes within 15 days.
Hand-over
The filing calendar goes to you and your CECCAR accountant, who prepares and signs the returns; we can submit them under your power of attorney.
Forming the company now, or registering one that already trades?
We put the VAT section into the formation filing, or file the declaration of changes for a company already trading.
Documents you will need
The VAT file's own documents, beside the formation papers.
- At formation: the fiscal registration request with the VAT section, signed.
- The seat contract, showing its type and term.
- The accounting contract with an accountant or CECCAR member.
- Each administrator's citizenship and tax residence; the subscribed capital.
- Staff contracts and declared hours, if any.
- After formation: the declaration of changes, signed by the legal representative.
- Turnover figures from the accountant showing when the ceiling is crossed.
- For an art. 317 code: the planned EU services or intra-EU acquisitions.
- For a fiscal representative: activity declaration, foreign constitutive act, acceptance, mandate contract.
Romanian VAT thresholds, deadlines and state costs
A Romanian VAT code carries the prefix RO (art. 318(1)); the RO prefix and the CUI behind it have their own guide. These rules decide when a code is needed.
Romanian VAT thresholds, deadlines and state costs, from the Fiscal Code consolidated to Law 170/2026 and the acts named in each row. Our fee is on request.
| Item | Rule | What follows | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small-enterprise ceiling | 395,000 lei of annual turnover since 1 September 2025; 300,000 lei until 31 August 2025 | Below it the company may stay outside VAT | Fiscal Code art. 310(1); OG 22/2025 |
| Company formed during the year | The full ceiling, not pro-rated | The same 395,000 lei from the first day | art. 310(5) |
| Ceiling crossed | Apply at the latest on the day it is exceeded | Otherwise ex officio registration and the VAT due assessed | art. 310(6), (61) |
| Art. 317 special code | Before the first reverse-charged service, or intra-EU acquisitions above EUR 10,000 (34,000 lei) | Not normal VAT registration | art. 317, 268(4)(b) |
| Distance sales and e-services to EU consumers | Above EUR 10,000 a year (46,337 lei) | The customer's state's VAT; OSS available | art. 2781, 315 |
| VAT return (form 300) and payment | By the 25th of the month after the tax period; a quarter if previous-year turnover did not exceed EUR 100,000 and there were no intra-EU acquisitions of goods | Form 390 for months with intra-EU operations | art. 322, 323(1), 326(1) |
| Changes to registration data | Notified within 15 days | Covers every change to the data ANAF holds on the registration | art. 316(18) |
| Payment account in Romania | A new legal person opens it within 60 working days; duty from 1 January 2026 | A duty of every new company, VAT-registered or not | Law 70/2015 art. 1(12)-(13); Law 239/2025 art. XI(2) |
| First refund claim after registration | Paid only after an advance tax audit (inspecție fiscală anticipată) | Later claims filed while the first is undecided also wait, under Order 1123/2026 (MO 823 of 28 September 2026) | Fiscal Procedure Code art. 169(3)(d) |
| State fee for VAT registration | No state fee in the texts we read | Applies at formation and after | Fiscal Code art. 316; Order 347/2023 |
The standard VAT rate is 21% and the reduced rate 11% since 1 August 2025 (art. 291, Law 141/2025), after a standard 19% from 1 January 2017 to 31 July 2025. Which supplies take which rate is set out in the VAT rates guide.
What ANAF reviews after registration
Under the current Code ANAF registers first and analyses risk afterwards (art. 316(9)). The criteria are those of Annex 6 to the VAT methodological norms (ANAF's published PDF of the annex).
The five criteria groups of Annex 6 to the VAT methodological norms (ANAF's published PDF of the annex), each beside the formation choice behind it.
| Criterion (Annex 6) | What the text says | The choice made at formation |
|---|---|---|
| Seat (pt. 1.1, 1.2) | A seat at a lawyer's professional office under a legal-assistance contract, or used under a comodat of one year or less, with no secondary premises | The seat contract and its term |
| Employees (pt. 2.1) | An average under 1 employee; someone declared for at least 20 hours actually worked in the month counts; economic director and chief accountant contracts excluded | Staff contracts, where the business has them |
| Accounting (pt. 3.1) | No person designated to run the accounts, including no contract with an active CECCAR member | The accountant's contract, signed before filing |
| Returns (pt. 4.1) | Significant inconsistencies in the company's returns, or against its suppliers' and customers' returns | The accountant's filings once trading |
| Administrator and capital (pt. 5.1) | At least one administrator is a foreign citizen without Romanian tax residence, and the share capital is under 45,000 lei | The administrator's tax residence and the subscribed capital |
Row 5 turns on tax residence, not citizenship alone; for an administrator moving to Romania, see our founder immigration service.
ANAF's review after registration: Annex 6
Seat (pt. 1.1, 1.2)
A lawyer's office, or a comodat of one year or less, with no secondary premises
Decided by: the seat contract and its term
Employees (pt. 2.1)
An average under 1 employee
Decided by: the staff contracts, where the business has them
Accounting (pt. 3.1)
No person designated to run the accounts
Decided by: the accountant's contract, signed before filing
Returns (pt. 4.1)
Significant inconsistencies in the returns
Decided by: the filings once trading
Administrator and capital (pt. 5.1)
A foreign administrator without Romanian tax residence, and share capital under 45,000 lei
Decided by: the administrator's tax residence and the subscribed capital
The weighting of the criteria is not in a current published text; no points are shown.
The current weighting is not in a text we read; the 2017 text of Order 2856/2017 scored the criteria against 100 points, and whether that survives is open. An SRL formed at the 500 lei minimum (Law 239/2025 art. VI(2)) with a non-resident foreign administrator meets row 5 by definition; the choice is the founders', with their tax consultant.
Problems we solve
What goes wrong with a Romanian VAT code, and the text that decides it.
"Refused because the director lives abroad"
Under art. 316(9) ANAF registers first and analyses afterwards; the norms join the administrator's tax residence to a capital line of 45,000 lei (Annex 6 pt. 5.1). We set the profile out before filing.
A threshold copied from an old page
300,000 lei applied until 31 August 2025. Since 1 September 2025 the ceiling is 395,000 lei (OG 22/2025), with no pro-rating for a company formed mid-year (art. 310(5)).
A fiscal representative nobody needed
The obligation is for a non-EU business not established in Romania (art. 316(7)); a Romanian SRL with a non-EU owner registers itself. Where one is needed, we arrange it.
A cancelled code and your customers
After a cancellation for high fiscal risk, a tax-record entry or no returns (art. 316(11)(c)-(e), (h)), the company owes output VAT without input deduction (art. 11(8)); its customers lose their deduction once the company is entered in the register of cancelled codes (art. 11(9)). Entry on ANAF's register of inactive taxpayers cancels the code too (art. 316(11)(a)).
An existing company with a VAT history
A tax-record (cazier fiscal) entry of a member holding at least 50%, the sole member or an administrator can cancel the code, as can no VAT return for 6 consecutive months (2 consecutive quarters for a quarterly filer). We check both before you buy a ready-made company in Romania.
Is your VAT code under review, cancelled, or part of a company you are buying?
We prepare the forms and check an existing company's VAT record. A hearing or a contestation is argued by a lawyer or tax consultant.
Why work with us
Group structuring and tax lead, Bucharest. Romanian, English, German.
We work beside your tax consultant, accountant and lawyer. Company formation is AML-regulated work in Romania (Law 129/2019 art. 2(l)).
From our practice
A VAT file first raises the administrator's tax residence against the capital, the seat contract's term, and whether the accountant is signed.
Frequently asked questions about VAT registration in Romania
Will ANAF refuse or cancel our VAT code because our administrator lives abroad?
Not at registration: under Fiscal Code art. 316(9) ANAF registers first and analyses risk afterwards. One Annex 6 criterion is a foreign administrator without Romanian tax residence while the share capital is under 45,000 lei. The current weighting of the criteria is not in a text we read, so we set the profile out before filing and promise no outcome.
Is the Romanian VAT threshold still 300,000 lei?
No. 300,000 lei applied until 31 August 2025. Since 1 September 2025 the small-enterprise ceiling is 395,000 lei of annual turnover (Fiscal Code art. 310(1), raised by OG 22/2025). A company formed during the year gets the full ceiling, and it must apply for VAT at the latest on the day the ceiling is exceeded.
Does ANAF check the company before it grants the VAT code, or afterwards?
Afterwards, under the current Code (art. 316(9)). At formation ANAF checks the request once the trade register sends the registration data. It then analyses the company's risk on the Annex 6 criteria and can cancel the code for high fiscal risk (art. 316(11)(h)). We found no timetable for that review in the texts we read.
What makes ANAF treat a new company as high fiscal risk?
The Annex 6 criteria: a seat under a comodat of one year or less, or at a lawyer's office, with no secondary premises; under one employee on average; no accountant or CECCAR contract; significant inconsistencies in returns; a foreign administrator without Romanian tax residence with share capital under 45,000 lei. Their current weighting is not in a text we read.
What happens to our customers and our input VAT if the code is cancelled?
For the period of cancellation the company still owes output VAT but cannot deduct input VAT (Fiscal Code art. 11(8)). Customers buying from a company entered in the cancelled register cannot deduct that VAT either (art. 11(9)). Re-registration is available on request once the company no longer presents high fiscal risk (art. 316(12)(e)).
Do we need a fiscal representative if our Romanian SRL has a non-EU owner?
No. A Romanian SRL registers for VAT in its own name, whoever owns it. A fiscal representative is mandatory for a business not established in the EU that must register in Romania, and optional for an EU business (Fiscal Code art. 316(7); VAT norms pt. 88(7)). Where one is needed, we arrange the appointment.
We sell services only to EU businesses and stay under the ceiling: do we need a VAT number?
Not normal registration, but an art. 317 special code before the first service supplied or received under reverse charge, or before taxable intra-EU acquisitions above EUR 10,000 (34,000 lei). The special code does not make the company a normal VAT payer (art. 317(10)). Whether that route fits is decided with the company's tax consultant.
How long does VAT registration take, and is there a state fee?
We found no official time for the VAT certificate, and no state fee, in the texts we read. The registrar's one working day is the statute's term only (Law 265/2022 art. 105(1), 2022 text), and the 45-day general term for a request (Fiscal Procedure Code art. 77) is our reading for a later application.
Can a new SRL register for VAT from its first day?
Yes. The VAT section of the fiscal registration request is filed with the company's ONRC application, and VAT registration is then valid from the date of registration in the trade register (Fiscal Code art. 316(11)(a)). ANAF communicates the VAT certificate no earlier than the registration certificate; its risk analysis follows registration.
What is the VAT registration threshold in Romania in 2026, and does a company formed mid-year get a smaller one?
The threshold is 395,000 lei of annual turnover (Fiscal Code art. 310(1)), in force since 1 September 2025. A company formed during the year gets the full ceiling, not a pro-rated one (art. 310(5)). It applies for registration at the latest on the day the ceiling is exceeded (art. 310(6)), or ANAF registers it ex officio.
What is a VAT number in Romania, and what does the VAT registration certificate show?
A Romanian VAT code carries the prefix RO (Fiscal Code art. 318(1)). ANAF assigns the company's CUI on the data the trade register sends (Law 265/2022 art. 126(2)) and draws up the VAT registration certificate showing the registration date and the code. Changes to the registration data are notified within 15 days (art. 316(18)).
What is VAT registration for?
A VAT-registered company charges VAT on its supplies and deducts the VAT on its purchases. A small enterprise under the exemption deducts no input VAT and may not show VAT on its invoices (Fiscal Code art. 310(10)). Once registered, the company files a VAT return and pays by the 25th of the month after each tax period (art. 323(1), 326(1)).
How can a customer check a Romanian VAT number?
Through VIES, the European Commission's check of EU VAT numbers, which only tax administrations issue. In Romania, ANAF's registers of registered and cancelled VAT codes are public, and a cancelled code enters the cancelled register within 3 days of the decision's communication (Fiscal Code art. 316(15)).
What is the VAT rate in Romania?
The standard rate is 21% and the reduced rate 11%, both since 1 August 2025 (Fiscal Code art. 291, as amended by Law 141/2025). The standard rate was 19% from 1 January 2017 to 31 July 2025. Which supplies take the reduced rate is set out in our VAT rates guide and settled with the company's tax consultant.
When does a Romanian company selling online to EU consumers charge their VAT?
Above EUR 10,000 a year (46,337 lei) of distance sales and e-services to EU consumers, the customer's state's VAT applies (art. 2781); a company seated in Romania can use the OSS union scheme (art. 315). Below it this year and last, the supplier's state applies unless the company opts for the customer's, binding for at least two calendar years.
Ask for your VAT registration plan
Tell us whether the company is in formation, already registered or not established in Romania. We reply Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 18:00 Bucharest time.