📊 Tax

Romania VAT in 2026: Rates, the 395,000 RON Threshold, and What Foreign Owners Must Know

If you own a Romanian SRL from abroad, VAT is the tax most likely to surprise you — because Romania changed both the rates and the registration threshold in 2025, and 2026 is the first full year the new numbers apply. The short version: the standard VAT rate is now 21%, the reduced rate is 11%, and your company must register for VAT once turnover passes 395,000 RON. Here is what that means in practice.

The VAT rates in 2026

Romania raised VAT from 1 August 2025 under Law 141/2025. For 2026:

• Standard rate — 21% (up from 19%): applies to most goods and services.
• Reduced rate — 11% (this single rate replaced the former 5% and 9% rates): applies to categories such as certain foods, medicines, books, hotel accommodation and restaurant services.

So when you price a product or service for the Romanian market, assume 21% unless your specific activity qualifies for the 11% rate. If in doubt, confirm the correct rate before you set prices — applying the wrong one is your company’s liability, not the customer’s.

The registration threshold: 395,000 RON

A Romanian company is not automatically a VAT payer. Below the exemption threshold you invoice without VAT and file no VAT returns. Above it, VAT registration becomes mandatory.

That threshold was raised to 395,000 RON of annual turnover (from 300,000 RON) by Government Ordinance 22/2025, effective 1 September 2025. Two things foreign owners routinely get wrong:

• The threshold is measured on turnover (revenue from your normal activity), not profit, and it is cumulative from 1 January.
• Once you cross it, you must request VAT registration — in Romania this is done by filing form 700 within 10 days of the end of the month in which you exceeded the threshold. After registration, you charge VAT and file VAT returns (form D300), monthly or quarterly.

You can also register voluntarily before reaching the threshold. That is often worthwhile if most of your customers are themselves VAT-registered businesses (the VAT you charge is neutral to them, and you get to deduct input VAT). Background: VAT registration in Romania.

An intra-EU trap: registration can be triggered early

If your SRL buys services or goods from other EU countries, you may need a VAT identification number for intra-community transactions even while below the 395,000 RON threshold — a separate, common situation for digital and e-commerce businesses buying software, ads or SaaS from EU suppliers. This does not make you a full domestic VAT payer, but it creates filing obligations (including form D390). Check this early: many foreign-owned SRLs discover it only after the first EU invoice.

What changes once you are VAT-registered

Becoming a VAT payer adds a monthly or quarterly cycle on top of your other filings:

• D300 — the VAT return, filed monthly or quarterly.
• D390 (VIES) — for months with intra-EU supplies or acquisitions.
• D394 — the domestic transactions listing, filed by month-end.
• e-Factura and SAF-T — Romania’s e-invoicing and standard audit file are mandatory anyway, but VAT data flows straight into ANAF’s systems. See e-Factura and SAF-T explained.

Because all invoice data reaches ANAF electronically, the tax authority can compare what you declare against what it already sees. Keeping your books reconciled is no longer optional housekeeping — it is how you avoid queries and audits. The full running picture is in compliance after forming your SRL.

A worked example

A UK-owned Romanian SRL selling consulting services reaches 406,000 RON of cumulative turnover in October 2026:

• Until October it invoiced without VAT; clients paid exactly the invoice amount.
• After crossing the threshold, it files form 700, registers, and starts adding 21% VAT on invoices.
• For business clients who are VAT-registered, the 21% is neutral — they deduct it. For consumer (B2C) clients, the final price effectively rises by 21% unless the company absorbs it by cutting its base fee.
• In return, the SRL now deducts the VAT on its own costs — software subscriptions, hardware, rent with VAT.

The lesson: for B2B businesses, becoming a VAT payer is rarely painful; for B2C businesses with low costs, it can genuinely compress margins. Plan the transition rather than stumbling into it.

How this sits next to your other taxes

VAT is separate from the taxes on your company’s income and profit distribution. In 2026, alongside VAT, remember: the micro-company tax is 1% of revenue (up to the 100,000 EUR threshold), and the dividend tax is 16% on dividends paid from 1 January 2026 (see dividends from a Romanian SRL). For the full filing rhythm, see Romania tax deadlines 2026.

Key takeaways

• Standard VAT 21%, reduced VAT 11% in 2026 (Law 141/2025, in force since 1 August 2025).
• Registration threshold: 395,000 RON of annual turnover (GO 22/2025, since 1 September 2025).
• On crossing it: file form 700 within 10 days of month-end, then charge VAT and file D300.
• Buying from EU suppliers can trigger VAT-ID obligations below the threshold.
• Rates and thresholds are the 2026 rules; Romanian tax law changes often — confirm current values before acting.

Let an English-speaking accountant handle Romanian VAT

Our accounting service in Romania monitors your turnover against the 395,000 RON threshold, handles registration, and files every VAT return on time — so VAT never becomes the tax that catches you out. Start here.