Romania loses at least EUR 9 billion each year from value-added tax (VAT), mainly due to fraud, European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kovesi said in an interview for Digi24 on Friday. She cited the latest European Commission (EC) report on VAT collection deficits, released in December 2024, which states that Romania lost EUR 8.4 billion in 2022 alone due to uncollected VAT. According to the report, the shortfall stems primarily from VAT fraud, tax evasion, miscalculations, and other factors. Kovesi noted that the Romanian authorities have not prioritized tackling VAT-related fraud. The issue has resurfaced in public debate amid ongoing negotiations over reducing the budget deficit, the formation of a new government, and recent public statements by newly elected President Nicusor Dan, who said that his new government does not intend to implement a standard VAT rate increase. To return to its budget deficit target of 7.5% of GDP, agreed with the EC, Romania needs to secure RON 30 billion (approximately EUR 6 billion). Romanian National Bank Director Eugen Radulescu, commented on Digi24: “We fail to collect 30% of VAT, yet we are discussing other ways to raise revenue while bleeding cash. Bulgaria has around 7% uncollected VAT and is entering the eurozone. Meanwhile, we’re standing by and just watching.”
President Nicușor Dan stated on Monday, November 10, that Romania meets all the conditions to become an innovation and production hub in the defense industry in Southeast Europe. “Romania meets all the conditions to become an innovation and production hub in the defense industry in Southeast Europe. Why? First of all, because it has a […]
Officials in the mountain resort town of Râșnov, central Romania, have issued an urban planning certificate for the transformation of a Boeing 737 airplane into a premium accommodation unit. The plane will be placed near the famous Bran Castle, and organizers expect it to become a tourist attraction. “The project is located in the Pănicel […]
Traffic (Jaful Secolului), a Romania-Belgium-Netherlands co-production directed by Belgian-Romanian director Teodora Ana Mihai from a screenplay by Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu, has received the award for best film at the Tertio Millennio International Film Festival in Rome. The jury of the festival noted in its motivation the film's "ability to combine formal rigor and human […]
The Romanian Justice Ministry advanced a legislative initiative according to which femicide could be punished with life imprisonment. The proposal comes after numerous women were killed this year by former partners, despite protection orders. The debate about femicide in Romania was brought back to the fore after another tragedy took place on Saturday, November 9, […]
Cultural center Apollo111, located in downtown Bucharest’s Universul Palace, has announced the program of arthouse films Apollo111 Cinema. The performance venue of Apollo 111 has been refurbished and endowed for professional film screenings. It will run a weekly program of contemporary and classic auteur films, meetings with filmmakers, and an experimental area, meant to “explore […]
Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer Xiaomi announced the official opening of its first own store in Romania, in Bucharest, inside the ParkLake shopping center, on the ground floor, on November 22. The new store will have a surface area of 150 square meters and will bring to the public the latest smartphones, accessories, and smart devices […]
