Optional registration of rental contracts

Although the obligation to register the rental contract with the Tax Authority (ANAF) does not exist since last year (2018), there is, however, a great advantage for the renter when registering the contract with Tax Authority (ANAF).

Thus, according to the Civil Code, the contract concluded only between the parties, not authenticated, but registered with Tax Authority (ANAF) represents the enforceable title for the payment of the rent, which means that the forced execution is obtained much easier.

Individuals and / or legal entities who wish to register with the fiscal body the contracts for assignment of the use of the goods (known more as “rental contracts”) on a house, a commercial space or a land can act the same way further.

In order to register the rental contract, the lessor, that is, the one who rents the building, must submit to the Tax Authority (ANAF) counter (headquarters).

It is important to note that for the moment, the registration of the rental contract can be done only at the counter of the fiscal body, not online, as specified in the Tax Authority (ANAF) Order no. 114/2019 for the approval of the Procedure for registering the lease agreements, as well as a model and content of the form “Application for registration of lease agreements”.

Specifically, the “Application for the registration of the lease agreements” (at the end of the article) must be submitted, together with a copy of the lease contract.

The copy of the contract must be in conformity with the original, and the conformity is carried out by the lessor, by the mention “according to the original”, accompanied by his signature.

The request for registration is completed in two copies, one of them remaining at the Tax Office, and the other copy is kept by the lessor.

By the same request, modifications or termination of the rental contract can be registered, by checking the fields “Modification” or “Termination”, as the case may be. And in these cases, the request must also be submitted at the counter (headquarters) of the Tax Office.

It is important to note that there is a difference between the obligation to register the rental contracts and the obligation to declare the income obtained on the basis of such contracts.

Thus, even if the registration of the contract with Tax Authority (ANAF) is optional, according to the Government Decision no.354 / 2018, the taxpayers must submit the unique declaration for the income obtained from the rental: “The taxpayers who obtain income from the transfer of the use of the assets from their personal patrimony have the obligation to submit to the competent fiscal body the declaration on each source of income, within 30 days from the conclusion of the contract,” specifies the normative act mentioned above.

We mention that according to an answer given recently, by Tax Authority (ANAF) on its official socialization page, regarding the unique declaration and which raises the problem of what should be completed on the form in the field that refers to the registration number of the lease, in case in which the contract was not registered, at the taxpayer’s question, the Tax Authority (ANAF) replied:

“The registration of the contract is not compulsory (…). In case that the contract is not registered, the fields “document number” and “date” are not required.

 

APPENDIX 2: REQUEST FOR REGISTRATION OF RENTAL CONTRACTS (extract from the Order of the President of the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (OpANAF) no. 114/2019):