Rabla Plus program – legal entities

In the Official Gazette (Part I) no.110 of February 3, 2022 was published the MMAP Order no.179 / 2022 on amending the annex to the Order of the Minister of Environment, Waters and Forests no.323 / 2020 for the approval of the Program reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in transport, by promoting clean and energy efficient road transport vehicles, 2020-2024.

According to the recently published normative act, the terms and expressions below are defined as follows:

new vehicle – any car, light van or light truck, any quad bike or electric motorcycle that has never been registered, with plug-in hybrid electric propulsion system, pure electric or hydrogen fuel cell ; Also, the new vehicle is considered any car, light van or light truck / special vehicle or any quadricycle, with hybrid electric propulsion system (plug-in), pure electric or with hydrogen fuel cell, which cumulatively meets the following conditions:
is registered for the first time no more than 6 months ago, inclusive, from the date of sale and does not exceed 6,000 km inclusive;

– the registration is on the name of the validated manufacturer, respectively of the working point / agent / authorized partner, and the vehicle was used for DRIVE-TEST / DEMO activities;

– is marketed by the validated manufacturer, respectively by the working point / authorized agent / partner, declared in the validation request, as the first owner; or one that cumulatively meets the following conditions:

– has been technically registered at most once in another Member State, without the right to drive on public roads, exclusively for carrying out the operations necessary for importation by the validated manufacturer, in order to be marketed through the program;

– was imported by the manufacturer validated exclusively for sale on the Romanian market and has 0 km on the date of sale through the program;

– has been deleted from the records of the competent authorities of the Member State in which the technical registration was carried out;

hybrid electric vehicle – the hybrid vehicle which, in order to ensure its mechanical propulsion, takes energy from two stored energy sources, mounted on the vehicle: a consumable fuel, respectively a device for storing electricity (for example: battery, capacitor, flywheel / generator, etc. ) which has an external power supply – plug-in;
pure electric vehicle – any car, light van, light truck or quad bike, powered by a rechargeable electric motor powered by rechargeable batteries, powered by an external source of electricity, classified as a zero emission vehicle;
hydrogen fuel cell vehicle – any vehicle belonging to category M1 or N1, as defined according to Regulation (EU) 2018/858, or belonging to category L6e or L7e, as defined according to Regulation (EU) no. 168/2013, powered by a fuel cell that converts chemical energy from hydrogen into electricity, to propel the vehicle;;
used vehicle – any car, minibus, light van or light truck / light truck, which cumulatively meets the following:

– is registered in Romania or, as the case may be, is registered according to the procedures specific to the institution in the system of defense, public order and national security;

– contains cumulatively the essential components (engine, transmission, running gear, body, chassis, as well as the electronic equipment for managing the functions of the vehicle and the catalytic converter device, if these have been provided from the manufacture);

– has at the date of enrollment in the program a seniority greater than or equal to 6 years from the year of first registration in Romania, except for the one owned by an administrative-territorial unit or a public institution. If the year of registration registered in the identity card is prior to the year of manufacture, the year of manufacture is considered the year of registration;

beneficiary – natural person or legal person, of public or private law, or the entity without legal personality or professional organization that is organized and carries out its activity in one of the forms of exercising the liberal profession, including the institution of the defense system, order public and national security, which purchased a new vehicle under the program;

Conditions for granting the eco-label to the legal entity

The following categories of Romanian legal entities, of public or private law, with professional headquarters in Romania benefit from the eco-label:

the administrative-territorial unit, including the administrative-territorial subdivision of the municipality;
the educational unit or institution, state or private;
the public institution, including the research-development institute established as a public institution, as well as the institution from the system of defense, public order and national security;
non-governmental organization;
the unit belonging to a religious cult recognized in Romania;
the economic operator, including the research-development institute that carries out its activity in economic regime;
the professional law firm with limited liability;
the medical-sanitary units established according to the provisions of the Companies Law no. 31/1990, republished, with subsequent amendments and completions;
entities without legal personality: authorized natural person, individual enterprise and family enterprise;
professional organizations that are organized and carry out their activity in one of the forms of exercising the liberal profession, according to the special legal provisions;
other legal persons, of public law or of private law.

The legal entity benefits from the eco-label only if it cumulatively meets the following conditions:

obtained from the AFM the approval of the acceptance file;
registered with a validated manufacturer in order to purchase a new vehicle, obtaining the registration note and the financing contract;
handed over the used vehicle to an authorized collector, according to the provisions of this guide;
the used vehicle was removed from the traffic records, according to the provisions of this guide;
presented to the validated manufacturer information regarding the destruction and deregistration of the used vehicle, according to the provisions of this guide;
purchases the new vehicle from the validated manufacturer that issued the registration note.

According to O.MMAP 179/2022, the applicant who meets the following eligibility criteria can participate in the program at the time of submitting the acceptance file:

acts in its own name;
has fulfilled the obligations to pay taxes, duties, fines and contributions to the state budget, local budgets, the budget of the Environmental Fund, according to the legal provisions in force;
is not registered with deeds sanctioned by the financial legislation;
is not in a state of insolvency or bankruptcy, is not in the process of judicial reorganization, dissolution, liquidation, dissolution, deregistration, closure, including operational closure, is not under special administration, has not suspended or restricted activities, including the economic ones, are not in another similar situation legally regulated, as the case may be; is not the subject of legal proceedings for the above-mentioned situations or for any other similar situation;
carries out economic activities on the territory of Romania and has not been convicted of crimes against the environment by a final court decision;
has not been and is not subject to a procedure for the recovery of State aid declared illegal and incompatible with the common market, as a result of a decision of the Competition Council or the European Commission, or, if it has been the subject of to such a decision, it has already been executed and the claim has been fully recovered;
does not have the main activity and does not carry out activities in one of the sectors provided in Annex 1 to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in compliance with Regulation (EU) no. 1,407 / 2013; therefore, the vehicle to be purchased through the program will not be used for carrying out these activities nor for road transport of goods;
the total value of the de minimis aid from which he benefited for a period of 3 consecutive years (2 previous fiscal years and the fiscal year during which he submits the acceptance file in the program), cumulated with the value of the financial allocation granted based on the de minimis scheme, does not exceed the equivalent in lei, at the date of submission of the acceptance file, of 200,000 euros (or 100,000 euros, if it operates in the road freight transport sector). Where the applicant has the status of sole proprietorship, as defined in Article 2 (2) of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 1,407 / 2013, the total value of the de minimis aid will be calculated by summing up the de minimis aid granted for a period of 3 consecutive years to the enterprises that are part of the respective sole enterprise;
has not obtained and is not in the process of obtaining financing through projects or programs financed from other public funds, including Community funds, for the purchase of the same vehicle to be purchased through the program, except for operations financed by European funds related to cohesion policy .

The acceptance file must include the following documents:

– the financing application form provided in annex no. 6 to this guide, completed in full by word processing, signed by the legal representative or by his proxy;

– the fiscal record certificate issued on the name of the legal person by the specialized territorial body of the Ministry of Finance, not older than 30 days at the date of submission of the acceptance file;

– the fiscal attestation certificate regarding the payment obligations to the state budget, issued on the name of the applicant legal entity by the specialized territorial body of the Ministry of Finance, not older than 30 days at the date of submission of the acceptance file;

– the certificate of fiscal attestation regarding the local taxes and fees and other revenues of the local budget, issued on the name of the applicant by the local public authority in whose territorial area the applicant has its headquarters, not older than 30 days at the date of submission of the file acceptance;

– the fiscal attestation certificate regarding the obligations to the Environmental Fund, issued on the name of the applicant legal entity by AFM, not older than 30 days at the date of submission of the acceptance file;

– the declaration on own responsibility regarding the de minimis aids obtained in the last 3 years, respectively 2 previous fiscal years and the fiscal year during which the applicant enrolls in the program, completed by word processing, signed by the legal representative / empowered, according to the form provided in annex no. . 7 to this guide. Where the applicant has the status of sole proprietorship, as defined in Article 2 (2) of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 1,407 / 2013, the total value of the de minimis aid will be calculated by summing up the de minimis aid granted for a period of 3 consecutive years to the enterprises that are part of the respective sole enterprise;

– self-declaration regarding the main activity, the sectors in which the applicant actually carries out his activity, as well as the activity for which the new vehicle to be purchased within the program will be used, completed by word processing, signed by the legal representative or his proxy, according to the form provided in annex no. 8 to this guide.

Submission of the acceptance file

We mention that, in the analysis process, the Commission may request, only once for the same reason, the remedy / clarification of the submitted documentation for reasons related to: the forms provided in the guide and / or the documents that are illegible, which are presented in a different form than requested. or which contain deletions or changes, as well as incomplete ones.

The submitted documents will certify the fulfillment of the eligibility criteria at the date of submitting the file.

In the situation provided for in paragraph (2), the AFM publishes weekly, in order to remedy, on its website, the list of applicants proposed for rejection with the possibility of remedy; also communicate to them by e-mail the possibility of remediation.

Within 10 working days from the date of publication of the list, the applicant has the possibility to submit the requested documents, in order to remedy the reasons that may lead to the rejection of the funding application.

In order to remedy the reasons that may lead to the rejection of the financing application, the documents necessary to complete / clarify the acceptance file will be sent to AFM according to the procedure published on the institution’s website.

Rejected from the acceptance file are because of:

the absence or exit from the validity period of a document;
failure to meet an eligibility criterion;
failure to submit documents for remediation within the time limit set in paragraph (5).

If the analysis of the acceptance file shows a reason for rejection and a reason for rejection with the possibility of remediation, the file will be rejected.

Depending on the observance of the conditions provided in the guide, the Analysis Commission proposes the acceptance / rejection of the files, including after the application of the remediation procedure. The AFM Steering Committee approves the files proposed for approval and approves the list of files proposed for rejection.

The AFM Advisory Committee approves the financing of the files approved by the Steering Committee.

It is important to note that the approval of the financing of the applicants who are subject to the de minimis aid regulations is made within the limits of the funds destined for them and provided by the de minimis scheme.

The lists of accepted / rejected applicants are published on the AFM website.

The results of the analysis process are communicated to the applicants by e-mail.

An interesting aspect is the fact that the acceptance files are approved according to the provisions of this article, continuously, for the entire duration of the program, within the budget allocated to it.

Disposal of the used vehicle to the legal entity

Under the program, the applicant who does not own a used vehicle can register with a validated manufacturer in order to purchase a new vehicle, under the benefit of the eco-label, provided that the transferor assumes in his favor the spent.

The assumption by the assignor in favor of the applicant is made by signing the declaration from the registration note, provided in the annex to the financing contract.

Prior to signing the declaration, the transferor shall submit to the validated manufacturer the documents referred to in Article 21 (3) (d) -f), which shall be added to the applicant’s participation file. Assuming the assignment in favor of the applicant is irrevocable, unless the applicant waives the purchase of the new vehicle.

The transferor has no right to obtain the eco-label or to issue claims of any kind to AFM or the validated manufacturer.

AFM and the validated manufacturer are not liable to the applicant for any damage caused to him by the transferor. Please note that the assignment by the assignor in favor of two or more applicants with the same used vehicle is excluded.

Failure to comply with this condition will result in the cancellation of all financing contracts and enrollment marks thus obtained and the exclusion of applicants from the program, without the possibility of re-enrolling them.

Completion of the financing contract and obtaining the registration note by the legal entity

After its inclusion in the list of accepted / rejected applicants, the accepted applicant shall register within 60 days of approval, except for 2024, when the deadline is November 25, for any of the producers who have concluded a contract with AFM.

Failure to comply with the deadline is considered a waiver of funding. The exception is the accepted applicant who is affected by the regulations in force in the field of public procurement, who can register with a validated manufacturer only after all procedures, under the conditions and deadlines imposed by law.

The applicant’s registration consists of:

identification of the applicant on the basis of the documents provided for in paragraph (3);
verification of its inclusion in the list of applicants accepted by the AFM and correspondence with the person registered in the registration certificate and the identity card of the used vehicle; if, since the date of issue of the registration certificate and / or the identity card of the used vehicle, there have been changes regarding the legal form of organization or certain identification attributes of the applicant (name, address of the headquarters), these are not highlighted in the documents of the used vehicle, the issued document / documents will be / will be requested according to the legal provisions and from the content of which the modifications made will result;
identification of the used vehicle and ascertaining the conditions regarding its age and registration, based on the documents presented;
the introduction in the application of the information regarding: the owner of the used vehicle, the applicant for financing and the used vehicle;
the automatic generation of the financing contract and of the registration note and their issuance to the applicant. For the purchase of each new vehicle, a single registration note and a financing contract are issued, regardless of whether two used vehicles are handed over for scrapping.

For registration, the accepted applicant shall submit to the validated manufacturer a participation file containing the following documents:

the identity document of the legal representative / the identity document of the person empowered / delegated / designated to register the applicant, to hand over the used vehicle for scrapping, to deregister the used vehicle and to purchase the new vehicle, within validity, in copy;
the power of attorney / delegation / designation of the person who registers the applicant, delivers the used vehicle for scrapping, deletes the used vehicle and purchases the new vehicle, in copy, if applicable;
the founding act / certificate of registration in the Register of associations and foundations / certificate of registration in the trade register, in certified copy “according to the original”;
the registration certificate of the used vehicle, in a certified copy “according to the original”;
the identity card of the used vehicle, in a certified copy “according to the original”;
the proving document issued by the community public service for driving licenses and registration of territorially competent vehicles, in a certified copy “according to the original”, in case the registration certificate or the identity card of the used vehicle does not show the year of manufacture , the year of the first registration in Romania and / or the category of the used vehicle, if applicable.

At the moment of completing the financing contract, the accepted applicant will be issued the registration note.

It is excluded the registration of the accepted applicant, at the same time and with the same used vehicle, at 2 or more validated manufacturers. The registration made with the non-observance of this condition entails the cancellation of all the financing contracts and of the registration notes thus obtained and the exclusion of the applicant from the program, without the possibility of his re-registration.

The registration note is valid for 300 days from the date of issue, except for the year 2024, when its validity cannot exceed the date of November 25. If the applicant intends to hand over for disposal two used vehicles, the information of both vehicles must be included in the registration note at the time of its issuance.

The applicant who has withdrawn his / her participation file may once again enroll in the program, at the same or another validated producer, under the conditions provided in this guide.

Within the validity term of the registration note, the registered applicant proceeds to:

a) handing over the used vehicle to any authorized collector, in order to scrap and issue the destruction certificate;

b) deregistration of the used vehicle from the traffic records and obtaining the deregistration certificate;

c) the transmission to the validated manufacturer of the information regarding the scrapping and erasure of the used vehicle.

Acquisition of the new vehicle by the legal entity

Within the validity term of the registration note, the validated manufacturer and the beneficiary proceed to:

a) carrying out the formalities of sale-purchase and delivery-receipt of the new vehicle;
b) the issuance and introduction of the invoice in the application, as well as the issuance of the certificate of conformity, by the manufacturer.

Legal basis:

Order 179/2022 on amending the annex to the Order of the Minister of Environment, Waters and Forests no. 323/2020 for the approval of the Financing Guide of the Program on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in transport, by promoting clean and energy efficient road transport vehicles, 2020-2024;
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