The new changes to the micro tax regime, which are included in OUG 115/2023 (art. LIII), were recently made official – they were initially rumoured to be included in the Tax Reform Law (no. 296/2023), but in the end they were given in this separate act. They enter into force as from 1 January 2024 (Article LVII).
Here are the main measures of interest:
- An additional condition to be micro (Art. LIII, items 29, 38, 42 of the new ordinance). The list of conditions for the micro regime is supplemented by one concerning the timely submission of annual financial statements (where this obligation exists) for the previous tax year. The transition to corporate tax is made from the quarter in which the condition is not met for the previous tax year. For the micro regime to apply in 2024, balance sheets for 2023 must be filed by 31 March 2024 (i.e. with
approximately two months earlier than usual).
- Additional condition when calculating the EUR 500,000 ceiling (Art. LIII, points 30, 39). It is stipulated that the limit on the income earned is verified by taking into account both the income earned by the micro-firm and the income of the enterprises linked to it (as provided for in Law 346/2004).
- Limit on the number of micro-enterprises owned, reduced (Art. LIII, points 28, 33, 40). A partner/shareholder may also hold, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the value/number of equity securities or voting rights in only one micro-firm. The rule now is that a partner/shareholder may hold more than 25% in no more than three microfirms. Thus, in the case of more than 25% ownership in two or three micro-firms, it must be decided by 31 March of the following year which of the three micro-firms will remain subject to micro tax and the rest to corporate tax.
- The exception allowing HoReCa firms to apply the micro tax without the conditions of the regime and the mixed tax (Art. LIII, points 31, 34, 36) will disappear. This exception allowed HoReCa firms formerly paying the specific tax to opt for the micro tax from 1 January 2023 and remain there whether or not they met the conditions of the scheme. The mixed tax provision (micro tax on HoReCa income plus corporate income tax on income from other activities) is abolished. At the same time, for HoReCa firms applying the micro tax until 31 December 2023, the one-off rule is introduced, with the rule applying after the 1 January 2024 reference point.
- No tax deductions for sponsorships or cash registers (Article LIII, points 43, 44). Repeal provisions allowing (limited) deductions from the micro tax – e.g. sponsorships to ONG (non-governmental organisations) and churches or the purchase cost of cash registers put into operation (2023 is the last year in which such deductions are made). Micro-firms will automatically no longer have to file an annual declaration on sponsorships made.
- Inactive micro-firms may remain in the micro regime (Article LIII, points 36, 37). More specifically, if a micro-firm is temporarily inactive as registered in the Trade Register, it continues to pay micro tax for the entire period of inactivity. When resuming activity, the conditions must be met regarding the ownership of share capital by private persons, ownership of more than 25% of a single micro-firm by shareholders/associates, the timely submission of annual financial statements and, within 30 days of the registration of the resumption of activity in the Trade Register, the existence of at least one employee.
Important! The changes to the micro tax introduced by Law 296/2023 remain valid from 1 January 2024, even after the introduction of OUG 115/2023.