“Without a rab, the state sabotages its own economy.” VAT receipts were double the investment in the program, in 2024

The manufacturers and importers of the Crotic car in hard terms the indecision of the governors regarding the Rabla program, arguing that through these delays, the state sabotages its own economy, especially since last year the VAT receipts were double compared to the state investment.

The indecision of the governors on the Rabla program sabotages the state's economy

The Association of Manufacturers and Importers of Automobile in Romania (APIA) draws attention, firmly, to the serious consequences generated by the way the authorities managed the Rabla Auto 2025 program. After the initial suspension of the program, months of hesitation, contradictory public statements and unofficial announcements, without decisions implemented and without the real consultation in the industry followed. This decision -making chaos affects not only companies in the car sector and consumers, but also the Romanian state, which risks becoming the main loser through economic losses and failure of sustainability.

It is essential to emphasize that, during this period since the installation of the new executive, the authorities did not show a real desire to consult the specialists in the automotive industry and profile associations, such as APIA to identify practical, efficient solutions. Although we have constantly demonstrated over the years, that we are a technical and objective partner of the state institutions, APIA has not really been involved in making recent decisions regarding the suspension of the Rabla Auto 2025 program or its resumption in another formula. The lack of an authentic dialogue between the government and the specialized environment in Romania, despite some so -called “working meetings”, risks amplifying the negative effects on the industry and consumers and even the state budget that we try to “save”.

Without Rabla, the state sabotages its own economy

The Rabla Auto 2025 suspension comes after a record delay in the launch of the program – over 5 months – and a chaotic stage of sessions, which has created confusion, frustration and uncertainty among the beneficiaries. The announcement of the suspension, made less than 24 hours before the start of the stage intended for individuals, compromises the confidence in the continuity and predictability of public policies in Romania.

APIA analysis on the impact of a possible cancellation of the program, based on the market data, on the evolution of Rabla in recent years and on increasing the value of the ecotichets announced for 2025, shows that the Rabla Auto program is both a crucial tool in the process of reducing pollution and increasing safety in traffic, by cassing over 1,010,000 years, and over 1,010,000 years economic.

In 2024, the Romanian state invested 288 million lei in Rabla Plus, out of a total budget of 1 billion lei, which was not exhausted, but received over 664 million lei only from the VAT related to the 10,707 funded electric cars, respectively 1,493 plug-in hybrid cars. It resulted in a net profit of 375 million lei – without including other income from taxes, insurance, registration or jobs.

In parallel, through the classic rabbis, the state offered 300 million lei in the form of subsidies for 17,534 cars and received, on the other hand, about 355 million lei from VAT, with a net profit of over 55 million lei.

In total, only from the VAT generated by the two programs, without including other income from taxes, insurance, registration or jobs, the state received over 1 billion lei. In 2025, this source of income is seriously endangered, in the context in which the Rabla Auto program is in a prolonged blockage: there are only television statements of the Minister of the Environment, Water and Forests, without any concrete legislative action and without an official relaunch calendar. The lack of clarity and predictability risks canceling the financial and environmental benefits of the program.

“Unfortunately, without realizing, the Romanian state risks becoming the main loser of this renewal race, through the blockage created by the lack of official decisions and concrete legislative actions regarding the Rabla Auto 2025 program. We are not just about losing consumers' confidence and companies in government coherence, but also for a moment, but also for a moment. Economy. explains Dan Vardie, APIA president.

It is important to remember that the Rabla program is not a help given to the automotive industry, but an instrument of public interest in the protection of the environment and the quality of the life of the citizens, by withdrawing from the circulation of old, polluting and uncertain cars and replacing them with modern vehicles, with low emissions, equipped with current technologies and systems. The main objective of the Rabla Auto program is the increase of road safety and the reduction of pollution, in accordance with the European standards and commitments assumed by our country, and its organization is based on funds from CO2 emission certificates, intended to be used exclusively in environmental projects, as stated by Diana Buzoianu, the Minister of the Environment, the Minister of the Environment, the Minister

The reality of 2025 is alarming: in the first 6 months of the year, the registration of new cars decreased by -21.8% compared to the similar period of last year, according to APIA analysis. The segment of pure electric cars -which should have benefited the state support most, according to the objectives assumed at national and European level of Romania -is collapsed by -44.3% between January and June 2025, compared to the same interval of 2024, which places us on the penultimate place in terms of electromobility (according to the report made by the European Builders). And the European market, in the first half of 2025, registers a slight decrease, of -0.9% in the total car registration compared to 2024, and the average of pure electric car registration is +24.9% compared to 2024, according to the same report.

Romania is dangerously moving away from PNRR goals

In parallel with the dramatic decreases in the sale of new cars, the used market blooms: with a jump of +19.5% in the first six months of the year compared to 2024, the registration of vehicles rolled reach 193,549 units, compared to 161,955 in the same period of 2024. Technologically exceeded, which do not comply with even the minimum ADAS standards, now mandatory at European level and which endanger both the lives of passengers and the other traffic participants.

Against the background of these imbalances, APIA warns that Romania is dangerous from the objectives assumed by PNRR, Green Deal, the “Fit for 55” package and the EU strategy for “Vision Zero” (the goal of zero deaths and serious injuries on European roads by 2050).

Also, according to the National Plan of Resilization and Resility (PNRR), Romania has committed to implement, starting January 1, 2026, a new system of taxation based on the “pollutor pays” principle, in line with the practices of the other Member States of the European Union and with the European Directives on Green Transition.

This mechanism is essential for programs such as Classic Rabla and Rabla Plus to work efficiently and coherently. The subsidization of new cars, with fewer emissions, must be doubled by a clear fiscal discouragement of the old and polluting, to ensure the balance between incentives and responsibility.

In support of this objective, APIA has developed a concrete proposal of car fiscal reform, which takes into account both the environmental requirements and the social realities in Romania. The proposal is based on the principle of “the pollutor pays”, being structured according to the engine cylinder, the age of the vehicle and the level of CO₂ emissions, but also includes a social component, adapted to the taxpayer's level of income. Thus, the system would be not only environmentally friendly and efficient, but also fair.

According to APIA estimates, the implementation of this mechanism could bring about 17 billion extra lei to the state budget, representing a sustainable source of financing for public investments, infrastructure and the transition to clean mobility.

“Unfortunately, the current executive maintains an approach characterized by promises without materialization regarding the car sector and sustainable mobility. Although, officially, it has been stated that in July a decision will be made on the” package 2 “which should have contained the conclusion regarding the future of the Rabla Auto 2025 program, the reality shows that only the level of the average, official documents and concrete actions. Moreover, the information publicly communicated in the press and social media, including by the Minister of Environment, Water and Forests, is unofficial, incomplete messages, targeting only certain sides of the session for natural persons, while there is no clarification regarding sessions for legal and UATs, two stages already started by AFM, where the procedures were submitted.

Each category of beneficiaries plays an essential role in the efficiency of the program, and the truncated resumption of Rabla Auto 2025, in a formula different from the provisions of the assumed financing guide, will generate major negative effects, amplified by the extremely short time remaining until the end of 2025 for the eventual resumption of the program. “said Dan Vardie, APIA president.

In conclusion, APIA asks the authorities to restart the Rabla Auto 2025 program and to take responsibility not only for the economic and social stability of a strategic industry, but also for the protection of the environment and the reduction of pollution in the big cities. The auto industry contributes directly to the transition of Romania to clean mobility and the achievement of the European objectives regarding the reduction of emissions and the increase of road safety. “Public policies already assumed cannot be adjusted from one month to another, depending on political crises or temporary constraints. Romania needs predictability and sustainable measures to stimulate the confidence of all the actors in the market – from citizen and local authorities, to investors and producers – to build a safer and less polluting future ”support APIA representatives.