Photo: Bogdan Cârpăveche, director of PWC Romania
The fiscal changes, included in the second package for which the Government has assumed responsibility, marks a significant change in the tax regime applicable to natural persons, especially in terms of investment revenues and high value goods. The proposed provisions show a tendency to return to the taxation of 16% from the 10% introduced in 2018. For the moment, the increase of the share concerns the investment revenues (except for the interest income for which the 10% share remains) and those from the virtual currency transfer. The return to the tax rate of 16% for dividends, earnings from the transfer of securities, derivative financial instruments and virtual currency will lead to an increase in fiscal task for investors. In addition, the increase of the tax on immovable and mobile goods of high value, in conjunction with the adjustment of the taxable base, will significantly expand the number of taxpayers concerned. In this context, it is essential for individuals to re-evaluate their investment structure and the assets portfolio to effectively anticipate and manage the fiscal impact of new regulations.
Specifically, the tax of 16% will apply to dividends income distributed to natural persons starting with January 2026 and earnings from the transfer of securities, derivative financial instruments or from the transfer of investment gold made starting with 2026. Whether the income is obtained from Romania or from abroad (in the case of the natural persons, the tax will be increasing) for investors.
Impacted will also be the earnings from the transfer of securities and operations with derivative financial instruments made through resident intermediaries for which the tax withheld will increase from 1% to 3% if the securities/derivative financial instruments are alienated within a period of more than 365 days from the value of 3%, if the value of 6%/ Derivatives are alienated in a period of less than 365 days. Although the share of the winnings made by resident brokers (3% or 6%) is still significantly lower than the 16% tax applicable to the other transfers (direct transfers of shares/social parts or by foreign brokers), as the losses cannot be recovered in the case of transfers made by the resident brokers, registered taxes.
Although they are not classified in the category of investment revenues, but in the category of revenues from other sources, the earnings from the virtual currency transfer will enter, starting with 2026, under the increase of 16%tax. Unlike investment income, in the case of losses from the virtual currency transfer it is not possible to recover from the same nature or earnings from the transfer of securities or other operations with financial instruments.
At the level of the region, the 16% tax rate of capital and dividends are below the level of the tax applied in countries such as Poland (19%), Estonia (22%) or Latvia (25.5%) but above 15% applicable in Hungary and Lithuania or from Bulgaria (5% for dividends and 10% for capital). Next, the share of investment income tax in Romania is inferior to that of Austria (27.5%) and Switzerland (35%), two of the destinations preferred by Romanian residents for placing investments abroad (in these cases, the tax rates can be reduced on the basis of the conventions to avoid double taxes with the two states).
In the same order of ideas, the increase, starting with the year 2026, must be considered, of the special tax on real estate and furniture of high value (residential buildings with a taxable value greater than 2.5 million lei and cars with a purchase value greater than 375,000 lei). In this case, the impact will be generated on the one hand by the tripling of the tax rate from 0.3% to 0.9% and, on the other hand, by the significant adjustment of the taxable base for the residential buildings owned by natural persons. Thus, as the special tax of 0.9% applies to the difference between the taxable value of the building and the non -taxable ceiling of 2.5 million lei, it is expected that the increase of approximately 170% of the taxable value for the residential buildings leads to the increase of the number of natural persons who will have the obligation to declare and to pay annually, until the end of September.
Article supported by PWC Romania
