The legislative changes made to the Fiscal Procedure Code that regulates the conduct of fiscal controls, adopted through Emergency Ordinance no. 188/2022, began to take effect from January 1, 2026, after their application had been postponed by transitional provisions. Thus, the obligation to carry out the periodic risk analysis, based on which the risk class of the taxpayers, the criteria for their selection for fiscal inspection and the new rules regarding the competence of fiscal bodies is established, entered into force. The aforementioned regulations aim to increase transparency and predictability for taxpayers, providing better visibility on fiscal risks and how fiscal controls are carried out.
Therefore, the tax administration is obliged, from the beginning of this year, to periodically carry out the risk analysis, to determine in which tax risk class/subclass each taxpayer falls and to transmit this information to him, at the taxpayer's requestby means that provide proof of receipt (except in situations where access to this information is limited for reasons of general interest). This regulation aims to increase taxpayers' awareness of the tax risk class in which they fall and, implicitly, of the need to adopt preventive/corrective measures, of voluntary tax compliance, in order to avoid, at an early stage, a possible tax audit.
It is important, however, to mention that the tax authorities' obligation to communicate to taxpayers, upon request, the tax risk class or subclass established following the risk analysis could be suspended until the date of December 31, 2026according to a legislative project currently under public debate. The authorities cite, in this case, the need to complete the digitization process of the ANAF systems, which would allow the management of the high volume of requests. As such, the right of taxpayers to request this information would only be applicable starting with January 1, 2027.
With regard to the authority that can initiate the fiscal inspection, the new regulations propose to focus on a centralized organization of the control activity. In this sense, starting from January 1, 2026, the fiscal inspection will be able to be carried out by any inspection structure within ANAFnot only by the administrative body. Thus, the competence of the tax inspection authorities to carry out is enshrined controls throughout the country in the case of receivables administered by the central fiscal authority. It is also relevant to mention that, through GEO no. 188/2022, the legislator eliminated the possibility of delegating the authority to carry out the fiscal inspection between the central fiscal bodies.
Therefore, the mechanism for selecting taxpayers for the fiscal inspection is reset on the basis of the risk analysis, and, in the case of claims administered by the central fiscal body, the selection for the inspection will be made at the level of the ANAF central apparatus, not within the territorial structures, also based on the risk analysis.
Exception to risk analysis, limited
On the other handas an exception to the rule of selecting taxpayers based on risk analysis, in the case of fiscal receivables administered by the central fiscal body, it is entered the possibility of randomly selecting taxpayers for the inspection, up to a maximum of 10% of the total taxpayers selected annually. The terms and conditions are to be established by order of the ANAF president. Exceeding this threshold is qualified as a disciplinary offense, and the head of the tax inspection structure is obliged to order measures to sanction the responsible persons.
Similarly, the possibility of randomly selecting a natural persons to check their personal tax situationunder the same conditions and limits, with the establishment of the procedure by order of the president of ANAF and with the disciplinary sanction in case of exceeding the ceiling provided by law.
Overall, the changes made by GEO no. 188/2022, whose entry into force was postponed to January 1, 2026, strengthens the role of risk analysis in substantiating fiscal controls, clarifies the competence of fiscal inspection bodies and introduces selection mechanisms which, although they include a random component, are intended to ensure a more predictable and transparent framework for taxpayers. By possibility access to information regarding the fiscal risk class and by centralizing the control planning process, taxpayers benefit from better visibility on exposure to tax controls and on the competent authorities in the field.
Last but not least, the changes contribute to the modernization and efficiency of ANAF, by aligning with international trends in fiscal matters, in the sense of allocating fiscal inspection resources from the central level, in order to deal with significant fiscal risks, while promoting measures to encourage voluntary compliance among taxpayers.
Opinion material by Ștefan Mihărtescu, Managing Associate, and Tatiana Ioana Pluteanu, Senior Associate, Reff & Associations | Deloitte Legal
Article supported by Deloitte Romania
