Mesures économiques et budgétaires pendant l'état d'urgence nationale

Emergency Ordinance no. 29/2020 regarding some economic and fiscal-budgetary measures (Official Gazette no. 230 / 21.03.2020)

Support measures for small and medium-sized enterprises

– The granting of state guarantees in favor of each beneficiary participating in the program for one of the following categories of credits, as follows:

a) one or more credits for investments and/or one or more credits/lines of credit for working capital, guaranteed by the State, through the Ministry of Public Finance, in a percentage of maximum 80% of the financing value, excluding interest, commissions and bank charges related to the secured credit. The maximum cumulative value of state guaranteed financing that can be granted to a beneficiary within this facility is 10,000,000 lei. The maximum value of the credits/lines of credit for financing the working capital granted to a beneficiary cannot exceed the average of the expenses related to the working capital of the last 2 fiscal years, within the limit of 5,000,000 lei. For investment loans, the maximum value of the financing is 10,000,000 lei. For IMMs (small and medium enterprises) that did not submit financial statements at the time of applying for the secured loan, the maximum financing value for working capital loans/credit lines will be calculated as double the average of the working capital expenses from the monthly balances. For these loans, the Ministry of Public Finance grants interest on credits/lines of credit for financing working capital and loans for investments in 100% of the budget of the Ministry of Public Finance – General Actions, or

b) one or more guarantees for loans/lines of credit for financing working capital, excluding interest, commissions and bank charges related to the state guaranteed credit, up to a maximum of 90% granted to a micro-enterprise or small enterprise, with a maximum value of 500,000 lei for micro-enterprises, respectively maximum 1,000,000 lei for small businesses. The maximum value of each financing granted to a beneficiary may not exceed the average of the expenses related to the working capital of the last 2 fiscal years, within the limits of the previously provided thresholds. For microenterprises or small businesses that have not submitted financial statements at the time of applying for the guaranteed loan, the maximum financing value for credits/lines of credit for working capital will be calculated as double the average of the expenses related to working capital from the monthly balances.

– For the above facilities, granted as part of a state aid/the minimis scheme associated with this program, the Ministry of Public Finance grants interest on credits/lines of credit for financing working capital and loans for investments in 100% of budget Ministry of Public Finance –

General Actions.

-The interest subsidy period is from the moment of granting the credits/lines of credit contracted after March 21, 2020 and may last until March 31, 2021. The interest subsidy is approved annually by a normative act with the power of law for the first year and for the next 2 years only under the conditions in which the economic growth estimated by the National Strategy and Forecast Commission for this period is below the level registered in 2020. The interest subsidy is realized in compliance with the provisions of the legislation in the field of state aid in force.

– The maximum duration of the financing is 120 months in the case of investment loans and 36 months in the case of credits/lines of credit for working capital. The credits/lines of credit for working capital can be extended by a maximum of 36 months, following which, in the last year of extension, they will be reimbursed under the conditions established by the methodological norms.

Postponing the payment deadline for local taxes

– The deadline for the payment of local taxes (on buildings, land, means of transport) scheduled for March 31, 2020 is postponed until June 30, 2020. The discount provided for advance payment will be applied if payment is made by the new date.

Regulations regarding the interest and penalties for unpaid fiscal obligations

– There is no interest due and late penalties for fiscal obligations due starting with March 21, 2020 (including those due on March 25, 2020) and unpaid until the cessation of the state of emergency and 30 days after the cessation of this state. These obligations will not be considered as outstanding fiscal obligations.

– Also, during the state of emergency and until the expiration of 30 days from the cessation of the state of emergency, the measures of forced execution by suspension of budgetary receivables are suspended or not started, with the exception of the forced executions that are applied for the recovery of the budgetary receivables established by court decisions pronounced in criminal matters.

– The proposal to postpone the deadline for submitting the fiscal statements for February 2020 was cancelled.

Prepaid profit tax

– There is suspended the advance payments to the profit tax for 2020 for the taxpayers who apply the system of declaration and payment of the tax on the annual profit, with advance payments made quarterly, determined quarterly in the amount of one-fourth of the tax on profit due for the previous year, updated with the consumer price index, estimated when the initial budget of the year for which the advance payments are made is prepared. Thus, these taxpayers can make quarterly advance payments for 2020, at the level resulting from the calculation of the current quarterly profit tax. The calculation method is kept for all quarters of fiscal year 2020.

– For taxpayers who have opted for a different fiscal year than the calendar one, the above option applies for advance payments due for the remaining quarters of the modified year ending in 2020, as well as for the calculation of those related to the quarters from the modified fiscal year. which starts in 2020 and are included in the calendar year 2020.

Delays in payment of rent and utilities

– During the state of emergency, small and medium-sized enterprises that have discontinued their activity in whole or in part based on the decisions issued by the competent public authorities and who hold the emergency situation certificate issued by the Ministry of Economy, Energy and Business, benefit from the postponement to pay for utilities services – electricity, natural gas, water, telephone and internet services, as well as from the postponement the rent for the building for social headquarters and secondary offices.

– By derogation from other legal provisions, in the ongoing contracts, in other cases than those provided for in the above point, the force majeure can be invoked but only after trying, evidenced by documents communicated between the parties by any means, including by electronic means, of renegotiation of the contract, to adapt their clauses taking into account the exceptional conditions generated by the state of emergency.

– It is presumed to be a case of force majeure, the unpredictable, absolutely invincible and inevitable circumstance, which resulted from an action of the authorities in applying the measures imposed by the prevention and control of the pandemic caused by the infection with the COVID-19 coronavirus, which affected the activity of the small business and means, damage attested by the emergency situation certificate. The presumption can be overturned by the interested party by any means of proof. The unpredictable character is related to the moment of the birth of the affected legal report. The measures taken by the authorities in accordance with the normative act that established the state of emergency will not be unpredictable.

Postponing the deadline for submitting the statement regarding the real beneficiary

– The deadline for submitting the declaration regarding the real beneficiary is extended by 3 months from the date of cessation of the emergency state (initially the deadline for submitting the declaration regarding the real beneficiary was July 21, 2020 for the companies established before July 21, 2019 and 15 days after the approval of the financial statements, and if there is a modification regarding the identification data of the real beneficiary, the declaration is submitted within 15 days from the date on which it intervened, for the companies established after July 21, 2019);

– During the state of emergency, it is suspended the submission of the declaration and the completion of the documents for the cases in which changes are made regarding the data of the beneficiary or if a company or fundation is established.