• AHK - Romanian-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry 
• AMCHAM – American Chamber of Commerce for Romania  
• AOAR – Romanian Businessmen Association  
• BRCC - British-Romanian Chamber of Commerce  
• BEROCC – Belgian, Luxembourg, Romanian, Moldovan Chamber of Commerce  
• CONCORDIA – Concordia Employer Confederation  
• CCIBRP – Romania – Portugal Bilateral Chamber of Commerce 
• CCIFER - French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Romania  
• CCIpR – Italian Chamber of Commerce for Romania  
• CCE-R - Chamber of Commerce Switzerland - Romania  
• FIC – Foreign Investors Council  
• HRCC – Hellenic Romanian Bilateral Chamber of Commerce 
• NRCC – Netherlands Romanian Chamber of Commerce  
• RBL – Romanian Business Leaders Foundation  

In view of the discussions regarding the construction of the state budget for 2026, the Romanian business community reiterates its firm call on decision-makers to eliminate the minimum turnover tax (IMCA).

In a complicated macroeconomic and budgetary context and a tense geopolitical climate, the IMCA represents one of the main barriers to investment, running counter to Romania’s stated goal of attracting capital for economic development. At a time when the private sector is undergoing restructurings and layoffs, maintaining the IMCA places additional pressure on companies trying to sustain their activity and preserve jobs.

From a fiscal policy perspective, taxation based on turnover regardless of the existence of profit contradicts basic economic principles and is not used in any of the developed countries of the European Union. The measure ignores sector-specific realities and economic cyclicality, reducing the appetite for major, long-term investments, especially greenfield projects. Romania needs high value-added investment, jobs, and know-how transfer — not the discouragement of productive capital.

Romania’s attractiveness to investors is already declining, while other countries in the region, such as Poland, the Czech Republic, and Bulgaria, are being chosen as investment destinations over Romania. Compared to the level of taxation in these countries, although in some cases Romania may appear to have lower taxation (given the 16% corporate income tax rate), when the IMCA is taken into account, companies face a higher effective tax rate on profits, which can reach up to 90% in some situations. Moreover, new investors will not be willing to come to Romania if they must pay tax even in years when they record losses. At a time when Romania must integrate into European value chains and contribute to the joint effort to increase economic competitiveness and defence capacity, maintaining the IMCA effectively means missing a strategic opportunity.

The minimum turnover tax disproportionately affects companies with low profit margins, discourages investment, and undermines the competitiveness of the Romanian economy compared to all countries in the region. Applied cumulatively along the entire production and distribution chain, this type of tax generates market distortions and fuels inflation. In the medium term, in the context of economic slowdown, maintaining the IMCA risks eliminating many firms from the market, reducing the tax base and affecting budget revenue collection through negative effects on investment, productivity, and business development in Romania. For the business community, it is worrying that any future revenue shortfalls might again be offset by increasing the tax burden on the private sector and consumers.

The results of a flash survey conducted within our business communities show the concrete impact of the IMCA:

• Of the 80 companies that responded, 55 reported being directly affected, with impact across multiple economic sectors.
• 64% of companies postponed, reduced, or reconsidered their investment plans once the IMCA was introduced.
• Approximately 60% reported major impacts on operations, through effects on available investment funds, prices, supply chains, staffing policies, and restructurings.

Extending the application of a measure initially introduced as temporary, in the absence of genuine structural reforms to combat large-scale tax evasion, ensure digitalization, improve voluntary compliance, or restructure and streamline public spending, is profoundly unfair to the business environment.

Therefore, we once again call on decision-makers to eliminate this discriminatory tax and to build the 2026 state budget on the basis of a coherent, predictable, and well-founded fiscal framework, avoiding ad-hoc or insufficiently tested solutions that generate instability. A solid fiscal architecture, aligned with economic principles and European practices, which encourages investment and competitiveness, benefits the entire economy and creates a climate of confidence for long-term investment in Romania.

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