EC urges Romania to refund environmental car registration tax

The European Commission decided on January 23 to send a reasoned opinion to Romania for failing to ensure the full and immediate refund of registration taxes on second-hand vehicles purchased from other Member States. Romania has charged such taxes, on environmental grounds, only for the vehicles imported from other EU states -- as opposed to the second-hand cars sold among local residents. These taxes have been considered by the Court of Justice of the EU as infringing EU rules (Article 110 of TFEU). If Romania does not act within the next two months, the Commission may decide to bring the case before the Court of Justice of the EU. Prior to this decision, the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) considered these charges to be in breach of EU rules and Article 110 of the EU Treaty. "The Romanian rules on the restitution of taxes do not respect the principles of loyal cooperation, equivalence and effectiveness. If Romania does not take action in the next two months, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the EU Court of Justice," the EC representatives said. At the end of December 2018, the Government decided to postpone the deadline for paying back the registration taxes to June 30, 2019. New passenger car registration up 23% in Romania in 2018 editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: Pexels.com)