Tourism companies in Romania want new tax for tourists

Romania’s Tourism Ministry will propose the governing coalition to introduce a new national hotel tax for tourists at the request of employers. During a debate on the new tourism law, tourism employers asked the ministry to extend the hotel tax to the national level, reports local Capital.ro. The tax is now optional at local authority level. Tourism minister Mircea Dobre replied that he didn’t have in plan to introduce a new tax, but will present the proposal to the governing coalition. This wouldn’t be a new tax, but would imply transforming an old optional tax into a mandatory one at national level, Dragos Anastasiu, president of the Employers’ Association of Tourism Agencies in Romania, replied. The money should be used in public-private partnerships, he added. Without this mention, the tax would be useless because the money would remain in the city halls’ accounts. The Government plans to approve the tourism draft law until mid-November, minister Mircea Dobre said. editor@romania-insider.com