When it comes to the obligation to file a tax return in Romania, our tax system makes no exception from those of other countries. Everyone would agree that preparing and filing a tax return is not an easy job in any country.
But this gets a lot more complicated when you are a foreign individual that has just landed in a new jurisdiction. Since you have no information (or very little) about the tax system of your new country, and no specific expat tax guidance, this can grow into your worst nightmare.
Are you an expatriate who has just recently moved to Romania, and is trying to get his mind around filing his tax forms? And you’re not quite sure if you have the obligation to file a tax return in Romania? We created this article just for you, to help you clarify your questions regarding the personal tax obligations you may have while living in Romania.
First, let us clarify that in this article we will address only the annual tax return filing obligation and will resume to explaining tax obligations that apply to types of income other than salary. This is simply because we want to keep the information as concise, and as clear as possible. This will also help you keep a clear understanding regarding your personal tax matters.
If there is any topic you wanted clarified and cannot find it here, please check also other articles in the “Taxes” section.
Now let’s start with the first question:
The answer to this question splits into at least 2 scenarios, as follows:
You do have the obligation to report your personal income (any income other than salary) through a Romanian annual tax return. Now, the tax return obligation depends also on the types of income that you generate. For example, for some types of income a tax withholding obligation (by the Romanian income payer) may apply – this can apply for interest income derived from a Romanian bank, or for dividends received from a Romanian company.
Since your income payer withholds the income tax and declares it already, this may eliminate the need for you to report that income, so to avoid duplication. In practice, this means that you will not have an obligation to report certain types of income for which tax is already withheld at source by a Romanian payer. Such types of income are: dividends paid by a Romanian company, or interest paid by a Romanian bank.
Types of income you have to declare as a Romanian tax resident:
In general, if, as a foreign individual you have been deemed tax resident of Romania, you have the obligation to report the following types of income through the annual tax return:
All these types of income (from Romania or from abroad) must be declared by a Romanian tax resident individual through the annual tax return (in Romanian: “Declarația unică“).
You have the obligation to report ONLY the income that you obtain from Romanian sources (paid by Romanian residents or obtained from activities carried out in Romania).
Types of income you have to declare as a tax non-resident:
As tax non-resident, you have the obligation to report ONLY the income that you obtain from Romanian sources, as detailed under second bullet above – this can be: rental income (derived from renting out Romanian properties), capital gains (derived as result of sale of any financial investments in Romanian companies), intellectual property rights, income from self-employment, or income from other sources that is paid to you by Romanian companies, etc.
The types of personal income (income other than salary) that you derive from Romania must be declared through the same annual tax return (in Romanian: “Declarația unică”).
Now, let’s assume you have fulfilled the tax residency procedure assessment by the Romanian tax authorities, and as result they determined that you are a Romanian tax resident and you have the obligation declare some income that you obtained from your home country. Let’s assume that you obtained some dividends you’ve been paid as shareholder in a foreign company.
We’ve already determined that, as Romanian tax resident, you have the obligation to declare that income in Romania. We’ve also determined that you have the obligation to declare this type of income through the annual tax return, which you will have to prepare and submit to the Romanian tax office.
Now, let’s clarify the applicable deadline and the tax office where you must submit the return.
It’s crucial to understand how Romanian tax authorities determine tax residency, as this will directly impact your personal tax reporting obligations. Residency can be established through several criteria, such as:
Understanding these criteria can help you assess your tax status correctly and correctly fulfill your personal tax obligations.
The deadline to file the annual tax return in Romania to the tax office is May 25 of the following year. For example, if you received the dividends during 2024, the deadline to report the income through the annual tax return is 25 May 2025. There is no legal option to extend the reporting deadline (through personal request). The extension of the deadline can be performed only by the authorities.
Same deadline applies for the payment of the taxes due, either if it is the income tax, or any social contributions due (depending on the type of income).
The annual tax return must be submitted to the local tax office (ANAF office) where you established your legal residency address in Romania. For example, if your residency address is located in Sector 1 of Bucharest, you must file the tax return to the Romanian tax office (ANAF office) of Sector 1 of Bucharest. If you reside in any other city, like Cluj or Constanța, you must submit the tax return to the local tax office (ANAF office) of that city which is responsible for managing individual taxes.
Nevertheless, you can also submit the annual tax return online, via the Virtual Private Space (in Romanian: “Spațiul Privat Virtual”). You can open an individual account in the Virtual Private Space on ANAF’s website. From your online tax account you can manage tax obligations, including the filing of the tax returns.
Alternatively, the tax return can be submitted online without opening an account in ANAF’s Virtual Private Space. The alternative is through the online service “Submission of declarations” that is available on the portal e-guvernare.ro. But for this method you have to obtain (prior to submitting the tax return) a qualified digital certificate (electronic signature), with which you have to digitally sign the tax form.
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Founded in 2008 as TAX IQ, our company has gained extensive expertise over the years, allowing us to effectively utilize our experience to benefit our clients’ best interests. Over time, we have succeeded to build a solid reputation as trusted tax advisor for the entire community of Romanian expats.