Romanian Finance Minister Marcel Boloş announced on Wednesday that the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) has exceeded its collection target by 6% in the first six months of the year.
„You know that I have recurrent discussions with the General Regional Directorates of Public Finance throughout the country to assess the actions taken for efficient collection and combating tax evasion. Today I come with good news: ANAF has exceeded its collection target in the first six months of 2024. We have achieved a 100.6% realization rate of the budget revenue collection program, with an additional 1.2 billion lei compared to the plan assumed at the beginning of the year,” the minister stated.
He specifies that the data for the first half of 2024 show total revenues of 218.5 billion lei, an increase of 17.8%, with 33.04 billion lei more than in the same period of 2023.
Regarding VAT collection, there is an increase of 6.58 billion lei (a 15.6% growth).
"Certainly, the requirements for improving activities will always be valid and reflect our common desire to have a fairer and more efficient tax system. In this regard, the significant progress in achieving our revenue collection plan cannot be denied, and I want to emphasize the role that ANAF's digitalization plays in this process.
Even though the implemented measures are not to everyone's liking and some changes have been at least challenging, digitalization means that month by month we will have less burdensome tax inspections for taxpayers and less costly for ANAF, with a more uniform approach in risk analysis by inspectors in control," the Finance Minister emphasizes.
"Although globally, in the first half of the year, the number of inspections is similar to last year, more sanctions have been applied, indicating an increase in efficiency," he adds.
Boloş emphasizes that the most important aspect is that digitalization allows the protection and respect of honest taxpayers, enabling them to carry out their activities without unnecessary interventions from tax authorities.
"In conclusion, as I have said in the past, every correctly collected leu is an investment in the collective future of Romanians, contributing to the development of infrastructure, healthcare, education, and other vital areas for improving the quality of life of Romanians," Boloş concludes.
Reference to the importance of ANAF's digitalization comes after his predecessor, Adrian Câciu, currently Minister of European Funds, stated that ANAF needs to be digitalized, even if it cannot be done all at once, and that the Finance Minister should have an extensive dialogue on this topic and listen to experts from the private sector.