Romania is swiftly enacting a newly released regulation that outlines guidelines for the taxation of tips and its impact on the issuance of fiscal receipts. As per a legislative draft adopted on December 13, 2022, by the Chamber of Deputies, employees in various establishments must now record any voluntary amounts received from customers on the fiscal receipt. These tips will be subject to a 10% tax and subsequently distributed among the employees. This legislative measure represents the reintroduction of tip taxation rules, supported by both the government and the business community.

The Romanian Parliament’s Chamber of Deputies recently passed a bill that introduces regulations for tipping and its taxation, effective from January 2023. Although tipping is optional, it is now treated as any additional amount of money received from customers in restaurants or bars (under CAEN codes 5610 and 5630) beyond the cost of the product or service provided.

Under the new rule, businesses such as restaurants and bars are required to include a designated section for tips on every customer’s check. The tip amount can range from 0% to 15% of the total value of goods or services.

Regardless of the method of collection (cash or other means like card), the tip collected from customers must be clearly indicated on the fiscal receipt issued by the economic operators.

Before issuing the fiscal receipt, economic operators are obligated to provide customers with a payment note that allows them to choose the desired tip amount, ranging from 0% to 15% of the total bill. The payment note should also have a section where customers can enter the tip amount in absolute value if they prefer this method of determining the tip.

It is strictly prohibited for businesses to make the delivery of goods or provision of services conditional upon the granting of a tip, as tipping is considered the customer’s voluntary choice. Ultimately, the tip amount will be recorded on the same fiscal receipt as the purchased goods or services and entered into the cash register database.

Furthermore, restaurants and bars are required to establish internal procedures and methods for distributing the tip amounts to their employees. The law categorizes tips as “income from other sources,” separate from salaries and employer expenses, thereby exempting them from social and health contributions as well as VAT. These provisions of the bill will come into effect on January 1, 2023.