EC opens three infringement proceedings against Romania  

The European Commission on Thursday opened three infringement proceedings against Romania for failing to fully transpose EU legislation on rail safety, implement regulatory rules regarding investment fund managers and for its discriminatory tax treatment of foreign legal.

EC asked Romania to transpose European legislation on rail safety, the request pointing the safety authority’s independence and of the investigation body. According to the European Executive, Romanian legislation on this matter should have been enforced since April 2006. The Commission says Romania must give an answer in two months. “If Romania is not reacting properly, the Commission may notify the EU Court of Justice on this case.

Another infringement procedure relates to Romania’s discriminatory tax system on foreign legal entities. EC asks our country to amend provisions regarding the tax interests income, arguing these provision are restricting free services and capital free movement on the single EU market. Legal resident entities are currently deducting indirect expenses related to incomes out of interests. This leads just to their net profit taxation, EC notes. But foreign legal entities with no permanent central office in Romania cannot benefit by this deduction, facing “an excess burden of taxation based on their gross incomes from interests directly obtained from Romania”. The Commission considers there is “no available justification” for this discriminating treatment, warning Romania must change its legislation within two months otherwise ECJ could be notified.

The European Commission also “exigently” requires Romania, Latvia, Portugal and Slovenia to fully implement regulatory rules regarding investment fund managers, targeting an increased transparence for alternative investment funds and watching rules for these funds addressed to professional investors.