RO e-transport system – impact on importers and exporters

From July 1, 2022, the obligation to report road transport of products that are fiscally risky in the e-transport system enters into force.

The importers and exporters directly concerned by the new system are those who sell the following categories of goods:

1. Vegetables, plants, roots and tubers, food, falling within CN codes 0701 to 0714 inclusive
2.  Edible fruits;  peel of citrus or melons falling within CN codes 0801 to 0814 inclusive
3. Beverages, alcoholic liquids and vinegar**, falling within CN codes 2201 to 2208 inclusive
4. Salt;  sulfur; earths and stones; plaster, lime and cement, falling within CN codes 2505 and 2517
5. Clothing and clothing accessories, knitted or crocheted, falling within  CN codes 6101 to 6117 inclusive
6. Clothing and clothing accessories, other than knitted or crocheted, falling within CN codes 6201 to 6212 inclusive and CN codes 6214 to 6217 inclusive
7. Footwear, boots and similar items; parts of those articles, falling within  CN codes 6401 to 6405 inclusive
8. Cast iron, iron and steel falling within CN codes 7213 and 721

Who has the obligation to declare?

According to  the provisions of the Ordinance, they will have the obligation to declare in the RO e-Transport System:

• The consignee mentioned in the customs import declaration
• The consignor mentioned in  the customs export declaration
• Beneficiary of intra-Community acquisitions of goods, supplier in case of local and intra-Community supplies  of goods
• The depositary – for the intra-Community goods in transit, both for the goods unloaded on the territory of Romania for storage or for the formation of a new transport, as well as for the goods loaded after storage or after the formation of a new national transport.

What is ITU?

• It is the unique code generated by the RO e-Transport System through which the goods that are the object of  transport of goods with high fiscal risk are identified
• In the system will be recorded the data regarding the consignor, beneficiary, name, characteristics, quantities, the value of the transported goods, the places of loading and unloading, information about the means of transport used
• The entity that has the obligation to declare in the system (see the above mentioned categories), will make available to  the carrier this ITU code, which will be  mandatory written on the transport document.

Contraventions and Sanctions:

• Failure to declare in the RO e-Invoice the data regarding the transports of goods with high fiscal risk,  so that  they can be identified by the ITU code
• Carrier’s  use of an expired ITU code
• Unloading on the territory of Romania of goods that are the object  of intra-Community transactions in transit, except for those that are the object of storage or formation of a new transport from one or more  many parties of goods
• The declaration of different quantities than those transported is sanctioned with a fine from 10,000 to 50,000 in the  case of individuals or with a fine from 20,000 lei to 100,000 lei in the case of legal entities, as well as confiscation of the value of undeclared assets
• Failure to provide the carrier with the ITU code related to  the  transported goods  within the period provided by the Ordinance
• Modification of the data recorded in the RO e-Transport System regarding the transport of goods after presentation at  the road border crossing point at  the entrance to  Romania / at the place of import, respectively after  the vehicle has actually been  put into motion
• Failure to declare in the RO e-Transport System the data related to the transport of all goods, if the user transports both goods with high fiscal risk and without fiscal risk, is sanctions with a fine from 10,000 to 50,000 in the case of individuals or with a fine of 20,000 lei to 100,000 lei in the case of legal entities
• Failure to comply with the obligation of the driver of the transport vehicle to submit at the request of the competent bodies within ANAF or to the Romanian Customs Authority the documents accompanying the transport of goods with fiscal risk raised, is sanctioned with a fine from 5,000 to 10,000 lei.

Exceptions to the obligation to  declare in  the  RO e-Transport system:

Shipments of goods destined for diplomatic missions and consular offices, international organizations, armed forces of NATO member states,  the European Union, member states of the Partnership for Peace or the states with which Romania has concluded agreements in the field or as a result of the execution of classified contracts  according to the law or the execution of  public procurement contracts  which require the  imposition, in accordance with the legal  provisions, of special security measures to protect essential state security interests.

NOTE: The Government established, through an Emergency Ordinance, adopted on June 30, that fines for non-compliance can be applied only from October 1, 2022.