The Ministry of Finance proposes the reintroduction of the over-excise on fuels, a measure that could lead to an increase of about 0.45 lei per liter for gasoline and diesel. The measure appears in a proposal for an emergency ordinance for the amendment of the Fiscal Code and is justified by the decrease of excise receipts in the first semester of 2017, by 767.63 million lei, compared to the first semester of 2016.

For the same period, the Ministry of Finance noted the increase in consumption of diesel (by 253 million liters) and unleaded petrol (by 5 million liters).

According to the cited document, the tax cut applied since the beginning of this year (elimination of the 7 eurocents per liter and the decrease of VAT by one percentage point) led to the decrease of fuel prices, so that Romania reached the lowest level in July 2017 in the European Union on Euro-95 gas price (€ 0.997 per liter with taxes) and the third lowest price for diesel fuel (€ 0.977 per liter with taxes). Taxes account for 52% of the price of gasoline, and 50% of the price of diesel fuel in Romania, on average, at the EU level, the taxes amount to 62% of the price of gasoline and 57% of the gas price.

The ministry of Finance notes that the reduction in fuel prices for car fuels “has been alleviated by the fact that fuel-free fuel prices have risen, so that tax rates in fuel prices are currently the lowest in the European Union, well below the average level in the EU”.

The proposal contradicts not only the objective assumed at the time of the elimination of over-taxation of fuels, namely the reduction of the market prices of fuels – an objective which was achieved! – but also the promises launched at the beginning of the year by the governing party, in the voice of PSD President Liviu Dragnea. On January 3, he reiterated that three measures will not be prorogated — the special construction duty, the up to 19 percent VAT and the fuel excise. “These three measures are not to be prorogated, however, we’ll closely watch if the companies that will benefit starting 1 January from these advantages act so that Romanians feel a decrease in prices […]. We’ll also be curios to see if […] Romanians feel a somewhat easier, cheaper life”, said Liviu Dragnea, as quoted by Agerpres.

The measures were promoted by the PSD government in the summer of 2015 and they were introduced into the Tax Code by the Cioloş cabinet in 2016, with implementation deadline 1 January 2017.

Romanians felt a decrease in prices. But this might end soon.