Ecofin Audit Service

Kristina Gurulea.
Legal Department director "Ecofin-Audit-Service" Audit Firm, Master in Law.

Legislative news: "Fin-Consultant" Monitoring.
We continue to inform you about the news, amendments and modifications introduced in the legislation of the Republic of Moldova within June 2010.

Entrepreneurship
1. There have been introduced amendments in the Law No. 845-XII as of January 3, 1992 on entrepreneurship and enterprises, by excluding the limit of cash payments of 1,000 lei per each transaction and 10,000 lei monthly for administrative taxes and duties applied by the Customs Service. As a result, currently the article 10, line 5 of the law stipulates the application of 10% fine of overpaid amounts, when enterprises and organizations, regardless of the type of property legal organization, carries out settlements with amounts exceeding cumulatively 100 thousand lei monthly on the basis of their financial duties, thereby infringing the mode of settlement determined through transfer. The mentioned amendment comes into effect on June 22, 2010. (Law No. 110 as of June 4, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 103-104 as of June 22, 2010).

2. It has been amended and modified the Government Decision No. 547 as of August 4, 1995 “on the measures of price (tariff) coordination and regulation by the state”, being determined that the acquisition price (purchasing price) to which limited profit margin, the expenses (discount) for which there have been determined duties on payment by suppliers. At the same time, there has been issued in new edition the List of important goods, sold for free prices with a profit margin limit, with the indication of their code, for easier identification. Thus, it has been excluded from the List of important goods, the sale of which is made with free profit margin limit – building materials, washing powders, shoes for children etc., at the same time, the list added such goods as poultry, pork, beef, fresh / frozen fish, fresh citrus etc. (Government Decision No. 523 as of June 22, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 108-109 as of June 29, 2010).

3. In the view of ensuring economic and social interests of consumers, as well as transparency of measures which regulate the fixation of prices for medicines, it has been approved the Regulation on the mode of price approval and adjustment for medicines by the producer, which is compulsory for all economic entities from the Republic of Moldova, participants involved in the market of medicines. Stipulations of the Regulation come into effect starting with September 1, 2010. (Government Decision No. 525 as of June 22, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 105-106 as of June 25, 2010).

4. The Government approved the Regulation on the compensation of costs related to mechanic technological operations during the agricultural seasons in 2010. According to the Regulation, there has been allocated 30 million lei, for partial compensation of expenses spent for mechanic technological works related to agricultural lands, plantation growing, maintenance and harvest of agricultural goods. Financial support will be provided to agricultural producers, regardless of the type of property or legal organizational form, on the basis of application, which followed to be submitted during June, until the public announcement about the cessation of application submission procedure. (Government Decision No. 488 as of June 14, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 100-102 as of June 18, 2010).

5. The National Agency for Regulation in Electronic Communications and Information Technology (NARECIT) approved the Instruction on the plan on regulation and monitoring. The mentioned instruction regulates the Procedure of reporting on the incomes come from the activity in the area of electronic communications, mode of calculation and terms of payment of regulation and monitoring. According to the Instruction, service provides in the area of electronic communications follow to provide to NARECIT the report on the income gained from electronic communication activity, quarterly, until the date of 10 of the following management month. And NARECIT, on the basis of received report, will submit the invoice according to the amount calculated during 3 working days from the submission of report. The given invoice must be paid out until the date of 15 of the next month of the following management trimester or within 3 working days since the receipt of invoice. (NARECIT Decision No. 17 as of June 2, 2010, Official monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 91-93 as of June 8, 2010).

6. According to the Law No. 122-XVI as of May 29, 2008 on credit history bureaus, in case a credit history bureau, the rights successor of which is a license holder is reorganized , as well as in case the license is withdrawn or annulated, credit histories stored in credit history bureaus are alienated through tender sale, where exclusively licensed credit history bureaus participate. In connection with the above-mentioned, the Government approved the Regulation on the mode of carrying out of sale tenders of credit histories. (Government Decision No. 445 as of May 28, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 87-90 as of June 4, 2010).

7. The Government approved the Specific Hygiene Rules for food products produced of livestock. The given rules determine for the economic entities engaged in food activity specific norms of hygiene for processed and unprocessed food products made of livestock. (Government Decision No. 435 as of May 28, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 85-86 as of June 1, 2010).

8. The Government approved the Technical Regulation “Edible vegetal oils”. The regulation determines minimal demands against the quality for the sale edible vegetal oils, which are destined for human consumption, produced both within local area as well as imported. Stipulations of the given Regulation come into effect on January 4, 2011. (Government Decision no. 434 as of May 27, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 87-90, 2010).

Tax legislation
1. The Order of the National Core Tax Inspectorate (NCTI) No. 82 as of May 2, 2006 on the mode and conditions of issuing of special paper, series and range of numbers for independent printing of tax invoices by the subjects of entrepreneurial activity which are VAT payers, and namely – it has been established that the VAT payers who benefit of the right to print independently tax invoices will be deprived of this right, provided the NCIT will detect deviations from the following conditions:

• existence of a computerized system of primary accounting;
• existence of a big assortment and/or a big number of buyers;
• turnover exceeds 1,000,000 lei per month;
• transparency in the organization of primary accounting in enterprises.

(Order of the National Core Tax Inspectorate No. 255 as of May 19, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 85-86 as of June 1, 2010).

2. In the view of avoiding dilapidation, alienation, substitution or concealment of goods which belong on the basis of property right to debtor tax-payers, the National Core Tax Inspectorate approved sample application of the Decision on assurance of tax arrear payment, as well as the Act of confiscation, as a measure of ensuring tax arrear payment. (Order of the NCTI No. 295 as of June 8, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 98-99 as of June 15, 2010).

Labour legislation
There has been approved the Minimal demands of security and health at the workplace. According to the given Government Decision, employees must carry out every measure in order that working place meet minimal security and health requirements, access paths that lead to exist must always be free; technical maintenance at the working place, equipment and supplies must be realized, and any deficiency noticed, which can affect workers’ security and health should be corrected as soon as possible; working places, equipment and supplies must be cleaned regularly for ensuring corresponding hygiene; security equipment and supplies destined to prevent or exclude dangers must be serviced and controlled. Minimal security and health demands at the working place regulates the conditioning at working places, temperature and illumination of buildings, detection and prevention of fire incidents etc. (Government Decision No. 353 as of May 5, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 91-93 as of June 8, 2010).

Banks and banking activity
The National Bank of Moldova decided to keep stable:

• the basic rate applied on short-term financial transactions at 7% yearly;
• the interest rate for overnight credits at 10% yearly;
• the interest rate for overnight deposits at 4% yearly;
• the basic rate for long-term credits (5 or more years) at 7% annually;
• the norm of compulsory reserves of means attracted in Moldovan leis and in hard currency, as well as the compulsory reserves norm of means attracted in hard currency, at 8% on the calculation basis.

(Decision of the National Bank of Moldova No. 129 as of June 24, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova 108-109 as of June 29, 2010).

Regulations in various fields
1. In the view of observing the principle on the assurance of free and equal access to justice and for diminishing economic-financial hindrance in the realization of the mentioned basic principle, there have been introduced amendments in the Law on state taxes No. 1216-XII as of December 3, 1992, being established the minimum limit of state tax which can be charged for examining law suits by the degree of jurisdiction. Thus, a state tax amounting to 3% of the action or charged amount is going to be charged for submitting application for opening a law-suit related to patrimony, for an application of a determination of an enforcement or any other document through which charging is made incontestably, but not less than 150 lei and not more than 25,000 lei for individuals and not less than 270 lei and not more than 50,000 lei for legal entities. (Law No. 90 as of May 20, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova, No. 94-97 as of June 11, 2010).

2. The Service of Civil Protection and Exceptional Situation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs approved the Regulation on the organization and realization of state control upon the measures against fire incidents in the Republic of Moldova. The mentioned regulation determined the mode in which the bodies responsible for supervising measures against fire incidents organize and carry out the activity on how individuals and entities observe norms and rules to avoid fire incidents. Also, the Regulation contains the procedure of obtaining “The notification for fire fighting and prevention in the carrying out of certain activities”. (Order of the Service of Civil Protection and Exception Situations No. 195 as of November 25, 2009, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 100-102 as of June 18, 2010).

3. It has been republished the Law on civil aviation No. 1237-XIII as of July 9, 1997. The given law is applied on all individuals and legal entities which carry out activities engaged in civil aviation on the territory of the Republic of Moldova, on every airship from the airspace of the Republic of Moldova, as well as on airships registered in the Republic of Moldova, regardless of where they are. (Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 98-99 as of June 15, 2010).

4. Also, it has been republished the Law on manufacturing and circulation of ethylic alcohol and alcoholic production No. 1100-XIV as of June 30, 2000. The given law draws the legal, administrative and controlling framework, as well as the framework of control on quality in the area of production and circulation of ethylic alcohol and alcoholic production. (Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 98-99 as of June 15, 2010).

5. The government approved the Regulation on the mode of fixing initial sale price for public property shares subject to privatization. The mentioned regulation establishes the mdoe of determining initial and sale price for public property shares subject to privatization through the Stock Market, on “shouting” tenders, on commercial and investment competitions. (Government Decision No. 453 as of June 2, 2010, Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova No. 91-93 as of June 8, 2010).