Self-Employed Persons (PFAs) and self-employed people in general are facing a number of tax changes in a matter of days, starting in 2024.

The submission date remained unchanged: May 25. I made a separate text about what needs to be paid in 2024 for 2023. In this case, we’ll focus on next year’s revenue, as you’ll factor that into your projections.

ANAF has already prepared a draft of the Unified Declaration 2024.

What minimum wage is included in the income of 2024

As you know, the minimum wage will not change from January 1, 2024. It remains the same as today, i.e. 3300 lei gross.

Therefore, this will be taken into account when calculating the maximum amount of contribution payments, this rule was clarified by ANAF representatives at the seminar.

What are the new income limits for paying contributions from 2024

Income tax remained the same: 10%.

As for CASS, 10% of earned income or income rate will be paid, which will be capped at 60 minimum wages.

Therefore, CASS will be calculated on the basis of a calculation that cannot exceed 60 salaries to net income, respectively, annual rate of income, accordingly adjusted annual rate of income.

So, the ceiling is from 6 to 60 salaries, i.e. from 19,800 to 198,000 lei.

If the base achieved is less than 6 minimum wages, then the PFA will owe the difference in the CASS contribution to the base 6 minimum wages.

Exempt from this CASS difference are those PFAs with income from:

• salary and salary equivalents at a level at least equal to the 6 minimum salaries in each country in force during the period in which the income was received;

• rent, dividends, interest, stock exchange, cryptocurrency, other sources for which they must pay social health insurance contributions at a level at least equal to 6 minimum gross wages per country

Another novelty is from a separate revenue department.

As tax consultant Cornel Grama also pointed out, if a PFA has an income from independent activities of more than 60 salaries (210,000 lei) and from (dividends or rent or stock market, cryptocurrency, etc.) more than 24 minimum salaries, he will pay CASS in the amount of 84 minimum salaries (that is, with an income of 294,000 lei).

“There is no provision that says if you pay PFA of 24 salaries on top of other income (dividends, rent, stock market, interest) you are exempt because you have already ‘deposited’ 24 salaries. What’s more, you paid for… 60 salaries! Self-employment income is no longer stacked with other income categories for the 6/12/24 salary thresholds as before. They are treated separately,” says Grama.

Another recent change relates to rental, dividend or bank interest income received by individuals. In general, if someone has an income below 6 minimum wages, they will pay CASS at 10% of that amount, unless they are in work or have income from self-employment.

You pay CASS if your income in the Single Statement is more than 6 minimum wages and you earned less.

The CAS (pension) ceilings remain the same as before.

The ceiling for the standard income is 25,000 euros

Those who were on the income norm should know that the ceiling has been changed.

It is no longer 100,000 euros, but 25,000 euros. So, if you have exceeded €25,000 this year, from 2024 you will switch to the real system.

IT professionals can no longer use the income norm

IT professionals working as PFAs will automatically transition to the live system from 1 January 2024. Basically, they no longer have an income norm.

As a reminder, many companies in the field of information technology have collaborated with various IT scientists (PFAs) in the development of software. The problem is that they told them to work on the consultant’s CAEN code to meet the income norm. Thus, after a few years, ANAF came to check on IT-sti and asked them why they were working like that.

So, that’s why the rules were changed in this case.

PFAs can no longer divert 3.5% for NGOs

PFAs, generally the self-employed, can no longer remit the 3.5% income tax to NGOs.

Practically, the opportunity remains only with income from wages and salaries.

e-Invoice for PFA in B2B relationships

If you have a PFA and work with other companies or PFAs, you should be aware that you will have to submit invoices to ANAF (actually the Ministry of Finance) through the e-invoicing system.

Even if until now you sent a single declaration to the SPV via CNP, now you will have to pay more for a qualified digital certificate, which costs 30-45 euros per year, and for a slightly longer period of 3 years it reaches approx. 80 euros. Please note that the prices are without VAT.

Without it, you will not be able to submit invoices to ANAF.

In the first 6 months, fines will not be issued, and the system will only be used to send them.

The deadline for submission is 5 calendar days from the moment the invoice is issued, but no later than 5 calendar days compared to the deadline for issuing an invoice provided by the Fiscal Code, i.e. the 15th of the following month.

After this period, non-declaration penalties will also apply. In the case of PFA, it will be 1000 – 2500 lei.

In 6 months, the e-Invoice system will no longer be only for reporting, but also for issuing and receiving invoices.

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