FOLLOWING THE COUNTLESS COMPLAINTS RECEIVED, The European Commission requests the amendment of the Romanian car pollution tax

• If Romanian authorities do not comply, the Commission might summon Romania before the European Court of Justice

Cătălin Deacu

The European Commission (EC) requested that Romania change the legislation concerning the implementation of the car pollution tax, claiming that, in its actual form, it is a protectionist step that infringes on the community legislation.

"The Commission considers that the provisions of the Romanian legislation, which suspend the pollution tax for specific types of cars, while at the same time raising it for second hand cars imported from other member states, could lead to the discrimination of imported cars, thereby representing a protectionist measure which favors Romania"s automotive industry", the communiqué of the EC states.

To this end, the Commission sent a "letter of formal notice", the first stage of the infringement procedure.

If the Commission does not receive a satisfactory response within two months, it may proceed with the second stage of the procedure (the issuing of a reasoned opinion) and ultimately bring the case before the Court of Justice.

According to the Romanian legislation (enacted in February 2009), cars pertaining to the EURO 4 category, with a cylinder capacity of at most 2,000 cubic centimeters, are exempt from the payment of the pollution tax in Romania if registered anywhere within the EU between December 15th, 2008 and December 31st, 2009.

The same law also provisions the doubling of the tax rates applicable to other cars that are subject to this law.

The Commission emphasized the fact that it received a considerable number of complaints, following these changes in the Romanian legislation.

The officials of the Commission said: "The Commission supports policies that encourage the use of cars that pollute less. However, the Commission, as Guardian of the Treaty, must ensure that they are compatible with the EU law. In this respect, the way in which the Romanian legislation is constructed seems to have a protective effect for the domestic automotive industry.

According to the communiqué of the European Commission, Member States can impose differential taxation on similar products provided that it is based on objective criteria and does not lead to any protection of domestic production.

However, the Commission maintains that the criterion of "the first time registration" is not a completely objective requirement as it does not take into account the inherent quality of cars. It could, in certain specific cases, lead to discrimination against second-hand cars coming from other member states.