COVID-19 Legal Timeline

Main measure: Establishing the conditions for the sale of gasoline and diesel during emergency.

Enforcement period: For a new period of 30 days, from 15 April 2020 to 14 May 2020.

Main measures in addition to those in the initial Presidential Decree:

Measures with direct and immediate applicability, such as:

• In the event of a decrease in the prices of electricity and natural gas the Government will take measures so that the decreases are reflected in the final price to consumers;
• contracting authorities may directly purchase materials and equipment necessary against COVID-19, exceeding the legal value threshold;
• the Government shall establish the general framework and the ways of reorganization, restructuring or reprogramming the activities that are object of financing from EU funds;
• affidavit submitted to the Trade Registry: (i) document under private signature or (ii) electronically transmitted. The specimen signature submitted to the Trade Register may be (i) authenticated by notary public, (ii) certified by lawyer or (iii) in the form of a document privately signed;
• logistical aspects for court hearings by videoconference, filling of procedural documents by electronic means, no draw-up up of specific minutes;
• terms (such as prescriptions, and other term-dependent rights) are suspended;

Main measures:

Shareholders meetings may use the vote by correspondence or electronically.

Main measure: For a period of one year, the private pension funds and the optional pension funds may invest more than 70% of their total asset value in Romanian government securities or those of EU or EEA member states.

What’s new? The extension of the mandates of the current local public administration authorities and the postponing of the local elections.

Purpose: Documents issued by public authorities and institutions in an electronic format and signed with the qualified electronic signature are assimilated to authentic documents;

What new? The procedural steps to achieve moratorium introduced by GEO no. 37/2020.

What’s new? New conditions for the Program for the support of SMEs – IMM INVEST ROMANIA and approval of the State aid scheme for supporting the activity of SMEs.

What’s new? Extension of certain terms for communication of documents to ASF in insurance field.

Main measures: Approval of documents necessary for obtaining the technical unemployment aid.

Purpose: Modification of the procedure for receiving job applications or unemployment benefit, (Order of the President of ANOFM no. 85/2002).

Main measure: Further suspension of flights.

Main measures: Holiday vouchers for 2020 are issued only electronically; extension of the validity period of validity of the existent holiday vouchers.

Main measures:

Amendments to existing provisions:

• the employees receive technical unemployment benefits during the state of emergency if their employer has reduced or interrupted activity;
• the emergency situation certificate and the affidavit regarding the decrease of revenues and lack of financial capacity are no longer required for settlement and the limit of employees who can benefit from the technical unemployment.

New provisions:

• the technical unemployment benefit is not available to an individual that has multiple employment contracts of which at least one full-time contract active;
• the technical unemployment benefit is applicable to the employment contract with the most advantageous wage rights if an individual has several employment contracts suspended;
• the employer may provide additional technical unemployment benefits;
• the suspension period is assimilated to a contribution period for work related taxes.

Purpose: amendments to Government Military Ordinance no. 3/2020 and new restrictive measures concerning the free movement of people.

Main measures:

• an additional time interval for daily movement for elderly people over 65 years;
• economic operators selling food and products of strict necessity must adjust their work schedule to facilitate the access of elderly people over 65 years;
• persons leaving quarantine without approval will resume the 14-day quarantine cycle expenses borne; people not abiding by isolation will be quarantined for 14 days, expenses borne;
• banning the price increase for electricity and heat, natural gas, water supply, sanitation, and fuels.

Purpose: Issuance in an electronic format of medical leave certificates for employees with COVID-19 self-isolation or quarantine obligations.

Main measures: For the period 24 April – 23 May 2020, the penalty interest rate for the deficits of mandatory minimum reserves constituted in national currency is 3.75% per year.

Purpose: Approving of the temporary suspension of the distribution outside the Romanian territory of biocidal products

Purpose: Procedure for issuance of the state of emergency certificates to the firms affected. Further amended by Order no. 822/2020 and Order no. 872/2020.

Main measures:

• two types of emergency situation certificates (i) type 1 – blue for business totally or partially interrupted; and (ii) type 2 – yellow for business decrease of minimum 25% in March 2020 compared to the average of January and February 2020.

Purpose: Additional prohibitions and restrictions for restraining the spread of COVID-19.

Main measures:

• movement of people outside their home is prohibited, except for justified cases; justification documents needed;
• public institutions and economic operators are required to mark the access areas to observe the minimal safety distance of 1.5 meters;
• stricter safety measures for the agri-food market administrators;
• commercial activities conducted in shopping centers allowed for (i) sale of electronic/electric household products if ensuring home delivery and (ii) sale of medical optics products and services.
• additional movement restrictions for elderly people over 65 years;
• extension of validity of documents issued by public authorities;
• further flights

During the suspension of the individual employment contract by the employer, the employees will receive allowance of minimum 75% of basic salary but not more than 75% of the average gross salary (borne by state budget.

Purpose: Economic and fiscal budgetary measures to mitigate the negative impact on economy.

Main measures:

1. Economic measures in order to protect SMEs

• state guaranteed loans and subsidized interests;
• deferred payment for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) for utilities and rent, if (i) business is interrupted due to state of emergency, and (ii) emergency situation certificate available;
• force majeure may be claimed in ongoing agreements if parties have first tried to renegotiate;
• authorities’ enforcement of emergency measures affecting the SMEs’ business and are ascertained by an emergency situations certificate, are presumed as force majeure.

2. Other economic measures

Deferred payment for the utility service and rents for family doctors’ offices and dental offices (maximum 20 employees) and sports clubs.

3. Tax measures applicable to all categories of persons:

• Suspension/non-commencement of enforced measures for budgetary debts;
• not accruing of interest and late payment penalties for the due tax obligations starting with 21 March 2020;
• extension of the payment term for property tax;
• extension of deadlines for submitting the declaration regarding the real beneficiary.

Main measure: The nominal value of a meal voucher may not exceed RON 20.

Main measures:

Purpose: The Criminal Code was amended (modifications to articles 326 and 352 and a new article 352).

Main measures:

1.  New incriminations for:

• giving a false statement to a public servant, in order to conceal the existence of a risk of infection with a contagious disease;
• hampering the disease control through the failure to comply with quarantine or hospitalization measures;
• the transmission, by any means, of an infectious contagious disease by a person who is aware that he suffers from this disease;
• the omission of the person to disclose essential information regarding the possibility of contacting an infected person with an infectious disease.

2. Penalty limits increased for:

• false statements offence;
• voluntary and involuntary hampering the disease control if the act resulted in the spread of such a disease.

The communication with ASF is conducted only in electronic format.

The Secretary of State may order any measures necessary, including the establishment of quarantine zones, temporary restrictions on movement, as well as evacuation measures.