In brief

  • ANAF has amended, through Order no. 917/2026, Form 216 “Special tax return on high-value real estate and movable property”, informally known as the “luxury tax”.
  • The tax rate triples: from 0,3% to 0,9% of the taxable base, both for homes worth over 2.500.000 lei and for cars with a purchase value over 375.000 lei.
  • The new form and the higher rate are used to declare the tax for fiscal year 2026, for owners of high-value homes and cars.
Act: ANAF Order no. 917/2026
Published: Official Gazette of Romania no. 646 of 5 August 2026
In force from: 5 August 2026

The tax on luxury homes and cars is about to rise sharply. Through Order no. 917 of 28 July 2026, the President of the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) amended Form 216, used to declare the special tax on high-value real estate and movable property, and updated its completion instructions with the new tax rate, 0,9%. The change follows Law no. 239/2025, which had already raised the rate under the Fiscal Code, and Order no. 917/2026 formally brings the implementing act in line with the law.

Form 216 has existed since 2024, approved through Order no. 3.738/2024 of the President of ANAF, and back then it applied a rate of only 0,3%. With Law no. 239/2025, the rate was tripled, but the form and its completion instructions had, until now, remained unaligned with the new figure. Order no. 917/2026 corrects this discrepancy: it fully replaces the form template and, in the instructions, replaces the phrase “cotei de 0,3%” with “cotei de 0,9%”.

What it changes in practice

The special tax targets two categories of taxpayers. On one hand, individuals who own residential buildings in Romania whose taxable value, as communicated by the local tax authority, exceeds 2.500.000 lei. On the other hand, owners (individuals and legal entities) of cars registered in Romania with an individual purchase value over 375.000 lei.

For both categories, the tax is calculated by applying the new 0,9% rate to the difference between the taxable value (for buildings) or the purchase value (for cars) and the corresponding tax-free threshold: 2.500.000 lei for homes, 375.000 lei for cars. In practice, someone who owns a villa valued at 3.000.000 lei pays tax only on the 500.000 lei difference, at the 0,9% rate, that is 4.500 lei per year, compared with the 1.500 lei they would have paid under the old 0,3% rate.

The order leaves unchanged the cooperation procedure between the local tax authority and the central tax authority, through which municipalities send ANAF the information about taxpayers who own high-value buildings, needed to correctly calculate the tax.

What has changed compared with the previous situation

  • Tripled rate: from 0,3% to 0,9% of the taxable base, both for buildings and for cars.
  • New form: the Form 216 template is fully replaced with the one set out in the annex to Order no. 917/2026.
  • Updated instructions: the phrase “cotei de 0,3%” in the completion instructions is replaced with “cotei de 0,9%”.
  • Applicability: the new form and the new rate are used to declare the special tax starting with fiscal year 2026, not retroactively for previous years.
  • Thresholds remain unchanged: 2.500.000 lei for buildings and 375.000 lei for cars, the same as when the tax was introduced.

Advantages and disadvantages

What it improves

  • The form is now aligned with the law in force, which removes the confusion between the rate in the Fiscal Code (0,9%) and the rate previously shown on the form (0,3%).
  • The tax targets exclusively high-value properties, without affecting taxpayers with ordinary income and property.
  • The cooperation procedure between municipalities and ANAF remains functional, which reduces the risk of gaps in identifying the taxpayers concerned.

What remains a problem

  • Tripling the rate hits already-targeted owners directly, without a gradual transition period.
  • The order does not explicitly clarify the status of returns already filed for 2026 using the old form, or whether an amended return is needed.
  • The tax-free thresholds remain unchanged since the tax was introduced, even though property values have kept rising, which tacitly widens, year after year, the number of people affected.

Practical advice

  1. If you own a home worth over 2.500.000 lei: check the taxable value communicated by the municipality and recalculate the tax due using the new 0,9% rate and the updated form, before filing or amending your return.
  2. If you own a car with a purchase value over 375.000 lei: download the new Form 216 from the ANAF portal (the assistance software is free) and use it for the return covering fiscal year 2026.
  3. If you have already filed a Form 216 return for 2026 using the old form: contact the central tax authority or a tax consultant to check whether an amended return is required, since the order does not detail this aspect.
  4. Filing deadlines remain those set out in the Fiscal Code (different for buildings and for cars) and are not changed by this order; check the exact date on anaf.ro or through the Private Virtual Space (SPV), to avoid late-filing penalties.

Frequently asked questions

What is the special tax on high-value real estate and movable property?
An additional tax, informally known as the “luxury tax”, applied to people who own homes with a taxable value over 2.500.000 lei or cars with a purchase value over 375.000 lei.
What is the new tax rate?
0,9% of the difference between the taxable value (for buildings) or the purchase value (for cars) and the corresponding tax-free threshold, up from 0,3% previously.
Since when does the new rate apply?
The updated Form 216 and the 0,9% rate are used to declare the special tax starting with fiscal year 2026, under ANAF Order no. 917/2026.
Where can I find the new Form 216?
On the ANAF portal, in the assistance software section, or at the central tax authority. The updated template is also reproduced in the annex to Order no. 917/2026, published in Official Gazette of Romania (Monitorul Oficial) no. 646 of 5 August 2026.
What happens if I don’t file, or file late?
Order no. 917/2026 does not change the applicable penalties; these remain the general ones under the Fiscal Procedure Code for failing to file, or late filing of, tax returns.

Original text of the legal act

The text below is reproduced in Romanian, its official form of publication in the Official Gazette.

The full text, as published in the Official Gazette of Romania

Official Gazette of Romania no. 646 of 5 August 2026 16 pages PDF, 364 KB

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This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, consult a licensed attorney or tax advisor.