In brief

  • The Romanian Customs Authority repealed, through Order No. 1,393/2026, its own Order No. 5,697/2022, which had set out the registration procedure for wholesale distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages and/or processed tobacco.
  • The act consists of a single substantive article: the full repeal of the 2022 order, with no replacement procedure stated in its text.
  • Economic operators in the wholesale distribution of alcohol and tobacco must check directly with the Romanian Customs Authority about the current applicable regime, since the old specific registration procedure is no longer in force.
Act: Customs Authority Order No. 1,393/2026
Published: Official Gazette of Romania (Monitorul Oficial) No. 653 of 6 August 2026
In force from: 6 August 2026

An administrative procedure in force since 2022, which required companies in the wholesale distribution of alcohol and tobacco to register in a specific way with the Customs Authority, has been repealed by a one-page order. Order of the President of the Romanian Customs Authority No. 1,393/2026, signed on 9 July 2026 and published in Official Gazette of Romania No. 653 of 6 August 2026, does away with Order No. 5,697/2022, which had approved the registration procedure for the wholesale distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages and/or processed tobacco, together with the model and content of the related forms.

The text of the new order is minimal: a single substantive article (Article 1) fully repeals the 2022 order, while Article 2 orders its publication in the Official Gazette of Romania. There is no mention in the order of a replacement procedure, a transition period, or the effect on registrations already made under the old procedure.

The order is issued under Law No. 268/2021 (the law establishing the Romanian Customs Authority) and Government Decision No. 237/2022 on the organisation and functioning of the institution, legal bases that confirm the Customs Authority President’s power to amend or repeal the institution’s own earlier regulations.

What it changes in practice

The specific 2022 registration procedure no longer exists. The forms and model approved by Order No. 5,697/2022 lose their legal validity upon repeal, although the order does not explicitly clarify what happens to operators already registered under the old regime.

Economic operators in the wholesale distribution of alcoholic beverages and processed tobacco remain subject to the general excise-duty regime under the Tax Code (Law No. 227/2015) and the customs rules applicable to excisable products, which are unaffected by this order. What disappears is strictly the specific administrative registration procedure set up in 2022, not the underlying excise-duty obligations.

For companies operating in this sector, the safest course is to check directly with the Romanian Customs Authority about the current applicable regime, since the repealing order, by its minimal nature, gives no indication of any new, simplified or otherwise integrated procedure.

What has changed compared with the previous situation

Until this order, wholesale distributors and traders of alcoholic beverages and/or processed tobacco had to follow a specific registration procedure, with its own forms, approved by Customs Authority Order No. 5,697/2022 of November 2022. As of 6 August 2026, that specific procedure no longer has a legal basis.

The order does not explain the reason for the repeal and does not introduce an explicit alternative procedure; it is a simple repeal of the earlier regulation, within the discretionary power of the Customs Authority President, on the understanding that operators in the sector remain, in any case, subject to the general excise-duty regime and customs oversight of excisable products.

Advantages and disadvantages

What it improves

  • Removes a specific administrative procedure, which could reduce bureaucracy for economic operators in the wholesale distribution of alcohol and tobacco, if it is not replaced with an equally complex one.
  • Potentially simplifies the Customs Authority’s regulatory framework by clearing out acts that may have become redundant in light of later rules.
  • Confirms that the Customs Authority President actively exercises the power to review the institution’s own regulations, a sign of ongoing updates to the institutional framework.

What remains a problem

  • The lack of any explanation or transition procedure in the order creates uncertainty for operators already registered under the old regime, who cannot be sure whether their registration remains valid.
  • It is not stated whether the repeal comes together with a new, simplified or electronically integrated procedure, or whether the sector remains temporarily unregulated at this level of detail.
  • Economic operators must make additional inquiries, directly with the Customs Authority, to find out the current applicable regime, generating short-term compliance costs.
  • The order was published almost a month after being signed (9 July to 6 August 2026), leaving a period during which the act was already signed but had not yet produced public effects.

Practical advice

  1. If you distribute or sell alcoholic beverages or processed tobacco at wholesale, contact the Romanian Customs Authority directly to confirm whether a registration obligation still exists and, if so, in what form.
  2. Do not assume that a registration made under the old procedure automatically remains valid, or, conversely, automatically becomes void; ask the authority for written confirmation for your specific situation.
  3. Check the Official Gazette of Romania periodically for a possible later order that might introduce a new registration procedure, given that this repealing order does not contain one.
  4. Continue to comply with the general excise-duty regime under the Tax Code, which remains unchanged by this order, regardless of the fate of the specific administrative registration procedure.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly does Customs Authority Order No. 1,393/2026 do?
It fully repeals Order of the President of the Romanian Customs Authority No. 5,697/2022, which had approved the registration procedure for wholesale distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages and/or processed tobacco.
What happens to companies already registered under the old procedure?
The order does not state this explicitly; the recommendation is for economic operators to request direct confirmation from the Romanian Customs Authority about the status of their registration.
Is there a new procedure replacing the old registration?
The repealing order does not introduce an alternative procedure. If one is introduced, it will have to be published separately, through another regulation.
Does the excise-duty regime for alcohol and tobacco change?
No. This order concerns only the administrative registration procedure for wholesale distribution activity, not the underlying excise-duty regime, governed by the Tax Code.
Since when does the repeal take effect?
From the date of publication in the Official Gazette of Romania, 6 August 2026, although the order was signed by the Customs Authority President on 9 July 2026.

Original text of the legal act

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

Official Gazette of Romania no. 653 of 6 August 2026 8 pages PDF, 81 KB the act starts on page 8

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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.