GOVERNMENT APPROVES MEASURES FOR SUPPORT TO CITIZENS AND BUSINESSES UNDER PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY

At the Wednesday’s sitting, the Government adopted under personal responsibility the Law on some measures of support to the population and the entrepreneurial activity in the period of the state of emergency.

Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance Sergiu Puscuta said that the urgent adoption of this law is due to the need of mitigating the negative effect of the coronavirus pandemic on citizens and the national economy.

“The measures concern social support to citizens, to business environment, as well as the improvement of the legislation in the fiscal sector. In terms of support to the population, it is proposed to raise the social payments and extend the categories of assistance beneficiaries”, he said.

According to him, assistance in case of unemployment will account for 2.7 thousand lei per month and will be paid to everyone who registers as unemployed, regardless of their compliance with conditions of social assistance beneficiary. Besides, the minimal guaranteed income will be raised to 1.3 thousand lei from 1.1 thousand for the period of the state of emergency.

“Also, if currently, the social assistance per one child accounts for 553 lei per month, during the state of emergency it will be raised to 975 lei, that is 76%. For families, whose right for receiving social assistance expires during the state of emergency, it will be extended till the end of this period”, the minister said.

He said that for supporting businesses, it is proposed to subsidize the costs of employers, connected with paying of salaries to workers in case of their technical unemployment, in the amount of 100% (from paying taxes on salaries) in case if they completely or partially suspended their activity at the order of the National Emergency Commission for Public Health or the Commission for the State of Emergency, 60% – others.

“Also, it is proposed the exemption from paying of patent for those who suspended their activity in this period, returning of social contributions in fixed sum for patent holders, individual entrepreneurs, who suspended their work”, Puscuta said.

According to him, it is proposed to lower the VAT for the HoReCa sector to 15% from 20%, to postpone the payment of local fees for 1Q2020 until July 25 for economic agents, who suspended work as per commissions’ decisions. Besides, some simplifications are proposed in the field of social and medical contributions of employers and workers.

The law enters into force if within three days the Parliament does not decide to convene a sitting and dissolve the Government.