Tax evasion was the subject of a debate on Reddit started by a customer of a barbershop. While waiting for their turn, none of the 14 customers received a tax receipt. With receipts of 40,000 euros per month, how many of these bathrooms are taxed, he wonders.
Some of the hairdressers in Romania do tax evasion. PHOTO: Shutterstock
The customer, dissatisfied with the small tax evasion in the barber shops, did not want to specify the city where the mentioned situation happened, reasoning that in any city in Romania with up to 100,000 inhabitants, the situation is similar.
“5 days ago I went to get a haircut. The city is not very important, up to 100,000 inhabitants if it has. The barber shop, of course, a super fancy, super fancy barbershop in a top residential complex in this city I’m talking about (I chose to come here because I was going out and needed a haircut urgently). While I was there waiting for my turn (about an hour) at 7 hairdressers, 2 customers passed by. The price of an average haircut is 80 lei here, so 80 x 2 x 7 lei per hour. We approximate 1,000 lei per hour in money coming into the barber shop. Guess how many tax receipts were given out? 0”, write this on reddit.
He calculated that a 12-hour program on average, in a normal working day, brings in 2,000 euros. In one week, 10,000 euros. In one month, 40,000 euros.
“How much of this money will be taxed? I tend to think that not even 30%”he estimates.
“How many businesses like this will not exist in all of Romania? Not just a barbershop, I gave an example because it’s fresh. My question is how come no one checks them?”, he concludes his post.
Romanians and tax evasion
The post had nearly 200 comments. The positions expressed reflect the tolerant position of many Romanians regarding small tax evasion.
Many commentators have come to the defense of tax evaders, either by arguing that the state is incompetently managing the money collected from firms, or by arguing that some businesses can keep prices down just by evading them. Others asked why the great tax evasion by tax-exempt companies or entities, such as the Romanian Orthodox Church, is not handled.
We select some of the most relevant comments:
“Evasion becomes seductive in how they spend their taxes.“
“I burn all those who conscientiously pay their taxes”
“In 2024, it is estimated that tax evasion in Romania will reach 10% of GDP. In 2024, it is estimated that in Romania the budget deficit was 8.7% of GDP. What are the jmecheri boys doing in the Victoriei area? Raise taxes to cover the deficit. That is, instead of putting the budget officers to work to collect taxes from evaders and give them fines on top of that, they burn all those who conscientiously pay their taxes”. support a user.
“And now I ask, if you had a company that for 8 years has been paying tens of thousands of lei in monthly taxes to the state, and you found that in 2 years they doubled your dividend tax, tripled your income tax and you wake up overnight that you have to work 2 twice as much for the same money goes into your pocket because that’s how the premier gave the pen, and the guys with the barber shop are in pain… taxes, because they still put that much in the envelope to the guys at the controls, what would you do? Would you remain conscientious and hope for the best, or would you go to the bookstore to get envelopes?”, another netizen shows.
The young man who started the debate was asked if he asked for a tax receipt. He stated that he paid with the card, thus the payment was automatically registered with ANAF.
Another commenter appreciated that mainly the CAEN code (9602: Hairdressing and other beautification activities) is at the income standard, that is, the receipts/incomes do not count, you pay at an amount established by ANAF at the beginning of the year.
“It didn’t really matter how many vouchers people took out, because anyway the state charges them the same“, he points out. He posted a link from ANAF with the income rules in each county for such affairs
Another user of the platform stated that the maximum norm is 125,000 lei per year (25,000 euros): “You exceed 125,000 lei, you enter the real system. Valid for any dog/activity from 01.2024 (or even 2023 maybe). From 300,000 lei per year you also enter VAT”. Thus, with just one day of receipts, the barbershop that the young man who reported the evasion was talking about would have entered the real payment system.
“I’m really glad to break out”
Many people defended the little escapists.
“I’m really glad that this social blanket does tax evasion, according to me, all bakeries, hairdressers, all home meditators, babysitters do 100% tax evasion. Give it to the c… of the Romanian state.”
“The actual controls on taxes it would be better to start with real estate companies, road administration, insurance, mayors, sanitation companies, landfills, the constant port, etc.”
“Do you think the government is such a good steward of your money that it’s worth giving it to?”
“Well, I know they’ll all jump to my head, but how can you not commit tax evasion brother and “steal” from wherever you can (I say “steal” because you’re not literally stealing from anyone, but the state) when you see that everything are our politicians capable of raising taxes, fees and ripping you off wherever they can?”
“As an entrepreneur, this country does not help you with anything, everything is a joke. When it comes to paying, any delay is penalized. When the payroll is good, it rains (365 days and counting more precisely, personal experience)”
“BOR is not charged/taxed at all”
“Yes, there is tax evasion everywhere in stupidity. They also work in black. The bastards of the popes and BOR are not taxed/taxed at all and abuse the laws in force to steal from public money in the name of others but not of their institution to erect extra churches, renovate extra churches. Not to mention the “extra benefits”” – support another user of the platform.
“As an idea, those who manage to keep prices decent, do so precisely because of evasion. Otherwise the prices would be higher and then other comments would appear. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like it when others manage to get away with the taxes I bear. Ideally we would have the same treatment.”
“Evasion keeps certain areas of the economy afloat which, for better or for worse, feed some people. 100% collection and 0 evasion overnight would lead to the instant bankruptcy of many firms and small and medium-sized businesses and some significant percentages of unemployment. Not everyone works in corporate IT.”
“That’s exactly the problem, the barbers and the boutiques, not the ones turning over millions of euros.”
