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Ares(2017)1735504 - 31/03/2017

2016 SBA Fact Sheet Romania

Key points
Past & future SME performance:1 SMEs in Romania provide about two thirds of employment, slightly more than the EU average. They
account for half of the value added, which is, however, about seven percentage points below the EU average. During 2010-2015,
value added increased by 29 %, while employment rose by 6 %. The value added of Romanian SMEs is forecasted to grow by 8 %
annually, while their employment is estimated to grow by 2 % in 2015-2017.

Implementing the Small Business Act for Europe (SBA): Overall, Romania’s SBA performance presents a mixed picture. Progress since
2008 is largely above the EU average, except in the areas of Internationalisation, Environment and Single market. Although a large
number of policy measures were implemented, SME stakeholders consider that progress in implementing the SBA has been moderate.

SME policy priorities: Romania needs to continue the ongoing process of simplifying administrative procedures for businesses, to
increase the transparency and efficiency of its public administration and to reform the public procurement system to address
systemic deficiencies by fully implementing the national public procurement strategy and to implement the civil service strategy and
reforms to strengthen inter-ministerial cooperation. A speedy resolution of insolvency, providing a better and easier re-start for
entrepreneurs, would also benefit SMEs. Policy initiatives to improve the innovation potential of SMEs should also be put in place.

About the SBA fact sheets

The Small Business Act for Europe (SBA) is the EU’s flagship policy initiative to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It comprises a
set of policy measures organised around 10 principles ranging from Entrepreneurship and ‘Responsive administration’ to Internationalisation. To
improve the governance of the SBA, the 2011 review of it called for better monitoring. Published annually, the SBA fact sheets aim to improve the
understanding of recent trends and national policies affecting SMEs. Since 2011, each EU Member State has appointed a high-ranking
government official as its national SME envoy. SME envoys spearhead the implementation of the SBA agenda in their countries.

Internal market,
industry,
entrepreneurship
and SMEs
 Table of Contents
Key points ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 1
1. SMEs — basic figures....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 2
2. SBA profile ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 3
3. SBA principles ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5
3.0 ‘Think Small First’ ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 5
3.1 Entrepreneurship............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 6
3.2 ‘Second chance’ ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 7
3.3 ‘Responsive administration’ ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 8
3.4 State aid & public procurement ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9
3.5 Access to finance........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 10
3.6 Single market .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 11
3.7 Skills & innovation ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 12
3.8 Environment ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 13
3.9 Internationalisation ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 14
4. Interesting initiative ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15

1. SMEs — basic figures

Class size Number of enterprises Number of persons employed Value added

Romania EU-28 Romania EU-28 Romania EU-28

Number Share Share Number Share Share Billion € Share Share
Micro 392 191 87.7 % 92.8 % 903 100 23.5 % 29.5 % 9.4 15.8 % 21.2 %
Small 45 413 10.2 % 6.0 % 883 851 23.0 % 20.2 % 9.4 15.7 % 18.0 %
Medium-sized 7 933 1.8 % 1.0 % 812 205 21.1 % 17.0 % 11.0 18.4 % 18.2 %
SMEs 445 537 99.7 % 99.8 % 2 599 156 67.5 % 66.8 % 29.8 49.9 % 57.4 %
Large 1 469 0.3 % 0.2 % 1 251 575 32.5 % 33.2 % 30.0 50.1 % 42.6 %
Total 447 006 100.0 % 100.0 % 3 850 731 100.0 % 100.0 % 59.8 100.0 % 100.0 %
These are estimates for 2015 produced by DIW Econ, based on 2008-2013 figures from the Structural Business Statistics Database
(Eurostat). The data cover the ‘non-financial business economy’, which includes industry, construction, trade, and services (NACE Rev. 2
sections B to J, L, M and N), but not enterprises in agriculture, forestry and fisheries and the largely non-market service sectors such as
education and health. The advantage of using Eurostat data is that the statistics are harmonised and comparable across countries. The
disadvantage is that for some countries the data may be different from those published by national authorities.

Romanian SMEs account for roughly two thirds of employment past 3 years. SMEs in the non-financial business economy have
in the ‘non-financial business economy’, similar to the average fully participated in this growth, particularly in terms of value
share elsewhere in EU. However, their 50 % share of total value added, which rose by 29 % in 2010-2015. SME employment has
added is lower than the EU average of 57 %. Micro-firms in also risen, but only by 6 % within the same period.
particular contribute 16 % of total value added, 5 percentage
points lower than in the rest of the EU. The manufacturing and SMEs in the mining sector experienced strong value added
wholesale and retail trade sectors generate the highest shares growth of more than 100 % in 2010-2015, exceeding the
of value added. Wholesale and retail trade is responsible for sector’s pre-crisis level by 13 %. The stimulus was international
more than a quarter of value added and almost 30 % of investment in the Romanian fossil fuel industry, which has led to
employment. This is significantly more than the EU average and an expansion of the sector despite its overall decline globally.2
a clear indicator that the focus of the Romanian economy is on The coal, mining supplements and petro-gas extraction
trade. subsectors have been the main drivers of growth in SME value
added.
Over recent years, Romania’s economy has continued on its road
to recovery. GDP has increased by at least 3 % annually for the In the transportation and storage sector, in 2010-2015 SME
value added grew by 44 % and employment rose by 27 %. This

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 2

was largely the result of increased demand for transportation
and storage due to the expansion of the fossil fuel industry.
Romania’s advantageous geographic location at the crossroads
between Europe and Asia, along with low labour costs, has
further contributed to Romania’s development as an
international logistics hub for fossil fuel products.3 SMEs in this
sector have also benefited from increased demand for
specialised transport services, resulting from multinational
companies opening distribution centres in Romania. Moreover,
low fuel costs have contributed to an increase in passenger and
freight traffic in general, especially by air,4,5 and postal and
courier services have further supported sector growth by
providing flexible services to cater for the increase in trading and
deliveries arising from digitisation of business processes.
Another sector which has performed particularly well in recent
years is administrative activities. In 2008-2015, SME value
added and employment in this sector rose by 55 % and 29 %
respectively. The main subsectors driving growth were
employment activities and office administrative and support
service activities. These sectors benefited from increased
demand from multinational companies establishing branches in
Romania to reduce global production costs6 The emergence of
new business districts for ICT, retail trade, banking and law has
2. SBA profile15
Overall, Romania’s SBA performance presents a mixed picture.
Progress since 2008 is largely above the EU average, except for
the areas of Internationalisation, Environment and Single
market. Although a large number of policy measures were
implemented, SME stakeholders consider that progress in
implementing the SBA has been moderate.
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
led to increased demand for administrative and support services
and also for specialised personnel.7,8 Companies in rental and
leasing activities grew strongly too, benefiting from the
increasing trend among existing and new businesses to
outsource fleet and fleet management.9,10
In 2015, there were 113 167 new business registrations, 11 %
more than in 2014, which was the first increase after 3 years of
contraction. A number of government funding schemes
contributed to this renewed growth. These included programmes
to support micro-firms in various sectors, including the ICT
sector,11,12 as well as support for companies irrespective of size
classes, for example companies operating in rural areas.13
De-registrations, however, totalled 94 374 in 2015, which was
higher than in previous years, and a rise of more than 100 %
compared to 2007. As a result, the net increase of 18 793 new
companies in 2015 was much lower than in previous years. As a
comparison, the net increases in 2011 and 2013 were
significantly higher, at 75 824 and 44 030 respectively.14
Over the 2015-2017 period, SME value added is forecasted to
grow by 8 % annually. The outlook for SME employment is less
positive, with a projected increase of only 2 % in 2015-2017.
Since 2008, Romania has implemented a large amount of policy
measures addressing all policy areas of the Small Business Act
(SBA). In the previous reference period, i.e. in 2014 and the first
quarter of 2015, 37 measures were introduced, indicating strong
policy activity. Despite such an active approach, the overall
performance on the SBA areas remains modest due to persisting
weaknesses in its implementation, particularly on Skills &
innovation, the Single market, Environment and
Internationalisation.
In 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, which is the reference
period for this year’s fact sheet, Romania implemented 21 policy
measures addressing 8 out of the 10 policy areas under the SBA.
In addition, nine policy measures have been announced during
the current reference period.
There is a wide consensus that the areas that saw the most
important progress during the reference period were: Access to
finance, ‘Responsive administration’ and State aid & public
procurement.
A mix of financing programmes and tax reductions was
introduced under Access to finance. Among the measures
adopted in 2015 under ‘Responsive administration’, two
strategies are particularly relevant. The ‘National Strategy for
Youth Policy for 2015-2020’ is expected to adapt vocational
training systems to the labour market in accordance with SMEs’
needs. Furthermore, the ‘Strategy for Competitiveness 2015-
3
2020’ is expected to have a positive impact on the
competitiveness of the SME and business environment, on
cluster development and on the creation of links between SME
stakeholders. In addition, specific measures for tax reductions
and fiscal incentives for individual investors (business angels)
were implemented within the ‘Responsive administration’ policy
area. Under State aid & public procurement, the authorities sent
an important signal to the business environment with the reform
of public procurement, started in 2015. The reform was
accompanied by two financial measures, namely ‘state aid for
SMEs’ and ‘supporting investments of SMEs in rural areas’.
Existing measures continued on Internationalisation and
Entrepreneurship. Under Entrepreneurship, four previously
launched measures continued to be implemented and one was
formally announced for 2016. On Internationalisation, the
Romanian Institute for Foreign Trade (Institutul Român de
Comerţ Exterior) was established and two other financial
programmes were implemented. However, both are part of
ongoing multiannual schemes for the Export Promotion
Programme already put in place in 2014. Under the Single
market area, a portal was launched to facilitate information and
knowledge transfer about standardisation processes.
SBA performance of Romania: state of play and development from 2008 to 201616
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
The ‘Second chance’ and Environment principles experienced the
least progress during the reference period, as no significant
measures were adopted. Overall, there are still important
weaknesses in Romania’s SBA performance.
The ongoing process of simplifying administrative procedures for
businesses needs to continue. Romania also needs to:
 continue to increase transparency and efficiency in its
public administration;
 continue to reform the public procurement system to
address systemic deficiencies through full
implementation of the national public procurement
strategy;
 implement the civil service strategy and reforms to
strengthen inter-ministerial cooperation.
A speedy resolution of insolvency, providing a better and easier
re-start for entrepreneurs, would also benefit SMEs. Policy
initiatives to improve the innovation potential of SMEs should
also be put in place.
4
 3. SBA principles17
3.0 ‘Think Small First’
The ‘Think Small First’ principle is intended as a guiding principle
for all policy- and law-making activities. It requires policy-
makers to take SME interests into account at the early stages of
the policy-making process. The principle also calls for newly
designed legislation, administrative rules and procedures to be
made simple and easy to apply.
The government has taken various initiatives under this principle
in the past years. Progress was made through the adoption of
the new SME Law in 2014, which is a step forward towards
applying the ‘SME test’, the ‘only once’ and ‘one in/one out’
principles. The methodology for developing and implementing
the ‘SME test’ was developed immediately after the approval of
the SME Law. The same year, in June 2014, the government also
established a consultative body under the coordination of the
Department for SMEs, Business Environment and Tourism to
assess the economic impact of legislative initiatives on SMEs.
Despite the creation of the SME test, the process is at an early
stage and efforts should be made to further increase its
efficiency, improve coordination and involve all parties
concerned. The ‘only once’ principle needs further improvement,
due to the bureaucracy SMEs must face, which often involves
reporting the same information multiple times to different
governmental authorities.
During 2015 and first quarter of 2016, Romania implemented
three new significant measures:
- ‘Increasing the turnover ceiling for micro-SMEs from
EUR 65 000 to EUR 100 000’ (Majorarea plafoanelor cifrei
de afaceri a microintreprinderilor de la EUR 65 000 la
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
EUR 100 000). This is a legal measure (Government
Ordinance of 27 October 2015 and Law No 227/2015) with
positive effects on the Fiscal Code. It was implemented by
the Ministry of Public Finance and entered into force in
January 2016.
- The measure ‘Amendments to the company law 31/1990’
(Modificari si completari aduse legii 31/1990 a societatilor),
introduced by the Ministry of Justice in 2015, amends the
existing company law, with important implications for the
business environment. Namely, it affects how creditors of a
shareholder may exercise their right to seize and sell the
debtor’s shares (applicable for all types of companies) and
includes the dissolution and merging of companies. Also,
Directive 2012/17/UE has been transposed in Romania
through Law 152/2015, which amended the legislation on
registration in the trade register to make it possible to
interconnect central, commercial and company registers,
with the aim of creating a more business-friendly legal and
fiscal environment.
- Several ‘Consultations of SME stakeholders’ (Activitati de
consultare a sectorului IMM) were carried out in 2015 by
the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business Environment’s
Department for Entrepreneurship Policies and
Implementation of SMEs programmes. The aim of the
consultation is to achieve better communication between
governmental organisations and businesses. Its main
objective is to better understand and quickly obtain
information on SMEs’ needs by collecting inputs and
opinions through specific online tools.
5
3.1 Entrepreneurship
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
Early stage entrepreneurial activity (%); 2015; Romania: 10.8; EU avg: 7.8

Early stage entrepreneurial activity for female population (%); 2015;

Romania: 7.5; EU avg: 5.45

Established business ownership rate (%); 2015; Romania: 7.5; EU avg: 6.7

Opportunity-driven entrepreneurial activity (%); 2015; Romania: 33.2; EU

avg: 47.9
Entrepreneurial intentions (percentage of adults who intend to start a
business within 3 years); 2015; Romania: 29; EU avg: 12.1
Degree to which school education helped develop an entrepreneurial
attitude; 2012; Romania: 73; EU avg: 50
Entrepreneurship as a desirable career choice (%); 2015; Romania: 72.4;
EU avg: 56.9
High status given to successful entrepreneurship (%); 2015; Romania: 75.1;
EU avg: 66.6
Media attention given to entrepreneurship (%); 2015; Romania: 67.4; EU
avg: 53.3
Entrepreneurship education at basic school (1-5) ; 2015; Romania: 2.35;
EU avg: 2.09
Entrepreneurship education at post-secondary levels (1-5); 2015; Romania:
2.73; EU avg: 2.78

-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.

In Entrepreneurship, Romania’s performance is above the EU
average. Even though results show an outstanding performance,
some indicators have worsened since the preceding year. This is
the case for opportunity-driven entrepreneurship, for which
activity significantly decreased (from 49.75 % in 2014 to 33.2 %
in 2015).
Although entrepreneurship education at post-secondary levels
indicator shows results slightly below the EU average, the
implementation of the education curriculum, as an SBA
recommendation, is relatively well applied. In this regard,
continued allocation of corresponding funding could help to
improve results.
In Romania, entrepreneurial intentions and entrepreneurship as a
desirable career choice are among the highest compared with
EU. This shows good prospects for the setting-up of new
businesses in the country.
The promotion of entrepreneurship has been one of the most
active areas since the implementation of the SBA in Romania.
Relevant measures include school education initiatives and
action plans, creating an entrepreneurial culture/attitude among
students and teachers, women and young people.
Entrepreneurship curricula were also introduced in secondary
schools and teacher training.
In 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, four measures were
implemented. These are actually a continuation of measures
started in 2014, which became operational through calls for
proposals during the second part of 2015, albeit with significant
delays, partially due to lack of funding.
- ‘Romania HUB’ is an initiative of the Department for SMEs,
Business Environment and Tourism, implemented in 2015. It
aims to create a common platform dedicated to
entrepreneurship. The platform places multiple stakeholders
under the same umbrella in order to facilitate and promote
cooperation and set up partnerships.
- The ‘Programme to develop entrepreneurial skills among
young people and facilitate their access to funding’ (START
— Programul pentru dezvoltarea abilitatilor antreprenoriale
in randul tinerilor si facilitarea accesului acestora la
finantare), implemented by the Ministry of Energy, SMEs
and Business Environment, supports the development of

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 6

 entrepreneurial skills among young people. It also makes it
easier for them to access to funds to set up new SMEs or to
improve the economic performance of existing ones.
- The ‘Programme to stimulate the setting-up and
development of micro-enterprises by first-time
entrepreneurs’ (Programul pentru stimularea infiintarii si
dezvoltarii microintreprinderilor de catre intreprinzatorii
debutanti in afaceri), implemented by the Ministry of
Energy, SMEs and Business Environment, stimulates the
development of micro-SMEs. It also increases access to
3.2 ‘Second chance’
Time to resolve insolvency (in years); 2016; Romania: 3.3; EU avg: 1.97
Cost of resolving insolvency (cost of recovering debt as percentage of the
debtor's estate); 2016; Romania: 10.5; EU avg: 10.25
Degree of support for a second chance (%); 2012; Romania: 86; EU avg:
82
Fear of failure rate (%); 2015; Romania: 40.5; EU avg: 40.7
Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16); 2016; Romania: 13.5; EU
avg: 11.82
-2.0
Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.
‘Second chance’ means ensuring that honest entrepreneurs who
have gone bankrupt get a second chance quickly. Similar to last
year, the overall score for this principle is in line with EU
average. No major changes could be seen on the indicators.
The biggest concern in this area is the time it takes to resolve
insolvency procedures. This remains one of the longest in the EU
(3.3 years) and prevents honest entrepreneurs from getting a
second chance quickly.
Over the last few years, a number of measures in this area have
been formally announced, then postponed/repealed, approved
and finally implemented. Instances of this include the Law on
non-fraudulent bankruptcy in 2010 and the ‘Insolvency Law —
New Code of Insolvency’, approved in 2014.
The obstacles to a second chance lie, in general, in the
burdensome legal framework. The need for a new Code of
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
finance and supports the development of entrepreneurial
skills among young people. The programme offers tax
incentives to young entrepreneurs setting up their first
business.
- The ‘Programme to develop entrepreneurial culture among
women managers in the SME sector’ (Programul pentru
dezvoltarea culturii antreprenoriale in randul femeilor
manager din sectorul IMM) aims to encourage women
entrepreneurs by providing them with direct financial
support.
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
Insolvency became apparent as a consequence of the difficult
economic situation and previous legislation on insolvency. Under
the previous legislation, insolvency proceedings were excessively
protective of the debtor without maximising the recovery of
claims by creditors. In this context, the new Code of Insolvency
made significant progress, but more should be done to reduce
the time to resolve insolvency.
Romania should focus on promoting a positive attitude in society
with regard to honest entrepreneurs being given a fresh start,
and set up an early warning system.
In 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, there have been no
specific significant policies addressing the ‘Second chance’ SBA
area.
7
3.3 ‘Responsive administration’
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)

Time to start a business (in calendar days); 2015; Romania: 2; EU avg: 3.35

Cost of starting a business (in euros); 2015; Romania: 100; EU avg: 315.74

Paid-in minimum capital (percentage of income per capita); 2016; Romania: 0.6;
EU avg: 10.66

Time required to transfer property (in calendar days); 2016; Romania: 19; EU
avg: 23.04

Cost required to transfer property (percentage of property value); 2016;

Romania: 1.4; EU avg: 4.46

Number of tax payments per year; 2016; Romania: 14; EU avg: 10.89

Time it takes to pay taxes (hours per year); 2016; Romania: 159; EU avg:
185.55

Cost of enforcing contracts (percentage of claim); 2016; Romania: 28.9; EU avg:

21.88

Fast-changing legislation and policies are a problem for doing business

(percentage of respondents who agree); 2015; Romania: 85; EU avg: 64

The complexity of administrative procedures is a problem for doing business

(percentage of respondents who agree); 2015; Romania: 79; EU avg: 62

SMEs interacting online with public authorities (%); 2013; Romania: 65.35; EU
avg: 87.85

Licenses and permit systems (1=lowest level of complexity, 26=highest level of

complexity); 2011; Romania: 19.4; EU avg: 15.77

Start-up procedures (number); 2016; Romania: 5; EU avg: 4.93

Burden of government regulations (1=burdensome, 7=not burdensome); 2015;

Romania: 3.12; EU avg: 3.24

Competency and effectiveness of government staff in supporting new and

growing firms (1-5); 2015; Romania: 2.06; EU avg: 2.7

-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.

'Responsive administration’ means public administration being
responsive to the needs of SMEs. Romania has improved in this
area since 2008.
Romania’s public administration offers a reasonable time and
costs for starting a business and for transferring property.
Since the preceding period, Romania has improved on the
perception that fast changing legislation and policies pose a
problem for doing business (88 % in 2013 and 85 % in 2015).
However, more work still needs to be done in this regard.
of SMEs interacted online with the authorities, compared with an
EU average of 88 %. A positive sign is that the new government
made supporting interoperability of online platforms at national
level and providing better digital services one of its priorities.
The strategic framework for public administration reform has
been in place since 2014, but its implementation was slow in
2015. Complicated administrative procedures and widespread
corruption still constrain the delivery of services (including e-
government services). Strategic planning, programme budgeting,
consultation practices and evidence-based policy-making remain
under-used.

In Romania, interaction between SMEs and public authorities

through an online platform is relatively low. In 2013 only 65 %

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 8

Romania has made significant progress in this area, with 26
measures adopted since the launch of the SBA. In 2011, the
‘Unique Statement 112’ (the unique employer declaration,
combining in a single step reporting requirements to determine
both social contributions and income taxes) was introduced,
followed by a reduction in the number of taxes to be paid by
SMEs. Moreover, some specific measures were launched to
reduce the time and cost to register new businesses, offering
specialised (online) services to accelerate the development of
SMEs. In 2014, two important strategic documents also came
into force. These were:
 the ‘Government Strategy for development of SMEs
and business environment — horizon 2020’, correlated
with the recommendations of the SBA and
Entrepreneurship 2020 action plan; and
 the ‘National Strategy for RDI 2014-2020’.
During 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, four significant
measures were adopted.
- The ‘National Strategy for Competitiveness 2015–2020’
(Strategia Nationala pentru Competitivitate 2015–2020),
implemented in 2015 by the Ministry of Economy. The
strategy’s relevance for SMEs lies in its support for the
development of a competitive business ecosystem, based
3.4 State aid & public procurement
Percentage SMEs account for in the total value of public contracts awarded
(%); 2013; Romania: 44; EU avg: 29
Percentage of businesses participating in public tenders (%); 2015;
Romania: 25; EU avg: 37
Average delay in payments from public authorities (in days); 2015;
Romania: 0; EU avg: 12.58
Percentage of businesses submitting proposals in a public electronic tender
system (e-procurement) (%); 2013; Romania: 14.76; EU avg: 12.85
-2.0
Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.
No major changes happened on State aid & public procurement
compared to the preceding year. Since 2008, Romania has
significantly improved its performance on this principle
compared with the EU and is now close to the EU average.
However, there is still room for improvement, mainly over public
tender participation.
Participation of businesses in public tenders decreased from
30 % in 2013 to 25 % in 2015. In this regard, it is important
that Romania reforms its public procurement system in order to
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
on a stable regulatory environment. The strategy focuses on
entrepreneurship, innovation, efficiency and cluster creation.
- The ‘Law to support business angels’ (Lege privind
stimularea investitorilor individuali), introduced in 2015,
provides fiscal incentives to stimulate private individual
investors (business angels) to invest in newly created SMEs
and micro-enterprises.
- The ‘National Strategy for Youth Policy for 2015-2020’
(Strategia Nationala in domeniul politicii de tineret pentru
perioada 2015-2020), adopted in 2015, aims to stimulate
youth mobility in the internal labour market, increase self-
employment, promote entrepreneurship and improve the
relevance of vocational education training to the needs of
the labour market and SMEs.
- The ‘Law approving Government Emergency Ordinance
No 84/2014 supplementing Government Ordinance
No 58/1998 on the organisation of tourism in Romania’
(Lege nr. 93/2015 privind aprobarea Ordonantei de urgenta
a Guvernului nr 84/2014 pentru completarea Ordonantei
Guvernului nr. 58/1998 privind organizarea si desfasurarea
activitatii de turism in Romania), introduced in 2015,
reduces the VAT rate on tourism accommodation from 24 %
to 9 %. This has had positive repercussions on the revenues
of SMEs in the sector.
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
address systemic deficiencies through full implementation of the
national public procurement strategy. A new institution, the
National Authority for Public Procurement (ANAP), under the
authority of the Ministry of Public Finance, will play a crucial role
by providing better oversight of public investment management
and ensuring increased quality of public spending.
On the average delay in payments from public authorities,
Romania has improved considerably since the preceding year (21
days of delay in 2014 against 0 days of delay in 2015). In order
9
to help SMEs, the payment of VAT is only required after SMEs
receive the payment from the client.
Particular progress was achieved in 2013 through the ‘State Aid
schemes’, which aim to support the development of SMEs, create
new jobs, increase the competitiveness of industrial products
and support regional development by stimulating new
investments.
Moderate progress was made during 2015 and the first quarter
of 2016. The following two significant new measures were
implemented in 2015 by the Ministry of Public Finance as part of
the ‘public procurement reform’ (Reforma domeniului achizitiilor
publice), aiming to make procurement more accessible to SMEs
and to apply the best price-quality ratio principle:
3.5 Access to finance
On Access to finance, Romania’s score is in line with the EU
average.
In Romania, SMEs are perceived as risky for banks due to the
lack of collateral and their high share of non-performing loans.
Furthermore, there is a lack of comprehensive regulatory
framework, including investor and entrepreneur protection, for
alternative sources of financing.
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
- The establishment of the ‘National Agency for Public
Procurement’, responsible for implementing the reform. The
Agency created a helpdesk to advise applicants on how to
use its methodological guidance. Using a web-based tool,
the Agency supports procurement procedures by reducing
time and costs for data processing, providing quicker
answers, prioritising the specific requests and providing a
single point of access.
- The drafting of the ‘National Strategy for Public
Procurement 2015–2020’, which brings a new approach to
public procurement. The strategy improves the procurement
system by addressing law-making, policy-making,
monitoring and supervision, operational support and
helpdesk, control, remedies and redress.
The country is still at a preliminary stage in the diversification of
financing resources. Similarly, Romania has recently introduced a
law regulating conditions for individual investors so that they
can benefit from tax facilities. However, it is too early to assess
whether this will improve business angels funding.
Since 2012, a significant number of measures (36) have been
introduced in this area. For instance, to specifically address
10
SMEs’ need to obtain co-financing for their EU projects and in so
doing also encourage the absorption of structural funds, the
‘Romanian Counter Guarantee Fund’ was established, together
with the National Credit Guarantee Funds for SMEs.
During 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, significant progress
has been made under this principle. Romania improved the
allocation of funds from state budget for different multiannual
national programmes for SMEs, with the result that more SMEs
were the direct beneficiaries of these programmes and funds.
The EU structural funds absorption capacity by SMEs improved
as well, and new programmes and projects were implemented.
activitatilor de comercializare a produselor si serviciilor de
piata) is a multiannual programme to support and stimulate
SMEs, facilitating their access to funds in order to increase
their economic and technical performance. With a budget of
EUR 6.2 million, it was re-launched in the second half of
2015.
- The ‘Income tax reduction for micro-SMEs’ (Reducerea
impozitului pentru microintreprinderi), introduced in January
2016, introduced a system of differentiated tax rates for
micro-enterprises depending on how many employees they
have (1 % if more than two and 3 % if no employees).

The significant measures implemented include the following,
which consist of a mix of financing programmes and tax
reductions:
- The ‘Programme to develop marketing activities for market
products and services’ (Programul de dezvoltare a
- The ‘Reduction of the standard VAT rate’ (Reducerea
fiscalitatii prin reducerea cotei standard de TVA) from 24 %
to 20 %, starting from January 2016, aims to reduce fiscal
pressure, boost consumption and boost investments.

3.6 Single market

Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
Number of single market directives not yet transposed; 2015; Romania: 13;
EU avg: 8
Average transposition delay for overdue directives (in months); 2015;
Romania: 8.1; EU avg: 7.46
Number of pending infringement proceedings; 2015; Romania: 24; EU avg:
27
Public contracts secured abroad by SMEs (percentage of total value of
public contracts); 2013; Romania: 0.5; EU avg: 2.6
SMEs with intra-EU exports of goods (percentage of SMEs in industry);
2013; Romania: 12.68; EU avg: 17.3
SMEs with intra-EU imports of goods (percentage of SMEs in industry);
2013; Romania: 21.25; EU avg: 25.95

Intra-EU online exporters (% of SMEs); 2015; Romania: 1.93; EU avg: 7.52

Easy market access for new and growing firms (1-5); 2015; Romania: 2.11;
EU avg: 2.78
Market access for new and growing firms without being unfairly blocked by
established firms (1-5); 2015; Romania: 2.61; EU avg: 2.78

-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.
On Single market, Romania performs below the EU average.
Even though Romania has put in place many of the SBA
recommendations, results show there is still room for
improvement, particularly in increasing the export performance
(including online exports) of Romanian enterprises. Indeed, as
many SMEs are sub-contractors of multinationals or larger
companies, they are not currently in a position to be easily
involved directly as importers or exporters. The ‘Romanian Portal
for Foreign Trade’ works as a single point of contact to support
SMEs in the single market.
During 2015 and first quarter of 2016, only one significant
measure was implemented. The National Agency for
Standardisation (ASRO) launched in 2015 the ‘SME Portal’ (Portal
pentru IMM-uri) on its official website. The aim of the portal is to
improve information flow and knowledge transfer to SMEs over
standardisation processes.

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 11

3.7 Skills & innovation
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
Percentage of SMEs introducing product or process innovations; 2012;
Romania: 5.16; EU avg: 30.6
Percentage of SMEs introducing marketing or organisational innovations ;
2012; Romania: 18.11; EU avg: 36.19
Percentage of SMEs innovating in-house; 2012; Romania: 10.57; EU avg:
28.68
Percentage of innovative SMEs collaborating with others; 2012; Romania:
1.2; EU avg: 10.32
Sales of new-to-market and new-to-firm innovations (percentage of
turnover); 2012; Romania: 3.69; EU avg: 12.4

Percentage of SMEs selling online; 2015; Romania: 7.39; EU avg: 16.16

Percentage of SMEs purchasing online; 2015; Romania: 13.13; EU avg:

22.55

Turnover from e-commerce; 2015; Romania: 4.85; EU avg: 9.4

Percentage of all enterprises that train their employees; 2010; Romania: 24;
EU avg: 66
Percentage of persons employed that have ICT specialist skills; 2015;
Romania: 11.91; EU avg: 19.95
Percentage of enterprises providing ICT skills training to their employees;
2015; Romania: 4.67; EU avg: 20.08

National R&D available to SMEs (1-5); 2015; Romania: 2.16; EU avg: 2.48

-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.

Skills & innovation is the most problematic area for Romania, Another significant gap in this area has been the delay in
which is one of the poorest performing countries in the EU in this launching and completing the calls for proposals addressing R&D
area. and innovation issues

Romania has included all the policy advice from the SBA
recommendations in its agenda, but this has not yet yielded
results. Companies do not invest enough in training, and the
public authorities are not aligning the education of the future
workforce with the market needs. Participation in adult education
is very low.
During 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, moderate progress
was achieved in this domain, with only one significant measure
being implemented. The ‘Law providing for the suspension of
taxes in the field of protection of industrial property’, introduced
in 2015, aims to protect the intellectual property rights of SMEs,
thus stimulating and valorising research and innovation among
Romanian SMEs and research entities.

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 12

3.8 Environment
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
Percentage of SMEs that have taken resource-efficiency measures; 2015;
Romania: 62; EU avg: 95
Percentage of SMEs that have benefited from public support measures for
their resource-efficiency actions; 2015; Romania: 8; EU avg: 30
Percentage of SMEs that offer green products or services; 2015; Romania:
26; EU avg: 26
Percentage of SMEs with a turnover share of more than 50% generated by
green products or services; 2015; Romania: 28; EU avg: 18
Percentage of SMEs that have benefited from public support measures for
their production of green products; 2015; Romania: 0; EU avg: 23

-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.

Romania’s score fell compared to the preceding period and the
country is now one of the poorest performing countries in the EU
in this area. This could mainly be explained by the deterioration
of two indicators: firstly, a lower proportion of SMEs have taken
resource-efficiency measures (62 % of SMEs in 2015 as
compared to 89 % of SMEs in 2013); secondly, the share of
SMEs that benefited from public support measures to produce
green products has significantly decreased.
In 2013, a grant-supported credit line for Romania from the EU
funds and the EBRD was adopted, dedicated to promoting
private sector investments (including SMEs) in energy efficiency.
In 2014, two Ministry of Economy programmes offered grants to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with the aim of improving
energy efficiency in industry and increasing energy production
from renewable sources. These programmes were:
 the ‘Energy efficiency in industry for SMEs programme’
(Programul Eficienta Energetica in Industrie pentru
IMM); and
 the ‘Renewable energy programme’ (Programul Energie
Regenerabila), targeting hydro and geothermal energy.
During 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, no significant
additional measures were adopted under this SBA area.

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 13

3.9 Internationalisation
SMEs with extra-EU exports of goods (percentage of SMEs in industry);
2013; Romania: 4.67; EU avg: 9.95
SMEs with extra-EU imports of goods (percentage of SMEs in industry);
2013; Romania: 6.66; EU avg: 11.08
Time to export for documentary compliance (in hours); 2016; Romania: 1;
EU avg: 1.39
Cost to export for documentary compliance (in USD); 2016; Romania: 0; EU
avg: 16.43
Time to import for documentary compliance (in hours); 2016; Romania: 1;
EU avg: 1.07
Cost to import for documentary compliance (in USD); 2016; Romania: 0; EU
avg: 6.61
-2.0
Note: Data bars pointing right show better performance than the EU average and data bars pointing left show weaker performance.
Romanian score on Internationalisation is broadly in line with the
EU average. Measures were adopted between 2012 and 2014 to
support the promotion of the national products and services on
external markets and the participation of economic players at
fairs and exhibitions abroad. In 2014, the ‘Office for attracting
investments in SMEs and Internationalisation’ was established
within the Ministry of Economy’s new Directorate-General for
Entrepreneurial Policies.
During 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, three measures were
adopted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Tourism in order
to offer internationalisation services for SMEs:
- In 2015, the ‘Romanian Institute for Foreign Trade’
(Institutul Român de Comerţ Exterior) was established under
the direct coordination of the Ministry. Its aim is to promote
and support exports, organise fairs and exhibitions for
economic players in the country and abroad, and promote
tourism at national and international level. The Institute
implements the activities of the ‘National Strategy for
Export 2014-2020’ and the ‘National Strategy for Tourism
Development’.
2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania
Variation from the EU average
(measured in standard deviations, EU average=0)
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
- As part of the ongoing multiannual ‘Export Promotion
Programme’ (already enacted in 2014), 2015 saw the
implementation of an initiative entitled ‘Participation by
economic operators, under the national flag, at international
fairs and exhibitions abroad’ (Participarea operatorilor
economici, sub pavilion national, la targuri si expozitii
internationale in strainatate). With a budget of almost
EUR 9 million, the initiative offers financial support to SMEs
(with individual grants up to EUR 200 000), aiming to
promote export activities, improve company export structure
and boost the access of domestic products and services to
foreign markets.
- The ‘Organisation of economic missions and promotional
events abroad’ (Organizarea de misiuni economice si
evenimente de promovare in strainatate) initiative, also part
of the ‘Export Promotion Programme’, was implemented in
2015 with a budget of EUR 1.3 million. It offers financial
support to SMEs (with grants up to EUR 200 000) to help
them participate in economic missions and promotional
events abroad.
14
 4. Interesting initiative

Below is an example of an initiative from Romania to show what governments can do to support SMEs:

Programme to develop marketing activities for market products and services

Implemented in 2015 by the Ministry of Energy, SMEs and Business Environment, the ‘Programme to develop marketing activities for
market products and services’ is an ongoing multiannual programme to support and stimulate the development of SMEs in Romania.
Its goal is to make it easier for them to access funds, so that they can boost their economic and technical performance. Ultimately,
the measure seeks to increase competitiveness, create new jobs and maintain existing ones. With a budget of EUR 6.2 million
(RON 28 million), the programme offers financial support through participation in call for proposals.

The programme has focused on strengthening the capacity of businesses to promote their products and services on the market, and
on developing and modernising the activity of traders and service providers in the market.

The main results achieved in 2015 are as follows:

- 1 229 applicants submitted applications (investment plans) for financial support;

- 200 were funded, with a value of EUR 5.5 million (RON 24.5 million, absorption rate of 87.5 %);

- 724 jobs were created, including 400 new jobs among graduates.

References:

http://www.aippimm.ro/articol/comunicate/raport-activitate-2015/

http://www.aippimm.ro/articol/programe/programe-nationale-2015/programul-de-dezvoltare-351-i-modernizare-a-activit-259-355-
ilor-de-comercializare-a-produselor-351-i-serviciilor-de-pia-355-259-2015

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 15

Important remarks

The European Commission Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW) produces the
SBA fact sheets as part of the SME Performance Review (SPR), its main vehicle for economic analysis of SME issues. They
combine the latest available statistical and policy information. Produced annually, the fact sheets help to organise the available
information to facilitate SME policy assessments and monitor SBA implementation. They take stock and record progress. They are
not an assessment of Member State policies. Rather, they should be regarded as an additional source of information to improve
evidence-based policy-making. For example, they cite only policy measures national SME policy experts consider relevant. They do
not and cannot reflect all measures the government has taken over the reference period. There is more policy information on a
database accessible from the SPR website.

SME Performance Review:

http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/business-friendly-environment/performance-review/index_en.htm

grow-spr@ec.europa.eu

Small Business Act:

http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/business-friendly-environment/small-business-act/index_en.htm

European Small Business Portal:

http://ec.europa.eu/small-business/index_en.htm

Endnotes

1
The two graphs below present the trend over time for the variables. They consist of index values for the years since 2008, with
the base year 2008 set at a value of 100. As from 2014, the graphs show estimates of the development over time, produced by
DIW Econ on the basis of 2008-2013 figures from Eurostat’s Structural Business Statistics Database. The data cover the ‘non-
financial business economy’, which includes industry, construction, trade and services (NACE Rev. 2 sections B to J, L, M and N).
They do not cover enterprises in agriculture, forestry and fisheries or largely non-market service sectors such as education and
health. A detailed methodology can be consulted at: http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/business-friendly-environment/performance-
review/index_en.htm
2
http://www.traficmedia.ro/ro/7738-crestere-cu-15-fata-de-2014-si-noi-servicii-de-transport-specializat.html; last accessed
08.04.2016.
3
http://www.traficmedia.ro/ro/7738-crestere-cu-15-fata-de-2014-si-noi-servicii-de-transport-specializat.html; last accessed
08.04.2016.
4
http://turism.bzi.ro/profiturile-companiilor-aeriene-vor-continua-sa-creasca-in-2016-46875; last accessed 08.04.2016.
5
http://www.sursadestiri.net/aeroportul-timi-oara-extinde-aerogara-anul-acesta-se-estimeaza-un-tranzit-de-1-milion-de-
pasageri-s2952439265.html; last accessed 08.04.2016.
6
http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Careers/188370/apt-group-estimeaza-afaceri-in-crestere-cu-20-in-acest-an-recrutarile-in-
domeniul-vanzarilor-au-crescut.html; last accessed 08.04.2016.
7
http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Real-Estate/193994/analiza-cele-mai-mari-tranzactii-de-inchirieri-de-birouri-din-2015.html; last
accessed 08.04.2016.
8
http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Real-Estate/193987/cbre-sectorul-industrial-a-dominat-investitiile-imobiliare-in-2015.html; last
accessed 08.04.2016.
9
http://adevarul.ro/life-style/auto/piata-leasing-operational-crescut-13-2015-1_56ba56dc5ab6550cb8a05d46/index.html; last
accessed 08.04.2016.
10
http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Finante-Banci/194867/piata-de-leasing-financiar-crestere-in-2015.html; last accessed
08.04.2016.

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 16

11
http://www.aippimm.ro/articol/programe/programe-nationale-2015/programul-pentru-stimularea-nfiin-355-259-rii-351-i-
dezvolt-259-rii-micro-ntreprinderilor-de-c-259-tre-ntreprinz-259-torii-debutan-355-i-n-afaceri; last accessed 08.04.2016.
12
http://www.aippimm.ro/files/articles_files/39/6402/raportdpaipimm2015.pdf; last accessed 08.04.2016.
13
http://www.pndr.ro/pndr-2014-2020.html; last accessed 08.04.2016.
14
National Trade Register Office; section ‘Radieri/Liquidations’; available at http://www.onrc.ro/index.php/ro/statistici; last accessed
08.04.2016.
15
The 2016 SBA fact sheets benefited substantially from input from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) in
Ispra, Italy. The JRC made major improvements to the methodological approach, statistical work on the dataset and the visual
presentation of the data.
16
The quadrant chart combines two sets of information. Firstly, it shows current performance based on data for the latest
available years. This information is plotted along the X-axis, measured in standard deviations of the simple, non-weighted
arithmetical average for the EU-28. Secondly, it shows progress over time, i.e. the average annual growth rates from 2008 to
2016. These are measured against the individual indicators which make up the SBA area averages. This means that the location
of a particular SBA area average in any of the four quadrants provides information not only about where the country is located in
this SBA area relative to the EU average at a given point in time, but also about the extent of progress made between 2008 and
2016. All SBA principles, with the exception of the ‘Think Small First’ principle, for which there is not enough statistical data
available, are calculated as composite indicators following the OECD/JRC Handbook guide. A detailed methodology can be
consulted at: http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/business-friendly-environment/performance-review/index_en.htm
17
The policy measures presented in this SBA fact sheet are only a selection of the measures the government took in 2015 and
the first quarter of 2016. The national SME policy expert that CARSA Spain (DG GROW’s lead contractor for the 2016 SBA fact
sheets) contracted made the selection. The experts were asked to select only the measures they considered the most important,
i.e. the ones expected to have the highest impact in the SBA area in question. The complete range of measures the experts
compiled in producing this year’s fact sheets will be published alongside the fact sheets in a policy database on the DG GROW
website.

2016 SBA Fact Sheet — Romania 17