Moldova

Taxable period

The tax year for CIT purposes is the calendar year. For new business entities, the fiscal year is considered the period beginning with the registration date until the end of the calendar year. Taxpayers have the right to choose a tax period different from the calendar one, subject to specific conditions.

For WHT and VAT purposes, the fiscal period is the calendar month starting the first day of the month. The VAT period for non-residents providing services through electronic networks to Moldovan resident individuals (B2C transactions) is the calendar quarter.

Tax returns

An annual CIT return must be submitted to the MTA by the 25th day of the third month following the end of the tax period.

WHT and payroll liabilities must be declared and settled monthly, no later than the 25th day of the month following the reporting one.

Farming enterprises and individual entrepreneurs with an annual average number of employees not exceeding five and not registered as VAT payers must submit a unified annual tax return, provided certain conditions are met.

All taxpayers (except individuals) are required to submit tax reports using automated electronic reporting methods.

Adjusted tax returns

Taxpayers who discover that the tax return previously submitted contains an error are able to submit an adjusted tax return, provided that no written decision was issued by the tax authority in order to initiate a tax audit and the related tax period is not covered by a tax control.

As of 1 January 2025, taxpayers have the right to present the corrected tax return related to SSC no later than six years after the deadline for presenting the corrected tax return.

Late interest payments will not be applicable in amounts higher than the tax liability resulting from the adjusted tax return submitted, and no fines will be applicable if the tax duties are paid before the announcement of a tax audit.

Companies that have miscalculated the taxes, and this was not detected in the previous tax audit, are absolved from fines and late interest payments for violations identified within the repeated tax audit.

Payment of tax

Taxpayers must declare and pay the applicable CIT by the 25th day of the third month following the end of tax period. Taxpayers are also required to pay interim CIT, no later than the 25th day of each three months of the current tax period, amounts equal to 25% of either the total estimated value of the CIT due for the current fiscal period or the total value of the calculated CIT for the previous fiscal period.

Companies that, on the last day of the fiscal period, have no more than 249 employees and generate an annual turnover of up to MDL 100 million, or have no more than 249 employees and hold total assets of up to MDL 100 million, may pay the calculated income tax by the 25th day of the month following the month in which dividends were paid, including in the form of shares or equity interests, from the profit obtained during the fiscal periods 2023–2026 inclusive.

The amount of income tax to be paid from the calculated income tax for the fiscal periods 2023–2026 inclusive is determined by applying a pro-rata share to the amount of income tax calculated for the fiscal period based on the taxable income for the respective fiscal period.

Fines and penalties

Among the most important fines and sanctions for non-compliance with applicable tax law, the following are worth mentioning:

• The fine for the performance by the taxpayer of an economic activity with the issuance of a bill without using the existing cash register is from MDL 5,000 to MDL 15,000 (other fines might also be applied for non-compliance with rules related to use of cash registers).
• The fine for the failure to provide the VAT invoice in accordance with the tax law is from MDL 3,000 to MDL 3,600 for each VAT invoice but capped to MDL 72,000.
• The fine for hindering the execution of a tax audit by not providing access to production, storage, commercial, or other facilities is from MDL 4,000 to MDL 6,000.
• The fine for utilisation of blanks with special regime other than those permitted by legislation is between 25% to 30% from the transaction amount.
• The fine for reducing taxes, SSC and health insurance contributions by presenting tax returns containing incorrect data is between 20% to 30% of the reduced amount.
• The fine for evasion from payment of taxes, SSC and health insurance contributions is between 80% and 100% of the related amount.
• The fine for failure to comply with rules concerning the filling in and submission of tax returns is between MDL 500 to MDL 1,000 for each tax return, but not more than MDL 10,000.
• In case of diminishing the taxable income declared by a taxpayer who benefited from the postponement of the deadline for paying the income tax related to the profit obtained for the tax period 2023-2025, a fine ranging from 12% to 15% of the undeclared/diminished taxable income is applied.

Taxpayers who settle amounts as assessed by the MTA within three business days and have no other outstanding liabilities may benefit from a 50% reduction of the fines applied by the tax authorities.

In addition, certain special provisions regarding tax evasion apply. Under Moldovan criminal law, tax evasion is defined as diminishing tax liabilities by more than 50 medium forecasted salaries (MDL 870,000 in 2026) by deliberately including distorted data on income or expenses in accounting, tax, or financial documents, or by hiding taxable objects.

According to Article 244 of the Moldovan Criminal Code:

• If the amount of diminished tax liabilities exceeds 50 medium forecasted salaries (MDL 870,000), legal entities can be punished with a fine ranging from 15,000 to 20,000 conventional units (MDL 750,000–1,000,000) and preclusion from performing certain activities.
• If the amount exceeds 100 medium forecasted salaries (MDL 1,740,000), legal entities can be punished with a fine ranging from 20,000 to 40,000 conventional units (MDL 1,000,000–2,000,000) and preclusion from performing certain activities or liquidation of the legal entity.

The amount of infringement considered insignificant and not triggering fines is of MDL 500 for individuals and MDL 5,000 for legal entities.

Tax audit process

The rules governing the tax audit process are stated in the Tax Code. Generally, the tax audit duration and frequency depend on its type. For instance, a tax audit performed at the taxpayer premises should not exceed two months (with some exceptions) and should be performed no more than once per year for the same taxes and duties, except for specific circumstances provided by law.

Also, a tax audit can be performed on a more frequent basis within certain specific circumstances (e.g. refund of VAT and other taxes, reorganisation).

A repeated tax audit for already audited periods can be performed in a number of cases, for instance:

• If the results of previous controls are inconclusive, incomplete, or not satisfactory.
• If certain circumstances are identified that attest to the existence of tax infringements.
• In the event of reorganisation or liquidation.

The anti-abuse rule came into force on 1 January 2024. In this regard, for determining the taxpayer's fiscal obligations, the state tax service will not take into account or reclassify a transaction, action, or series of transactions or actions that, when considering all the relevant facts and circumstances, reflect a different situation or economic content than the one claimed by the taxpayer and is being undertaken with the aim of obtaining a fiscal advantage.

Statute of limitations

Under the general tax rule, as of 1 January 2025, the limitation period can be extended for a period of more than six years following the last date set for the presentation of the tax return if the taxpayer has not submitted the tax return or requests the return of overpaid amounts or of the amounts which, according to the tax legislation, are to be returned.

Topics of focus for tax authorities

There are no specific topics of focus for the tax authorities. Generally, it depends on the nature of the taxpayer and the specifics of the activity it performs. The main criterion for selection of a company to be subject to a tax audit is a risk based one.

In addition, tax authorities are currently focused on promoting voluntary compliance of the taxpayers.

Rulings

Starting with 2017, the concept of advanced binding ruling has been introduced in the Moldovan tax law.

The binding ruling under the Moldova tax law represents an administrative act issued by the state tax service college in order to solve claims submitted by individuals and legal entities that perform entrepreneurial activity, regarding the applicability of the tax legislation on the future specific situations and/or transactions. The anticipated individual tax ruling is mandatory for MTA and other entities with tax administration attributions, provided certain conditions are met. The procedure of issuing and rejecting of advanced binding rulings is determined by the government.

The law also provides for the possibility of obtaining comfort letters. Taxpayers that inadequately computed tax liabilities due to incorrect written explanations issued by the MTA may not be subject to sanctions (i.e. fines and late-payment penalties). Tax liabilities may still be recomputed by the MTA. Written explanations are issued by the MTA free of charge and may remain valid for an indefinite period of time, unless cancelled by new legislation or other rulings. Such explanations are generally issued by the Moldovan competent authorities during a period of up to one month.