The annual road tax could be replaced with a vehicle tax collected by municipalities, and the vignette would become mandatory for all vehicles, including those registered in the Republic of Moldova. The changes are provided in a public policy document drafted by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development and submitted for public consultation, reports IPN.

The document stipulates the adoption of a new law that will replace the current provisions in the Tax Code regarding the road tax and vignette. The reform is part of the commitments undertaken by the Republic of Moldova in the process of accession to the European Union and aims to transpose by the end of 2027 the European directive on road infrastructure taxation.

One of the main changes is the decentralization of the vehicle tax collection. Starting from January 1, 2028, this is expected to be paid at the town hall within whose jurisdiction the vehicle is registered, and the revenues will remain entirely in the local budgets. The money can only be used for the maintenance and administration of local roads, with local authorities required to present annual public reports and subject expenditures to an audit. The document also indicates that the new system will introduce differentiation of the tax based on CO2 emissions and there will be incentives for vehicles with low or zero emissions, in accordance with European legislation.

The reform also introduces a universal vignette, which will be paid both by vehicles registered in the Republic of Moldova and by those registered in other states. According to the authors of the document, this measure eliminates the differentiated treatment between local and foreign users and simplifies the administration system. Agricultural vehicles – tractors, combine harvesters and other agricultural machinery – will be exempt from the vehicle tax and the vignette.

According to the document, the increase in taxes will be done gradually. In 2028, the amount of the tax will remain at the current level, and during the period 2029-2032 it will increase annually by approximately 25%. In 2033, the minimum level provided by European legislation will be reached, and from 2034 local public authorities will be able to set taxes above this minimum threshold, depending on the needs of the communities. The current amounts are estimated to be 60-70% below the minimum levels provided by the European Directive.

The Ministry argues the necessity of the reform by stating that the current system no longer meets European requirements and does not provide sufficient resources for the maintenance of road infrastructure. The authors estimate that the reform will lead to an increase in revenues dedicated to road maintenance by approximately 205% by 2033, which would allow the elimination of the funding deficit and the modernization of road infrastructure. The revenues currently collected amount to approximately 850-900 million lei annually, while the estimated requirement is 2.5-3 billion lei for the maintenance of the road network.