Increasing the VAT on tourism to 19% is an ill-advised measure and the first to be sacrificed appears to be incoming tourism, vice president of Romania's National Travel Agencies Association (ANAT) Adrian Voican told AGERPRES on Thursday on the sidelines of a tourism event.

'It is clear that the government has to do something, we are all aware of this, but we would like to not be directly affected, if possible. Yet the measures envisaged - like imposing a blanket VAT rate for tourism at the upper limit of 19%, which means an increase from 9% to 19%, is an ill-advised measure from our point of view, because we looked at what happened in Europe. The Germans also applied it and they then scrambled to reverse it to 7% at the beginning of 2026, after increasing it from 12% to 19%,' Voican pointed out.

He cautioned that such a measure cannot be applied in a sector prone to high tax evasion, such as restaurants and guesthouses, because many entities could take refuge in the gray or even black tax-shunning area.

Adrian Voican also warned that the VAT change in full tourism season will create 'a complete mess', and the Romanian inbound tourism will be the most affected.

'The rates are already set, the packages are sold, and changing the rules of the game on the fly means that someone will lose this money. Specifically, the wretched incoming operator, one of the very few that exist - there are maybe 50 companies that do incoming tourism in Romania out of 3,000 travel agencies - and who has put himself on the line to offer specific rates to foreign partners. They are set under contract, you cannot tell your partner 'Hey, you know, our VAT rate has changed, so we're raising your price.' (...) You just swallow the loss. That is, instead of stimulating incoming tourism, we are killing it,' Voican explained.

'I don't know if the government thinks that hiking the VAT from July 1, August, September, October - it doesn't matter - cannot be transferred to the final tourist, and someone will break their neck applying the new regulations,' Adrian Voican said.

ANAT vice president Adrian Voican participated on Thursday in the event where FlixBus, the travel-tech company that operates the most extensive intercity coach network in Europe, announced its expansion to Romania. The new routes will be operated in partnership with local carriers and will gradually connect Romanian major cities and tourist destinations, offering an accessible, comfortable alternative with a lower environmental impact.

Starting this summer, FlixBus is launching 10 domestic routes that will connect over 50 cities in Romania, offering bus services on multiple routes that cross the country from one side to the other, offering a new national mobility option. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Oana Tilica; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)