Guide · Customs & VAT
Spain → Romania VAT, explained: why there is no customs — just intra-community VAT done right
The single biggest misconception on our flagship Spain → Romania lane is that it needs customs. It doesn't. Both Spain and Romania are EU member states, so the movement is intra-community — no customs declaration, no T1/NCTS transit, no import VAT paid at a border. It runs on the EU VAT mechanism instead, and getting that right before you load is the whole game. This is general information, not tax advice.
7 min read
There is no customs on Spain → Romania — and that's the point
Spain and Romania are both inside the EU's single market and customs union. That means goods moving between them are in free circulation: there is no customs declaration, no T1/NCTS transit movement, and no import VAT collected at any border. Nobody stamps an import entry at Nădlac. The truck crosses on its transport documents, not on a customs clearance.
This trips up shippers who are used to thinking 'cross-border equals customs'. Inside the EU, it doesn't. Customs declarations and transit only apply to extra-EU lanes — the UK, Switzerland, Norway and so on — where the goods actually leave the customs union. For those, licensed customs-broker partners lodge the declarations and SAVA coordinates the movement around them. On Spain → Romania, none of that exists.
What replaces customs is the EU VAT mechanism. The cross-border tax event is handled entirely through each party's own VAT return — an intra-community supply on the Spanish side and an intra-community acquisition on the Romanian side. No money changes hands at the border; the tax is reported and self-accounted on paper. Done correctly, the cross-border step costs a fully-taxable buyer with full right of deduction nothing in cash.
One immediate consequence: you do not need an EORI number for this lane. EORI is an economic-operator registration for trade with non-EU countries. For Spain → Romania it is simply not required. If a checklist tells you to get an EORI for an intra-EU move, that checklist is treating an internal EU shipment like an export — and that confusion is exactly what this guide is here to clear up.
The Spanish side: an entrega intracomunitaria at 0%
Why the sale is exempt
When a Spanish supplier sells goods that are dispatched to a VAT-registered business in another member state, the supply is an entrega intracomunitaria — an intra-community supply. Spanish VAT (IVA) is not charged on it. The invoice is issued at 0% / exempt, with a note that it is an intra-community supply and that the customer accounts for the VAT under the reverse-charge mechanism.
This is not a favour or a discount — it is how the system is designed. The VAT does not disappear; it simply moves to the destination, where the Romanian buyer accounts for it. Spain zero-rates the outbound leg so the tax lands once, in the country of consumption.
The two conditions the supplier must satisfy
Zero-rating is conditional, and the Spanish supplier carries the burden of proof. First, the Romanian buyer must provide a valid VAT number that is enabled for intra-EU trade and verifiable in VIES (the EU VAT Information Exchange System). Second, there must be proof the goods physically left Spain for another member state.
The dispatch proof is where the transport document does real work. The CMR consignment note — issued by the carrier and signed by the consignee on delivery — is primary evidence that the goods left Spain and arrived in Romania. Keep the signed CMR with the invoice. If a Spanish tax inspection later questions the exemption, that signed CMR is what defends the 0% rate. A missing or unsigned dispatch proof is one of the most common reasons an exemption is challenged.
What the supplier reports
The Spanish supplier declares the transaction on the modelo 349 — the recapitulative statement of intra-community operations — listing the Romanian customer's VAT number and the value supplied. The supply also flows through the periodic VAT return (modelo 303) and, for businesses inside the SII regime, the near-real-time invoice ledger. These filings are the trader's responsibility, made by the trader or its adviser. SAVA does not register VAT, does not enable VIES, and does not file any of these returns.
The Romanian side: an achiziție intracomunitară under reverse charge
How taxare inversă works
On the Romanian end, the buyer makes an achiziție intracomunitară — an intra-community acquisition. Because the Spanish invoice carried no VAT, the Romanian buyer self-accounts for the tax under the reverse-charge mechanism (taxare inversă) on its VAT return, the decont de TVA (formularul 300).
In practice the buyer records output VAT (the tax it owes on the acquisition) and, in the same return, the matching input VAT (the tax it is entitled to deduct). For a fully-taxable business with full right of deduction, the two entries cancel: the net cash effect is zero. The VAT is fully accounted for, but no money actually leaves the buyer's account for it. This is the wash that makes intra-EU trade frictionless for legitimate, registered businesses.
The other Romanian returns
Alongside the decont, the Romanian buyer files the recapitulative statement (declarația recapitulativă) covering its intra-community acquisitions, and — once the relevant arrival thresholds are exceeded — an INTRASTAT declaration for statistical purposes. These are filed by the trader, not by the carrier.
Romania also layers its own national reporting on movements — e-Factura for invoicing and e-Transport for qualifying goods in transit. Those are separate from the VAT mechanism described here and are covered in the flagship corridor guide; treat them as additional obligations on the trader, not substitutes for the intra-community VAT accounting, and not something SAVA files on your behalf.
What must be right before you load
Almost every intra-EU VAT problem is preventable at the desk, before the truck moves. The checks are quick and they protect both sides — the supplier's right to zero-rate and the buyer's clean reverse-charge entry.
Confirm both parties are VAT-registered and enabled for intra-EU trade, and that the buyer's number returns a valid result in VIES. A domestic VAT registration is not automatically VIES-active; a buyer can be perfectly registered in Romania yet not enabled for intra-community operations. Check VIES on the actual number you'll put on the invoice, on the day you invoice.
Get the invoice right: it must show both VAT numbers — the Spanish supplier's and the Romanian buyer's — and carry the intra-community supply / reverse-charge note stating that the customer accounts for the VAT. For a Romanian consignee, include the buyer's CUI; many Romanian DCs reject invoices without it.
Then assemble the transport set: the CMR (your dispatch evidence and the spine of the Spanish exemption) and a packing list that reconciles to the invoice on pallet counts and weights. Consistent numbers across invoice, CMR and packing list keep the goods moving at the Romanian dock instead of sitting on a discrepancy hold.
Worked example: €30,000 of goods, done right
A Spanish manufacturer sells €30,000 of goods to a Romanian retailer. The retailer supplies a valid Romanian VAT number that checks out in VIES. SAVA carries the load and issues the CMR. The figures below are indicative, for illustration only.
Spanish side: the supplier invoices €30,000 at 0% VAT — an entrega intracomunitaria — with both VAT numbers and the reverse-charge note on the invoice. It keeps the signed CMR as proof the goods left Spain, and reports the €30,000 against the Romanian customer's VAT number on modelo 349 (and through modelo 303 / SII).
Romanian side: assume a 19% rate for illustration (this figure is indicative — confirm the current rate with your adviser). The buyer books €5,700 of output VAT on the acquisition and €5,700 of input VAT in the same decont de TVA under reverse charge. Assuming full right of deduction, they net to zero. The buyer pays the supplier €30,000 for the goods and pays no VAT in cash on the cross-border step. The tax has been fully accounted for; the corridor stays frictionless.
Compare that to getting it wrong: if the buyer's number is not VIES-enabled, the Spanish supplier cannot zero-rate and must charge Spanish IVA on the €30,000 — at an indicative 21% that turns a clean €30,000 invoice into a €36,300 one, and a recovery headache. The five-minute VIES check is the cheapest insurance on the whole shipment.
Common errors — and how to avoid them
The buyer isn't VIES-enabled
The most expensive mistake. If the Romanian buyer's VAT number is not valid and intra-EU-enabled in VIES at the time of supply, the conditions for zero-rating are not met. The Spanish supplier must then charge Spanish VAT on the sale. Always verify in VIES before invoicing, not after the truck has left.
Missing or weak dispatch proof
The exemption stands on evidence that the goods left Spain. A lost CMR, an unsigned CMR, or a transport file that can't show arrival in Romania leaves the supplier exposed if the exemption is later questioned. Treat the signed CMR as a tax document, not just a delivery slip — file it with the invoice and keep it.
Treating it like an export
Some shippers instinctively look for an export declaration, a customs broker, an EORI number, or T1 transit for Spain → Romania. None of those belong on an intra-EU lane — they apply to extra-EU trade only. Reaching for customs paperwork here just adds cost and delay to a movement that the VAT mechanism already handles cleanly.
Where SAVA fits — and where it doesn't
SAVA is the carrier on this lane. We move the goods on the Spain → Romania corridor with scheduled Mon/Wed/Fri departures (3x/week) across 350+ trucks/month over owned and partner carriers, and we issue the CMR consignment note — which is your primary dispatch evidence for the Spanish zero-rating. The signed CMR coming back from the Romanian consignee is the document that proves the goods left Spain.
What we do not do is your tax. SAVA does not register your VAT, does not enable VIES, and does not file modelo 349, modelo 303, the decont de TVA, the recapitulative statement, or INTRASTAT. Those are the trader's responsibility, handled by the trader and its own adviser. We carry the goods and document the movement; you account for the VAT. This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice.
On liability, the same boundary applies. SAVA carries the statutory CMR liability for the goods in transit — under the CMR Convention, indicatively 8.33 SDR per kilogram of the gross weight affected. That is not the same as the goods being 'fully insured'. If you need cover for the full commercial value, SAVA can arrange additional all-risks cargo insurance, or you can source your own — and correct, sufficient packing remains the sender's responsibility under the CMR.
When you ask for a written quote at /quote, you'll get a price in about 15–20 minutes, valid for 24 hours, with the CMR and the scheduled corridor built in. The LDM and pricing calculators at /resources help you size the load; the VAT mechanics above are what make the cross-border step itself a non-event.
Quick reference — before you book
Confirm it's intra-EU. Spain → Romania means no customs declaration, no T1/NCTS transit, no import VAT at a border, and no EORI. The cross-border tax runs entirely through the VAT returns.
Verify VIES on the day you invoice, using the exact buyer VAT number going on the invoice. If it isn't valid and intra-EU-enabled, the Spanish supplier cannot zero-rate and must charge Spanish IVA.
Issue the invoice correctly: both VAT numbers, the reverse-charge / intra-community supply note, the Romanian buyer's CUI, and figures that reconcile to the CMR and packing list.
Keep the signed CMR with the invoice as your dispatch proof — it defends the Spanish exemption. File modelo 349 and modelo 303 / SII (Spain) and the decont de TVA, recapitulative statement and INTRASTAT where due (Romania); these are yours to file, with your adviser. SAVA carries the goods and issues the CMR — it does not handle your VAT filings. This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice.
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