Card payment is mandatory in Romania from 2026: what it means for your restaurant
From 1 January 2026, "we only take cash" is no longer a legal position in Romania. Law 239/2025 removed the turnover threshold that exempted small businesses and extended the obligation to accept electronic payment to almost every trader collecting from individuals. The good news is that the law does not tell you what equipment to buy: it asks for an outcome, not a device. This article covers what exactly binds you, what it costs to ignore it, and what the real options are for a restaurant.
What actually changed
Until now the obligation was tied to a threshold: companies above 10,000 euros in annual turnover had to accept card payments. Below it, you could legally operate on cash alone.
Law 239/2025 removes the threshold. From 1 January 2026 the obligation applies to almost all companies and sole traders collecting from individuals, regardless of turnover or line of business.
For a food truck, a small coffee shop or a neighbourhood bar that got by on cash, that is a real change from one day to the next, not a formality to tick next year.
The law asks for an outcome, not a device
This is the part many miss, and then buy more than they need. The text does not require a particular type of equipment. It requires that a working electronic payment option exists.
That can mean a classic POS terminal, a SoftPOS or Tap to Pay solution that turns an Android phone into a terminal with no separate hardware, or a payment link sent to the customer.
The choice is not only about cost. A fixed terminal at the till suits venues where everyone pays in the same place; Tap to Pay on a phone suits a terrace or doorstep delivery; QR pay-at-table suits venues trying to cut the wait to pay. All three can coexist.
What non-compliance costs
With no electronic payment solution in place at all, the fine sits between 20,000 and 50,000 lei. For many small venues that is more than several months of profit.
There is a second, less known sanction: if you have a terminal but refuse a card payment, the fine is between 5,000 and 7,500 lei. So "we have a POS but it's down today" or "under 30 lei it's cash only" are offences too.
The second situation catches the most restaurants, because it does not come from a decision anyone took — it comes from a staff habit the owner does not even know about.
The real cost is the fee, not the device
The compliance conversation is almost always held over the price of the terminal, which is the smallest part of the equation. What costs you monthly is the transaction fee.
Before signing, ask for the percentage applied per card type, any fixed cost per transaction, the monthly subscription, the settlement period and what happens on a refund. Two offers quoting the same headline percentage can differ materially once the rest is added.
Settlement timing matters more than it looks in a business with daily cash flow. The difference between next-day and three-working-day settlement changes how you pay your suppliers.
What has to connect to the till
The obligation to accept cards sits on top of the obligation to issue a fiscal receipt, it does not replace it. Ideally the terminal talks to the till, so the amount is not keyed in twice.
Double keying is the classic source of end-of-day discrepancies: 120 goes into the card terminal and 12 into the till, and the mismatch only surfaces at close, when nobody remembers which table it was.
When the card terminal is integrated into the till software, the amount travels once, from the receipt. Add tipping and the integration matters more still, because the tip has to appear separately on the fiscal receipt.
What to do, in the right order
Check what you accept today and where: at the till, on the terrace, at delivery. The gaps are usually away from the main till.
Get two or three comparable offers on total fees, not on device price. Include a SoftPOS option, which for a secondary point of sale may be all you need.
Check the integration with your till software before signing, not after. A cheap terminal that does not connect costs you daily in end-of-day differences.
Train staff that refusing a card is an offence whatever the amount. It is the cheapest measure on this list and it prevents exactly the fine that gets issued most often.
Tax rules change often. Confirm the thresholds and penalties that apply to your situation with your accountant before acting on an article.
Frequently asked questions
Is there still a turnover threshold below which I am exempt?
No. Law 239/2025 removed the thresholds. From 1 January 2026 the obligation applies to almost all companies and sole traders collecting from individuals, regardless of turnover.
Do I have to buy a POS terminal?
No. The law requires a working electronic payment option, not a specific device. It can be a POS terminal, a SoftPOS or Tap to Pay solution on a phone, or a payment link.
What fine do I risk if I do not accept electronic payment?
Between 20,000 and 50,000 lei if you have no solution in place. Separately, if you have a terminal but refuse a card payment, the fine is between 5,000 and 7,500 lei.
Can I set a minimum amount for card payments?
Refusing a card payment when you have a terminal is sanctionable. An internal rule such as "under 30 lei it's cash only" falls squarely into that category, even when staff apply it out of habit.
What changes about the cash register?
Nothing about the obligation to issue a fiscal receipt. The card obligation sits on top of it. Ideally the terminal talks to the till so the amount is not keyed twice and no end-of-day differences appear.