The austerity measures that came into effect in Romania on Friday, imposed by the government to reduce the excessive budget deficit, the largest in the EU, include increasing VAT on books from 5% to 11%, a decision considered by experts to be dramatic in a country where people read much less than the European average, writes the Spanish agency EFE.
Eurostat data for 2022 shows that only 30% of Romanians read at least one book in the previous year, compared to the average of 52% in the European Union.
"This will probably be the darkest year for the publishing market," Mihai Mitrică, executive director of the Romanian Publishers Association (AER), told EFE, recalling the recent bankruptcy of the second national book distributor.
"The VAT increase is very harsh and will cause the disappearance of bookstores and publishing houses. Just in the face of the mere prospect of this increase, we have seen closures and, unfortunately, we will see others by the end of the year," anticipates the director of this association, which is calling for the elimination of VAT on books, not the increase of this tax.
In his opinion, this would compensate for the state's lack of action in other areas, such as education and providing public libraries with enough books.
In comparison, VAT rates for books in other EU countries are 4% in Spain, 5.5% in France or 7% in Germany, while countries such as the Czech Republic and Ireland apply zero VAT to books.
At the other extreme, the highest VAT for books is applied in Denmark, namely 25%, with Romania now in second place.
Increasing VAT to 11% not only does not support bookstores, but weakens them even more, emphasizes Ana Niculescu from Cărturesti, a bookstore network with a presence throughout Romania.
"With a publishing market estimated at 200 million euros, the expected gain (by the state - ed.) from the VAT increase is ridiculous and questionable. This will cause prices to rise, reduce sales, and small publishing houses risk being closed," explains Ana Niculescu. She recalls a recent EU study showing that a 1% VAT reduction results in a 2.7% increase in the number of books purchased.
Another aspect is the impact on Romanian literature. Writer and literary critic Adrian Lesenciuc speaks of a "double negative impact". "On the one hand, purchasing power will decrease, which will lead many to give up what they consider to be a luxury or something unnecessary. Austerity measures will also cause a decrease in sales and other chain effects, such as the closure of bookstores and publishing houses," explains Adrian Lesenciuc.
In any case, he warns that the most substantial effect will be a return to the prevalence of publications financed by their authors themselves, regardless of their literary value, a similar situation occurring in the 1990s, after the fall of communism.
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