The Romanian authorities are trying to be significantly more effective in discouraging vices among Romanians, especially when they start at a very young age. Fines are higher and new sanctions are constantly being introduced.
In Romania, there is a very serious problem when it comes to the consumption of alcoholic beverages among minors, but for several years, there have been several laws aimed at restricting the access of teenagers to spirits. For example, in the old days, you received a token fine if you sold alcohol to minors in a bar or restaurant. Later, after successive sanctions on exactly the same subject, you could have reached the suspension of the activity of the public place. Since 2020, when the law changed, in addition to a more serious fine, from the first offense of this kind, your restaurant is closed.
Free alcohol is just as “expensive”
Although this scenario may seem strange or very rare to you, many business owners in Romania, even under the conditions of the strict legislation, chose to circumvent the restrictions related to alcohol offered to minors. The scam some found involved giving away free alcohol as a promotion or deal.
A new law now adopted by the Parliament, to be promulgated by the president and published in the Official Gazette, provides for a fine of 500 lei and the suspension of the activity of the public premises for a period between 10 and 30 days in the case of offering “free of charge of alcoholic beverages to minors by establishments authorized to sell alcoholic beverages”.
Unlike the original form of the law, where such sanctions could only come from police officers, now the list has been extended to include social welfare bodies, child protection and more. In theory, it should not take more than 30 days for the new provision to make its effects felt in the market.
