New rules on hiring foreign nationals

Purpose and context

Romania adopted Government Emergency Ordinance no. 32/2026, in force since 27 April 2026, to address three urgent problems: a significant and growing skilled labor shortage, the need to regulate the increasing use of third-country workers, and widespread abuses by unregulated placement agencies.

Authorities noted that over half of foreign nationals granted long-stay employment visas had failed to regularize their residence - a sign of major systemic dysfunction in the existing framework.

The new enactment creates a comprehensive, digitally integrated framework covering the entire life cycle of hiring foreign nationals. Significant amendments are also brought to Government Emergency Ordinance no. 194/2002 on the regime of foreigners in Romania, while some provisions of Law no. 53/2003 - Labor Code are also amended as to reflect the newly enacted provisions regarding the rights of the foreigners.

In a nutshell, the requirement to obtain work permits and secondment permits is eliminated. Consequently, initiating the employment process in Romania involves applying for a long- stay visa for employment, differentiated according to the type of worker — the D/AM1 visa for highly qualified workers (also applicable to other special categories provided by law) and the D/AM2 visa for permanent workers, seasonal workers, and cross-border workers employed in activities included in the Deficit Occupations List.

The new enactment includes extensive transitory provisions allowing employers to adapt to the new rules.

The WorkinRomania.gov.ro Electronic Platform

The Ministry of Internal Affairs is currently developing and operationalizing a central digital platform that will serve as the backbone of the entire system starting with August 8, 2026.

The platform facilitates the registration of employers who employ foreigners and the management of authorizations for foreigner's employment agencies. The platform also ensures the uploading of authorization requests by legal entities and allows employers to upload applications for foreigners and process authorization requests, while providing information and support for foreigners looking for a job.

Registration, Authorization and Obligations of the Employers

In principle, to hire foreign nationals, employers must be registered or be authorized through https://workinromania.gov.ro/ platform.

The above obligation does not apply for the employers who hire foreigners from the categories provided for in art. 132^1 para. (1) let. a)-h) and j)-m) of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 194/2002 on the regime of foreigners in Romania, e.g. foreigners holding the right of long-term residence on the territory of Romania, foreigners holding a valid EU Blue Card issued by a Member State of the European Union who are to carry out work-related activities on the territory of Romania as a highly qualified worker within a mobility, or foreigners holding a valid EU Blue Card after 12 months of legal employment on the territory of Romania as a highly qualified worker.

Registration of the Employers

Registered Employer: an employer enrolled in the electronic platform WorkinRomania.gov.ro, who uses a licensed foreigners placement agency to hire foreign workers.

The conditions for registration of the employers include that they must not have outstanding obligations to the general consolidated budget and must have been actively working for at least 1 year in areas compatible with the deficit occupations. They must also not have been sanctioned or definitively convicted in the last 12 months for relevant crimes, including those related to labor regulations, occupational safety and health or human trafficking.

The employer will upload a firm job offer to the electronic platform, that must contain detailed information on the working conditions and remuneration (position, duration, schedule, gross/net salary, bonuses, leave, health and safety, taxes and compensation), as well as clear details about who will cover the accommodation and transport of the foreign worker (from the country of origin to the workplace in Romania and back, including in the event of an accident or death); the offer must correspond to the job declared vacant by the ANOFM.

Authorization of the Employers

Authorized Employer: a larger company (minimum 50 employees, 24 months of prior activity before submitting the application for authorization in the field of activity compatible with the occupation on the Deficit Occupations List) that may recruit foreign workers directly, without using a foreigners placement agency.

Similar to registered employers, authorized employers must have no tax debts, demonstrate a similar standard of fiscal responsibility, and are subject to similar conditions regarding convictions and integrity that their representatives must prove. In addition, authorized employers must have foreign employees and meet additional requirements regarding their status.

Key obligations of Registered and Authorized Employers

Both Registered and Authorized Employers have specific obligations, out of which we mention:

• to conclude individual employment contracts in Romanian and in the foreigner's language of origin or in an international language that he/she understands;
• to provide training in the field of occupational safety in the language that the foreigner understands and to provide protective equipment;
• to provide Romanian language and cultural integration courses for foreigners, for a minimum of 6 months;
• to guarantee access to complaint and abuse reporting procedures;
• to keep a copy of the travel document or residence permit, as well as other supporting documents, for a period of at least 5 years after the termination of the employment relationship.

In addition, the Registered Employer must notify the foreigners employment agency and the General Inspectorate for Immigration, within 5 working days from the date of discovery, regarding:

• the unexcused absence of the foreign worker for a period exceeding 3 consecutive working days;
• the termination of the individual employment contract; and
• any situation in which the foreign worker is in danger, is subject to exploitation or when non-compliance with the conditions that were the basis for granting the right to work and residence is found.

The Authorized Employer also has additional obligations towards employed foreigners, e.g. to provide foreign employees with all the necessary documents and information prior to their arrival in Romania, to organize their transport to the workplace or accommodation, to immediately notify the competent authorities (General Inspectorate for Immigration, ANOFM, Labor Inspection) in the event of absence, disappearance, failure to comply with the conditions of stay and work or potential cases of human trafficking, to identify a new job in the event of termination of the contract or, in case of failure, to bear the costs of return to the country of origin, not to employ foreigners for the benefit of other employers.

Long-stay visa for employment

Long-stay visa for employment is now identified by the symbols D/AM1 and D/AM2, differentiated as follows:

D/AM1-type is granted for following categories of foreigners:

• highly qualified workers;
• who are to carry out activities requested by ministries or other central public administration bodies on the territory of Romania, including within projects that contribute to the development and modernization of the national economic infrastructure;
• who are to carry out teaching, scientific or other specific categories of activities in state higher education institutions in Romania, based on bilateral agreements, in accordance with the order of the Minister of Education and Research, as well as in accordance with the institutional strategy of state higher education institutions, based on the decision of the rector and the opinion of the Ministry of Education and Research, personnel with special qualifications, as well as foreigners who carry out artistic activities in cultural institutions in Romania, based on the order of the Minister of Culture;
• professional athletes who have concluded an individual employment contract with a sports structure;
• citizens of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and the Republic of Serbia employed on the territory of Romania with a full-time individual employment contract.

D/AM2-type is granted if the quota of newly admitted workers on the labor market has not been exhausted and the occupation is included in the Deficit Occupations List (a list of occupations with labor shortages, to be adopted by Order within 45 days from entry into force of the ordinance)

This type of visa is required for the following categories of workers:

• permanent worker - a foreigner employed on the territory of Romania with an individual employment contract for an indefinite or fixed term, concluded with an employer;
• seasonal worker - a foreigner who maintains his/her main residence in a third country, but legally and temporarily resides on the territory of Romania, being employed on the territory of Romania with an individual employment contract for a definite term, concluded with an employer, to perform an activity that is carried out depending on the succession of the seasons;
• cross-border worker - a foreigner, a citizen of a state that has a common border with Romania and who lives in the border area of that state, employed in a border locality on the territory of Romania with an individual employment contract for an indefinite or fixed term, concluded with an employer.

The amendments to the Romanian Labour Code

Several new rules regarding the employment of foreign nationals are introduced into the Labour Code.

First, employers will be required to execute employment agreements with foreign employees both in Romanian and either in the employee's native language or in an international language that the employee understands or can reasonably be expected to understand. The amendments introduce a new administrative fine of RON 6,000 per employment agreement for employers that conclude employment agreements with foreign employees only in Romanian.

Second, foreign employees may exceptionally be hired before presenting the medical certificate confirming fitness for work, provided that the certificate is obtained no later than the employee's first working day.

In addition, new grounds for the automatic termination of employment agreements are introduced, including:

• the rejection of the foreign employee's single permit application; and
• the finding by the Romanian Immigration Office that the foreign national is illegally staying in Romania.

The employer will be required to formally acknowledge such termination through a decision issued based on notifications received either through the electronic platform for foreign workers or from the Romanian Immigration Office.

Ileana Lucian, Managing Partner

Elena Nădejde, Senior Associate