Romania is an EU member state, which means hiring EU, EEA, or Swiss nationals is straightforward: they can work freely without any permit or visa. Non-EU nationals are a different story. They need three separate authorisations before they can start work, and Romania’s 2026 national quota for non-EU work permits is tighter than last year, which means delays are a real risk if you don’t plan ahead. This guide covers everything you need to know as an employer, from registration requirements for EU hires to the full permit process for non-EU workers, the 2026 quota, and your ongoing compliance obligations.
EU, eea, and swiss nationals: what registration looks like
EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals have the right to live and work in Romania without a work permit or employment visa. There’s nothing to sponsor and no permit application to file on their behalf. They can start work as soon as you agree terms.
That said, there’s an administrative step they need to take after arriving. Any EU, EEA, or Swiss national who stays in Romania for more than three months must apply for a residency permit and obtain a personal identification number, known as a CNP (cod numeric personal). This registration must happen within three months of their arrival in Romania.
This isn’t a barrier to employment, and it isn’t your responsibility to complete on their behalf. It’s worth making new hires aware of the requirement so they don’t overlook it, but it doesn’t affect when they can start work.
Non-EU nationals: the three-document requirement
For non-EU, non-EEA, and non-Swiss nationals, the process is more involved. Before they can legally work in Romania, they need three separate authorisations:
- A work permit issued by the General Inspectorate for Immigration (Inspectoratul General pentru Imigrări)
- A long-stay visa for employment issued by a Romanian consulate in the worker’s home country
- A residence permit obtained after arriving in Romania
As the employer, you initiate the process by applying for the work permit on behalf of the worker. The work permit is the foundation that makes the visa and residence permit possible, so this step comes first.
Work permit
The work permit application is filed with the General Inspectorate for Immigration. You’ll need to submit documentation about the role, the employment terms, and in most cases proof that no suitable Romanian or EU candidate was available (more on this in the labour market test section below).
Once the work permit is approved, the worker can use it to apply for a long-stay employment visa at a Romanian consulate in their country.
Long-stay visa for employment
The worker applies for this visa themselves at the Romanian consulate. The approved work permit is the key supporting document. Once the visa is granted, the worker can enter Romania and begin employment.
Residence permit
After arriving in Romania on the employment visa, the worker must apply for a residence permit. This is typically granted for one year. Highly skilled professionals may receive a residence permit for up to two years. Renewals are possible once the initial permit expires, provided the employment relationship continues and the conditions for the original permit are still met.
The 2026 quota: what employers need to know
Romania sets an annual national quota for non-EU/EEA/Swiss work permits, and the 2026 figure is 90,000. That’s 10,000 fewer than the quota for 2025, and demand consistently outpaces supply.
The sectors most affected by quota pressure are construction, manufacturing, and services. If your hire falls into one of these areas, the competition for available permits is intense, and processing timelines can stretch significantly once the quota fills up.
What this means for your hiring timeline
Quota exhaustion doesn’t happen on a fixed date, but it does happen. If you’re planning to bring on a non-EU national later in the year, you can’t assume permits will still be available when you’re ready to apply. The practical advice is to start the permit process as early as possible, ideally well before you need the worker to begin.
In 2026, Romanian authorities are planning to simplify some procedures and strengthen oversight of recruitment agencies and working conditions for foreign employees. This is a positive development for compliance, but it may also mean additional scrutiny on permit applications during the transition period.
Planning around the quota
Build permit timelines into your hiring plan from day one. If you’re budgeting for headcount that includes non-EU nationals, factor in the permit process alongside your usual recruitment timelines. A permit application that runs into quota issues or requires resubmission can set a start date back by months.
Labour market test: what you need to demonstrate
Before a non-EU work permit is issued, you must demonstrate that no qualified Romanian or EU candidate was available for the role. This is the labour market test, sometimes called the priority rule.
In practice, this means advertising the vacancy and showing that your recruitment process didn’t turn up a suitable local or EU candidate. The General Inspectorate for Immigration reviews this evidence as part of the permit application.
The labour market test adds time to the process, so factor it into your timeline rather than treating it as a formality. If the role is highly specialised or the EU Blue Card route applies (see below), there may be grounds to streamline or bypass this step, but the standard process requires it.
EU blue card: the route for highly qualified workers
The EU Blue Card is available for non-EU nationals who hold a recognised qualification and are being hired into a high-salary role. It’s a useful route for employers hiring senior or specialist talent.
Eligibility criteria
To qualify for an EU Blue Card in Romania, the worker must:
- Hold a recognised higher education qualification or equivalent professional experience
- Have a salary of at least 1.5 times the national average gross wage in Romania
The salary threshold is a hard requirement. If the offer doesn’t clear this bar, the Blue Card route isn’t available.
Duration and renewal
Highly skilled professionals granted a Blue Card receive a residence permit for up to two years rather than the standard one year. Renewals are available once the initial permit period expires.
The Blue Card route is worth considering when you’re hiring into senior technical, managerial, or specialist roles where the salary naturally meets or exceeds the threshold. It gives the worker a longer initial period of stable residency, which reduces the administrative frequency of renewals.
Employer obligations: reges-online and immigration notification
Hiring a foreign national in Romania creates two specific compliance obligations that employers sometimes underestimate. Both carry real consequences if you get them wrong.
Reges-online: the electronic labour registry
Romania requires all employers to register employees in the REGES-Online system, which is the national electronic labour registry. You must register the employee before their start date, not on it or after it.
REGES-Online isn’t specific to foreign nationals. It applies to all employees. But for foreign hires, a late or missing registration creates overlapping compliance problems: it’s both an employment law breach and a potential issue with the worker’s immigration status.
Notification on termination
When a foreign employee’s employment ends, you must notify the relevant immigration authority. This applies regardless of whether the termination is mutual, initiated by you, or initiated by the worker. The notification requirement exists because the work permit and residence permit are tied to the employment relationship, and the authorities need to know when that relationship has ended.
Make sure your offboarding process includes this step explicitly. It’s easy to overlook in the practicalities of a departure, but failing to notify can affect future permit applications for your company.
Maintaining valid permits during the notice period
Foreign employees must maintain valid permits throughout their employment and their notice period. If a permit is due to expire during a notice period, this needs to be managed carefully. Check permit expiry dates when issuing notice, and take advice from your legal or Employer of Record (EOR) partner if there’s any overlap.
Practical tips for employers
Getting the compliance right on Romanian immigration isn’t complicated once you have a system for it, but there are a few places where employers regularly run into problems.
Start early on non-EU permits
The three-step process (work permit, visa, residence permit) takes time even when everything goes smoothly. When you add in the labour market test and the possibility of quota pressure, a non-EU hire can easily take three to four months from application to start date. Build that into your planning rather than trying to accelerate at the end.
Track permit expiry dates
Residence permits are typically valid for one year. If you have multiple non-EU nationals on your team, their permit renewal dates need to go into a tracking system. An expired permit puts both the worker and the employer at risk, and it’s a problem that’s entirely preventable with basic calendar management.
Engage the right expertise early
Romanian immigration rules have enough procedural detail that mistakes are easy to make and sometimes hard to fix. Whether you work with a local legal partner or use an EOR that handles the full compliance stack, getting expert support from the start is more efficient than trying to course-correct partway through a permit application.
Consider an EOR for non-EU hires
If you don’t have a Romanian legal entity, you can’t apply for work permits directly, because the permit application requires the employer to be registered in Romania. An EOR services provider acts as the legal employer in Romania, handling the permit application, employment contract, REGES-Online registration, payroll, and all ongoing compliance obligations. You direct the work; the EOR manages the legal relationship.
This approach is also useful for companies that do have a Romanian entity but want to reduce the internal administrative burden of managing immigration compliance across multiple hires. It’s particularly worth considering when you’re hiring non-EU contractors or employees into roles with high permit complexity.
Frequently asked questions
Do EU citizens need anything from us before they start work in romania?
No. EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals can start work immediately without any permit or visa. They’ll need to register for a residency permit and obtain a CNP within three months of arriving, but that’s their own administrative step and doesn’t affect their start date.
How long does it take to get a work permit for a non-EU national?
It varies, but you should plan for at least several weeks from application submission, and potentially longer during periods of high demand or if your application requires additional documentation. The labour market test adds time at the front of the process. Given the 2026 quota of 90,000 permits and strong demand, starting the process early is essential.
What happens if the 2026 quota fills before we apply?
If the annual quota is exhausted, new work permit applications can’t be approved until the following year’s quota opens. This is a genuine risk for employers planning non-EU hires in the second half of the year. The best mitigation is to start the process as early as possible rather than waiting until you have a confirmed candidate.
Can we hire non-EU nationals without a romanian legal entity?
Not directly. Work permit applications require a Romania-registered employer. If you don’t have a local entity, you need to work through an EOR that holds that registration and can act as the legal employer on your behalf.
What are the probation period rules for new hires in romania?
Romanian labour law allows a probation period of 90 days for non-executive employees and 120 days for executive or management roles. These limits apply to all employees regardless of nationality.
Book a RemotePass demo to see how RemotePass supports compliant hiring in Romania, from work permit applications to REGES-Online registration and beyond.
