The Lifestyle Magazine
Two Romanian rules now ask foreigners for a formal Romanian language certificate: one for long-term residence, one for some citizenship applications. They differ in level, deadline and accepted issuers.
Students from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland deal with four authorities: the university, the Ministry of Education (Letter of Acceptance), a Romanian consulate (the D/SD study visa) and the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI, the residence permit).
For non-EU nationals, Romanian law calls permanent residence “long-term residence” (drept de ședere pe termen lung), governed by Emergency Ordinance (OUG) 194/2002. Citizens of other EU countries and their families follow OUG 102/2005, which still says “permanent residence”.
Romania’s public health insurance system is run by the National Health Insurance House (CNAS) and its county branches. For most adults, being insured means paying the health contribution, CASS.
A non-EU spouse or child joins family in Romania through one of two procedures. The main one is family reunification under Emergency Ordinance (OUG) 194/2002 on foreigners. The second covers the families of Romanian citizens.
A job offer for Romania may quote gross pay, net pay, or a figure that ignores what the worker pays for housing.
Romanian citizenship is granted on request, not as an automatic right. Law 21/1991, as amended by Law 14/2025, states that it gives foreigners no right to citizenship by grant.
Most English pages about a “work permit” for Romania still describe a system that no longer takes new applications. For years an employer asked the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI) for a work authorisation, the aviz de muncă, and the worker used it to get a visa.
A child born in Germany to a Romanian parent, a wedding held in Italy, a marriage to a foreign spouse registered abroad: for the Romanian state, none of these events exists on paper until the foreign certificate has…
A degree earned abroad does not automatically count in Romania. To be hired in a role that requires a degree, to continue studying, or to practise certain professions, a foreign graduate usually needs a certificate of…
