Renting an apartment in Romania as a foreigner in 2026: lease, deposit and ANAF registration

Renting an apartment in Romania is governed by the Civil Code lease chapter (Articles 1777-1835), whose default rules apply when the contract is silent. A tenant on a fixed-term lease can leave with at least 60 days’ notice, whatever the contract says (Article 1825). The landlord must register the lease with the tax authority ANAF within 30 days of signing (Fiscal Code, Article 83(5)), and a registered lease is an enforceable title for unpaid rent (Article 1798). In the version we read, the lease articles say nothing about deposits, so the contract sets the rules. This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so confirm with ANAF, the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI) or a lawyer.

What a lease is and what form it needs

Romanian law calls a rental contract a contract de închiriere (a lease of a dwelling). The landlord is the locator and the tenant the locatar or chiriaș. Article 1777 of the Civil Code (consolidated version of 3 May 2026) defines a lease as a contract in which one party gives the other the use of a property for a period of time, in return for rent (chirie).

Under Article 1781, the contract is concluded as soon as the parties agree on the property and the price. In the version we read, the lease articles do not require a written contract for validity. In practice a written contract is needed: the landlord must file it with ANAF, and IGI asks for proof of your living space (see below).

Duration, rent dates and automatic renewal

• Maximum length. A lease cannot exceed 49 years; a longer term is cut back to 49 years (Article 1783).
• No duration stated. If the contract gives no duration and no local custom applies, an unfurnished home is treated as let for one year, and a furnished room or apartment for the period the rent is calculated on, such as a month (Article 1785).
• When rent is due. If the contract and local custom are silent, rent is paid on the first working day of each month for leases longer than a month but shorter than a year, and on the first working day of each quarter for leases of a year or more (Article 1797).
• End of term. A fixed-term lease ends automatically when the term expires, with no notice needed (Article 1809(1)).
• Staying on. If you keep living there and paying after the term ends and the landlord does not object, a new lease arises on the same terms but for an indefinite period (tacita relocațiune, Article 1810).

Repairs, defects and everyday use

The landlord must hand over the flat in a usable state, keep it that way for the whole lease and guarantee your peaceful use of it (Articles 1786-1789). Major repairs are the landlord’s job (Article 1788(1)). Minor repairs caused by normal use (reparații locative) and routine upkeep fall on the tenant unless the contract says otherwise (Articles 1788(2) and 1802).

The tenant must report repairs that are the landlord’s job straight away, or may owe damages (Article 1801). If the landlord is told and does not act promptly, you may do the repair yourself and recover the cost plus interest (Article 1788(3)). If urgent repairs last more than 10 days, the rent is cut in proportion to the time and the part of the flat you lost (Article 1803(2)). Defects the landlord does not fix entitle you to a proportional rent reduction (Article 1791).

• You must let the landlord and prospective buyers or tenants view the flat at reasonable intervals (Article 1804).
• Subletting needs the landlord’s written consent (Article 1833).
• Article 1826 voids clauses forcing you to use an insurer the landlord picks, or to prepay minor repairs at sums the landlord alone estimated.

Notice periods and ending the lease

• Fixed-term lease, tenant leaving early. At least 60 days’ notice; a clause to the contrary is considered unwritten (Article 1825(1)).
• Fixed-term lease, landlord ending early. Only if the contract allows it for the landlord’s own or family housing needs, with the notice periods of Article 1824(2) (Article 1825(2)).
• Indefinite lease, tenant. Notice of at least a quarter of the rent period, so about a week for monthly rent (Article 1824(1)).
• Indefinite lease, landlord. At least 60 days if rent is set per month or longer, 15 days if set for a shorter period (Article 1824(2)).
• Breach. Either side can end the lease if the other fails to perform without good reason; the landlord can also ask a court to end it over behaviour that makes living alongside neighbours impossible (Article 1830).
• Eviction. Unless a law says otherwise, a tenant is evicted on a court decision, and owes rent until the flat is actually vacated (Article 1831).

When you leave, you return the flat in the state you received it, except for wear from age (Article 1821(1)). Until proven otherwise, you are presumed to have received it in good condition (Article 1821(2)), so a dated inventory with photos at move-in is the usual way to prove otherwise.

If the landlord sells the flat or someone dies

A sale does not automatically end your lease. Under Article 1811, your lease binds the buyer if, for a property registered in the land register (cartea funciară), the lease was noted in that register, or, for an unregistered property, if your lease has a certain date (dată certă) earlier than the sale. The buyer then takes over the landlord’s rights and duties, including any guarantees you gave (Articles 1813-1814). If the contract says the lease ends on sale, the lease still binds the buyer, after you are notified of the sale, for twice the notice period that would apply to ending it by notice (Article 1812(2)).

The landlord’s death does not end the lease (Article 1820). If the tenant dies, it ends 30 days after the death is registered, unless the tenant’s descendants or ascendants who are named in the contract and lived there choose to continue it (Article 1834).

ANAF registration: the landlord’s 30-day duty

Article 83(5) of the Fiscal Code (consolidated version of 25 October 2026) requires individuals who earn rent from their personal property to register the contract, and any later changes, with the competent tax office within 30 days of signing or of the change. If the flat has several owners, the contract names the one who files. This version of Article 83 was rewritten by Law 239/2025 and applies to income from 2026. Short-term letting of rooms (stays of up to 30 days) and agricultural leases are excluded.

The filing is form C168, the Cerere de înregistrare a contractelor de locațiune. ANAF’s form page shows the version approved by ANAF Order 161/2025, with the PDF last updated on 26 March 2026. An ANAF regional notice (February 2025) says it is filed at the tax office registry, by registered post or electronically, with a copy of the lease. The request is filled in two copies: one, with the lease copy, goes to the tax office and one stays with the filer. A resident landlord files with the office for their tax domicile; a non-resident landlord with the office for the area where the flat is, or the office of their appointed representative. We could not read the amended procedure (ANAF Order 114/2019) on legislatie.just.ro or find an official 2026 page saying filing is now online only.

Briefly, on the landlord’s side: rent from personal property is taxed at 10% (Article 64(1)(c)) on gross rent minus a flat 20% deduction (Article 84(3)), where the tenant is not a company or other entity that keeps accounts.

Why a registered lease matters to you as a tenant

Registration has legal weight, mostly in the landlord’s favour. A private lease registered with the tax authority, or a notarised one, is an enforceable title (titlu executoriu) for unpaid rent (Article 1798), so the landlord can start enforcement through a bailiff without first winning a lawsuit over the debt. A registered fixed-term lease is also an enforceable title for handing the flat back when the term ends (Article 1809(3)), and an indefinite one when notice runs out (Article 1816(3)).

For you, the benefit is mainly proof. Article 278(1) of the Civil Procedure Code (consolidated version of 14 December 2025) lists, among the ways a private document gets a certain date, presenting it to a public authority with a note made on it and entering it in a public register. A dated, officially recorded lease helps you show that your lease came before a sale (Article 1811), and gives you a dated copy to show offices such as IGI. An unregistered lease is still a valid contract between you and the landlord.

Residence permits: what IGI asks for

Under Article 50(2)(f) of Emergency Ordinance 194/2002 (consolidated version of 27 April 2026), extending a temporary right of residence requires proof that you legally hold your living space and actually live at the declared address (cross-border workers are exempt; for family reunification the sponsor can provide the proof). Article 51(2) says the extension application must be accompanied by that proof. IGI repeats this in its information note on extension conditions (10 July 2024). Its single permit page lists proof of the living space, in original and copy.

In the IGI pages and the articles of OUG 194/2002 we read, IGI does not state that the lease must be registered with ANAF. We could not check what each local IGI office asks for in practice. The wider process is in our guide to residence permits in Romania.

Deposit, utilities and the building association fee

Deposit (garanție). In the version of the Civil Code we read, the lease articles (1777-1835) do not set a maximum deposit, a deadline for returning it or rules on deductions. They only say guarantees carry over on tacit renewal and pass to a buyer (Articles 1810 and 1814). So the amount, permitted deductions and return deadline are whatever the contract says.

Utilities. Who pays electricity, gas, water and internet is up to the contract. Our guide to utilities in Romania in 2026 explains contracts and transfers.

Building association (asociația de proprietari). In blocks of flats, tenants must contribute to the costs of lighting, heating and cleaning the common areas (Civil Code, Article 1829(2)). Under Article 30 of Law 196/2018 (consolidated version of 19 December 2025), the owner must tell the association president in writing about a tenant within 10 days of signing, and the owner stays liable to the association and utility suppliers even if the tenant does not pay.

Checklist

• Ownership: title deed or land register extract, and the signer’s ID.
• A written lease with duration, rent, payment date, deposit terms and bills.
• Meter readings and condition recorded with dated photos and a signed inventory.
• A payment record for rent and deposit, such as bank transfers.
• The landlord’s C168 filing within 30 days of signing (Fiscal Code, Article 83(5)).
• The lease, and any registration proof, for the IGI file.
• Leaving a fixed-term lease early: at least 60 days’ notice (Article 1825(1)).

Header photo: Commie blocks in Bucharest by Petru2010, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.

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