Romania (RO)

Romania is the largest country in Southeastern Europe — a full Schengen EU member state blessed with the dramatic Carpathian mountains, medieval Saxon towns like Sibiu and Brasov, the legendary Transylvania region, a booming technology sector, and one of the lowest costs of living in the European Union.

Capital: Bucharest

Region: Europe

Language: Romanian

Currency: RON (lei)

Cost of living: Very affordable (index 38)

Emergency: 112

Jobs & Work Permits

Everything you need to find work and get authorised to work in Romania.

Agenția Națională pentru Ocuparea Forței de Muncă (ANOFM)

ANOFM

Register online at anofm.ro or in person at your county AJOFM (Agenția Județeană pentru Ocuparea Forței de Muncă) with ID card/passport, residence certificate, and education diplomas. Registration is free and mandatory to claim unemployment benefits.

Services offered:

✓National job board with vacancies across Romania (loculdemuncabun.ro)
✓Career counselling and vocational orientation (consiliere profesională)
✓Free vocational retraining courses (cursuri de formare profesională)
✓CV drafting help and interview preparation workshops
✓Unemployment benefit (indemnizație de șomaj) — 75% of minimum gross wage + 10% of average of last 12 months, for 6–12 months depending on contribution history
✓Mobility grants and relocation bonuses for accepting jobs in other counties

Expat eligibility: EU/EEA/Swiss citizens have full access to all services. Non-EU citizens need a valid residence permit with work rights. To qualify for indemnizație de șomaj you must have contributed to the unemployment fund for at least 12 months in the past 24 months.

Visit Agenția Națională pentru Ocuparea Forței de Muncă (ANOFM)

💼 Work Permits

EU Citizens

EU/EEA/Swiss citizens can live and work freely in Romania without a permit. After 3 months of residence you must register with the Inspectoratul General pentru Imigrări (IGI) to receive a Certificat de Înregistrare.

Non-EU Citizens

Non-EU citizens need a work authorisation (aviz de angajare) obtained by the employer from IGI, followed by a long-stay D/AM visa at a Romanian consulate abroad, and then a residence permit (permis de ședere) after arrival. Annual quotas are set by government decision each year.

EU Blue Card

EU Blue Card (Carte Albastră UE): for non-EU graduates with a job contract paying at least 1.5x the gross national average salary (approximately RON 8,620/month in 2026). Valid up to 2 years, renewable. Family reunification is simplified and leads toward permanent residence. Minimum wage context: RON 4,050 gross (Jan–Jun 2026), rising to RON 4,325 from July 1, 2026.

Freelancer Visa

Self-employed non-EU citizens can apply for a long-stay visa for commercial or independent activities (D/AC). A specific Digital Nomad Visa (D/DN) exists since 2022 for remote workers employed abroad with income of at least 3x the national minimum gross salary (approximately RON 12,150/month in 2026).

⏱️ Work Culture

Typical hours 40 hours/week, usually 9:00–18:00 with a 1-hour lunch break. Hybrid work is common in tech and corporate roles; shops and industry still expect full on-site presence.

Annual leave Minimum 20 working days/year by law (Codul Muncii). Most employers offer 21–25 days. Additionally there are 15+ public holidays per year.

Sick leave First 5 calendar days: employer pays 75% of average gross salary. From day 6: national health insurance (CNAS) pays 75–100% depending on diagnosis. Requires a medical certificate (concediu medical).

Trial period Up to 90 calendar days for permanent (indefinite-term) contracts, and up to 120 days for management positions. Either side can end the contract during probation with a simple written notice and no justification.

Notice period Employees resigning: minimum 20 working days (45 for management). Employers terminating for non-disciplinary reasons: minimum 20 working days. Contracts may extend these within legal limits.

Salary range Gross salary ranges (RON/month, 2026): entry-level 4,500–7,000; mid-level 8,000–15,000; senior/IT 15,000–30,000+; top tech leads and management above 40,000. Net pay is roughly 58% of gross after CAS/CASS/income tax.

Pay frequency Monthly, usually paid between the 10th and 15th of the following month. By law salary must be paid at least monthly.

Contract types

·Contract individual de muncă pe durată nedeterminată (permanent, the default)
·Contract pe durată determinată (fixed-term, max 36 months, up to 3 consecutive renewals)
·Contract cu timp parțial (part-time)
·Contract de ucenicie (apprenticeship, 1–3 years)
·Zilier (day-labour in agriculture/hospitality, max 120 days/year)

🔍 Job Boards

eJobs

Romania's largest general-purpose job board, strong in all sectors.

BestJobs

Major competitor to eJobs, wide range of listings including blue-collar and remote.

Hipo.ro

Focused on students, fresh graduates and internships. Hosts the yearly "Top Employers" rankings.

Essential for corporate, tech, multinational and English-language roles in Bucharest, Cluj and Timișoara.

OLX Locuri de Muncă

Classified-ads style board, useful for hospitality, trades, drivers, and entry-level work.

Indeed Romania

Aggregator pulling listings from company sites and other boards.

JobRadar24

Aggregator that consolidates Romanian and remote postings with salary filters.

🌍 Expat-Friendly Resources

🌍

Expats.ro

English-language guide and community for foreigners living in Romania, with job leads and relocation tips.

🌍

InterNations Bucharest

Largest expat networking organisation, with monthly events in Bucharest, Cluj, Timișoara and Iași.

🌍

Romania Insider Jobs

English-language news site with a careers section aimed at international professionals.

📝 Application Tips

CV format: The Europass CV is widely accepted. Reverse chronological, 1–2 pages, photo optional (still common in conservative sectors like banking). Include clear qualification details and language levels (CEFR). Romanian or English is fine; IT and finance roles are almost always in English.

Cover letter: Expected

Language: Romanian is expected for most local-market jobs, public sector, healthcare and retail. Tech, shared-service centres (SSC/BPO), and multinationals operate primarily in English, with German, French, Italian or Spanish as a strong plus.

Interviews: Corporate and banking interviews are formal — suit and tie still common. Tech and startup interviews are casual, with coding tests and system-design rounds. Punctuality is valued; bring printed copies of diplomas and certificates if requested.

🤝 Networking Tips

→Join LinkedIn — it is by far the strongest professional network in Romania for white-collar roles.
→Attend Cluj IT Cluster, ANIS or Bucharest Tech Week events for IT/tech networking.
→InterNations meetups run regularly in Bucharest, Cluj, Timișoara, Iași and Brașov.
→Check Meetup.com for developer, product and startup communities (e.g. Bucharest JS, PyBucharest, Cluj Startups).
→The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham Romania) and bilateral chambers (German, French, British) host excellent business-networking evenings.

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