Law 172/2020 amending Law no. 16/2017, regarding the posting of employees providing transnational services, transposes Directive (EU) 2018/957 into Romanian law. Law 172/2020 was published in the Official Journal of Romania on 13 August 2020. Its provisions are in force as from 16 August 2020.
Below you will find an review of the obligations to respect when posting workers to Romania.
For an overview of EU legislation on posting, take a look at our guide on EU Posted Workers Directives.
Prior obligation for companies posting workers to Romania
Undertakings established in an EU or EEA Member State or Switzerland, which post employees to Romania, shall submit a notification on the transnational posting of workers, in Romanian language, to the local Labor Inspectorate under whose jurisdiction they are going to operate, before the posted workers start their activities.
Specifically, the Posting Declaration sent to the Territorial Labor Inspectorate must include the following elements:
- the receiving institution (the identity and detail of the Territorial Labor Inspectorate to whom it is addressed);
- the identity of the foreign enterprise (the ‘Posting Company’);
- the data of the designated contact person;
- the identification data of the posted employees;
- the estimated duration of the posting;
- address (es) of the workplace;
- the nature of the services justifying the posting and its purpose.
In terms of social security, employers must apply for an A1 Certificate, in order to attest that the posted workers remain subject to the social security laws of their Home State.
How to send the notification of posting
The posting company can submit the notification by e-mail to the Labor authorities. In addition, it can also be delivered by postal services to the competent authority.
The foreign undertaking shall notify the competent Labour Inspectorate of any change in the elements included in the original posting declaration. The notification of change is submitted at the latest on the day the change occurs.
Appointing a contact person in Romania
According to the Law, the posting company shall designate a person to liaise with the competent Romanian authorities and to send and receive documents and/or notices. This person may be one of the posted workers, provided that they can fulfil these duties.
In any case, the designated person shall make the documents necessary for checking compliance with working conditions available to labour inspectors at their request.
Working conditions applicable to workers posted in Romania
Foreign companies who post their workers to undertakings established in the territory of Romania are subject, during their posting, to the mandatory working conditions provided by Romanian law. Consequently, workers posted to the Romanian territory in the framework of the transnational provision of services shall benefit, irrespective of the law applicable to the employment relationship, from the working conditions provided by the Romanian legislation and/or from the collective labour agreement concluded at sectoral level regarding:
- maximum length of working time and minimum period of regular rest time;
- minimum duration of paid annual holidays;
- salary;
- conditions of assignment of workers by temporary work agencies;
- health and safety at work, etc.
More favourable working conditions applicable to the employment relationship remain protected.
Where the posting exceeds 12 months, additional Romanian employment conditions apply, subject to the statutory exceptions concerning the conclusion and termination of employment contracts and occupational pensions. This threshold may be extended to 18 months by submitting a reasoned notification before the 12-month period expires.
Minimum wage and working hours in Romania
The remuneration applicable to a worker posted to Romania is stipulated by:
- the Romanian legislation and/or
- the collective labour agreement concluded at sectoral level.
Accordingly, wages include basic wages, allowances, supplements, as well as other additional payments.
The basic wages cannot be lower than the applicable statutory minimum gross basic wage, which excludes allowances, supplements and other additional payments.
Still, amounts paid as reimbursement of expenditure actually incurred for travel, board and lodging are excluded from remuneration. Posting allowances may, however, count towards remuneration insofar as they do not reimburse such expenditure.
According to Government Decision no. 146/2026 and Emergency Ordinance no. 156/2024, the applicable statutory minimum gross basic wages are:
- 4,325 RON per month – standard minimum wage, effective from 1 July 2026;
- 4,582 RON per month – minimum wage for the construction sector, effective from 1 January 2025.
In Romania the standard working hours are 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week.
Documents to be stored during the posting in Romania
The Labour Inspectorate enforces compliance with the terms and conditions of employment by undertakings posting workers to Romania. During the posting, the home company has the obligation to hold and make available to labour inspectors, upon request, copies of the following documents, in paper or electronic form, at an accessible and clearly identifiable location in Romania:
- employment contract or equivalent;
- wages and proof of payment;
- length of their working time and attendance book/register.
Furthermore, for 3 years after the end of the posting, the foreign undertaking has the obligation to provide, upon request of the Labour inspectorates, the aforementioned documents within 20 working days from receipt of the request.
The posting company shall also provide a translation into Romanian of the above-mentioned documents.
The Cooperation between the Italian and Romanian Labor Inspectorates to foster information exchange
On 4 May 2022, the Italian and Romanian Labour Ministers signed a protocol of mutual cooperation, the Memorandum of Understanding regarding the collaboration and information exchange in the area of work inspection. The Italian National Labour Inspectorate and the Romanian Labour Inspectorate are responsible for its implementation.
The document first aims at improving cooperation between the Romanian and Italian control and monitoring authorities on preventing and combating illegal practices in the field of transnational posting. Moreover, the signing of the memorandum aims at promoting and ensuring the correct application of national and European legislation to protect the rights of workers on the territory of the two states.
Immigration requirements for posting of non-EU workers
Posting to Romania from an EU or EEA country or Switzerland of a non-EU citizen, lawfully resident and employed in that country, involves a series of aspects and conditions from an immigration, labour and social security perspective.
Following Government Emergency Ordinance No. 32/2026, the immigration legislation defines a posted worker as a qualified foreign national temporarily posted to Romania by an employer established in an EU or EEA Member State or Switzerland, holding a residence permit issued by that State.
Firstly, a third-country worker holding a valid residence permit issued by another Schengen State may generally enter Romania without a short-stay visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, subject to the applicable entry conditions and Schengen short-stay calculation. However, the right to enter Romania for a short stay does not automatically establish the right to perform work activities. The immigration requirements applicable to the posting must be assessed separately.
Therefore, in order to be posted and perform work activities in Romania, a non-EU citizen must comply with the applicable visa and residence requirements. Under the new procedure, the long-stay visa for posting, identified by the symbol D/DT, certifies the worker’s right to work in Romania.
Penalties for non-compliance
According to the methodological rules approved by Government Decision no. 337/2017 of 18 May 2017, as amended, in the context of posting of workers to Romania by foreign employers, the Romanian authorities may impose fines from RON 5,000 to RON 9,000 for the following:
- failure to submit to the local labour inspectorate the posting declaration;
- not holding and making available to the labor inspectors, on their request, copies of the employment contract or equivalent documents, wages and proof of payment, time-sheets, etc.;
- no translation into Romanian of the requested documents;
- failure to designate a person to liaise with the competent national authorities and to send and receive documents and/or notices, where necessary;
- not providing the documents required by the authorities after the end of the posting period, at the request of the Labor Inspectorate, within 20 working days from receipt of the request.
Besides, in case the posting declaration is not complete or has wrong information, the authorities may issue fines between RON 3,000 and RON 5,000.