The work visa is a paper that non-EU citizens need in order to get a job in Romania. But did you know that the internet is full of wrong information about this kind of document?

Check out below the most common myths we encountered about the Romanian work visa during our activity!

1. Anyone can hire you

Unfortunately, this information is false.

If a Romanian employer wants to hire a person from outside the European Union, then the employer will be subject to a complex process to obtain a work visa for the foreign employee. Therefore, before coming to Romania as an employee, you need to find a person really willing to pay you a salary and bring you to Romania to be hired. The employer must deal with all the bureaucracy involved in the process of obtaining an employment visa, motivating the importation of labor from outside the European Union and publishing an ad in a Romanian newspaper.

In this regard, if you want to get a job in Romania, you need to be careful of a potential scam. If you are asked to pay in order to be brought to Romania, do not do it unless you are sure that the potential employer is real, not fake. Recovering the amount of money already offered in this case is difficult to do, as the employer can no longer be found.

2. Everyone needs a work visa

A visa is only required for non-EU citizens. If you are a Romanian citizen or hold a Romanian passport, you will not need a work visa.

This also applies to EU citizens who do not need a work visa. In these cases, the easiest way is to obtain the residence permit from the General Inspector for Immigration (IGI), so obtaining a personal identification code (CNP), useful also to your employer when declaring and paying taxes on your behalf.

There is an exception though: citizens of Canada, the U.S. and Japan who do not need a work visa to live in Romania on a long-term basis if they want to do business in Romania.

3. You can change your employer freely

Of course, you can’t just move from one employer to another, and that’s because you need to make a legal transition.

When moving from one employer to another, you must make sure that the work visa has not expired, because you risk being deported. You risk being deported even if you were brought to Romania by an employer, and then you did not legally transfer to another, illegally appearing as an employee of another person than the one who filed the legal steps to bring you to Romania.

This aspect will appear in your criminal record, and you may receive a ban from entering Romania for a determined period.

4. Once you get your work visa in Romania, you can travel freely in the EU

Not only do you have to stay with the employer who brought you to Romania, but you also can’t find a job in another EU member state without taking legal steps there.

There are exceptions to the ban on not being able to travel freely to the EU for non-EU citizens who, once working in Romania, can also go to Cyprus or Bulgaria, but only for tourism purposes. A company from these countries cannot simply take over a foreign employee with a work visa for the Romanian state without fulfilling the necessary conditions for employment in their state.

However, whenever you make travel plans, check the legality of your approach with the embassy or border police, as these listed exceptions can be changed at any time.

5. You can stay in Romania as long as you want once you get your work visa

 Getting a work visa is the first step in obtaining a residence permit. The visa expires in 90 days.

During this period, but preferably before entering the last month, you should apply for the residence permit in Romania at the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI) in the city where you live and work.

And if you finally want to get a long-term residence permit, you need to make sure that you renew your short-term residence permit continuously, so that there is no intermittent. Any breaks between permits can affect your claim to permanent residency or Romanian citizenship in the future.

 

If you would like to address more questions or if you need a legal consultation, you can contact us at office@rrpb.ro or by accessing our site www.rrpb.ro for more information.

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