Romania immigration and residence options in 2026

Romania's immigration framework changed materially in 2026, especially for employment. The most important editorial rule is to separate entry visa, employer-side work procedure, residence document, business/professional authorization, and long-term residence.

Current route map

• Employment Work Visa and Single Permit
• EU Blue Card and Highly Qualified Work
• Digital Nomad
• Economic and Professional Self-Employment
• Commercial Activities and Investor Residence
• Studies and Student Work
• Graduate Job Search and Business
• Family Reunification
• Scientific Research
• Long-Term Residence

Work routes: major 2026 reform

Romania now distinguishes D/AM1 and D/AM2 work visas and uses an electronic single-application process through the official WorkinRomania platform.

D/AM1 is mainly for highly qualified and specified special categories; D/AM2 covers permanent, seasonal and cross-border workers who do not qualify for D/AM1 and is tied to the current shortage-occupation / authorized recruitment framework.

The EU Blue Card remains a distinct highly qualified route. Current Romanian law uses a salary floor at the average gross salary and residence for the contract term plus three months, up to three years—older two-times-salary / two-year summaries are stale.

Remote work and self-employment

The digital nomad route is under the D/AS other-purposes framework. It requires remote foreign work/business activity and income of at least three times Romania's average gross monthly salary across the relevant six-month history and visa period. The first residence extension is six months.

Romania also distinguishes economic/professional self-employment from commercial company/investor activity.

Students and graduates

Current IGI guidance allows qualifying students to work part-time for up to 6 hours per day without a work permit. After graduation, study residence can be extended for 9 months for job search, employment formalities or opening a business.

Family, researchers and settlement

Family reunification depends on the sponsor's status. Scientific-research residence can follow the hosting agreement for up to five consecutive years.

Ordinary long-term residence generally requires five years of continuous qualifying residence. Student time counts at half, and the status held at application matters.

Official starting points: IGI, Romanian MFA eVisa, Work in Romania, and the Romanian legislative portal.

Explore Europe, work visas, entrepreneur visas, investor visas, digital nomad visas, student visas, methodology, and the legal disclaimer.

Related published research: Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece, Croatia, and Czechia.

Published pathways