Romania digital nomad visa 2026: requirements, tax & how to apply

Overview

Romania has a real, dedicated route for remote workers. The definition of a "digital nomad" was written into Romania's foreigners law (Government Emergency Ordinance 194/2002) by an amendment in early 2022, and the specific tax treatment was set by Law 69/2023, published in the Official Gazette on 30 March 2023. The process runs in two stages: a long-stay visa for digital nomads (visa type D/AD) issued by a Romanian embassy or consulate, followed by a residence permit issued inside Romania by the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI).

It is a residence route, not a local work authorisation. It lets you live in Romania while working remotely, over communications technology, for an employer or your own company registered outside Romania. You cannot use it to work for Romanian employers or serve the Romanian market. The draw is the combination of low cost of living, EU location, a flat 10 percent domestic tax system, and a specific exemption that keeps qualifying foreign income out of Romanian tax as long as you stay under the 183-day line.

Who it's for

The visa is built for third-country (non-EU/EEA) nationals who earn their living remotely from foreign sources. You qualify if you are either employed by, or own, a company registered outside Romania and you perform that work using communications technology.

• Your income must come from outside Romania — a foreign employer or your own foreign-registered company.
• You cannot work for Romanian clients or employers, or provide services to the Romanian market, under this status.
• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens do not need this visa — they already have free-movement residence rights in Romania.
• You must show a clean criminal record and hold health insurance valid in Romania.

Income requirement (exact)

The statutory threshold is at least three times the average gross monthly salary in Romania. Because that reference salary is set annually by the National Institute of Statistics (INS), the required amount is a moving formula rather than a fixed number. Using Romania's late-2025 average gross salary, three times lands at roughly 26,000 to 29,600 RON per month (about EUR 5,200 to 5,900). You must prove you have earned at least this amount for each of the six months before you apply, and that you can sustain it for the duration of your stay.

• Rule in law: 3x the Romanian average gross monthly salary, indexed annually.
• Approximate 2026 monthly figure: about 26,000 to 29,600 RON (EUR 5,200 to 5,900).
• Proof period: the last six months of income, via bank statements, contracts and tax records.
• On renewal the bar is lower — the income test drops to roughly the average gross salary (about 1x rather than 3x).

Tax treatment: does it make you tax-resident?

This is the part that matters most, and it turns on a single number: 183 days. Under Law 69/2023, a person holding digital-nomad status is exempt from Romanian income tax and from social-insurance and health contributions (CAS and CASS) on salary income earned from abroad, provided they are present in Romania for 183 days or less in any consecutive 12-month period. Stay within that line and Romania does not tax your foreign remote-work income.

Do not read the exemption as a blanket tax holiday. It covers foreign salary income for someone who stays under 183 days; it is not designed to shield passive income such as dividends, interest, rents or capital gains, and leaving a former tax residence cleanly usually takes more than a Romanian permit. For how ordinary residence works, see our companion pieces on the 183-day rule and tax residency.

Duration & renewal

You first obtain the D/AD long-stay visa from a Romanian embassy or consulate; it gives you a window to enter Romania. Inside the country you apply to IGI for a residence permit, issued for up to 12 months. The permit is renewable annually as long as you still meet the conditions. Note the tension with the tax rule: the permit can run 12 months, but the tax exemption only holds while you stay 183 days or less in any 12-month period, so long continuous residence and the exemption do not sit together.

Sources differ on the total cap — commonly cited as extendable to around 24 to 36 months on this basis before you must switch to another route (employment, business or long-term residence). Confirm the current cap with IGI, because immigration rules here change often.

Family

Once you hold your residence permit, close family members — spouse and dependent minor children — can join you through Romania's family-reunification provisions. They file their own documentation and receive their own permits, tied to yours. Family reunification typically requires you to show additional means and suitable accommodation, so budget your income proof with dependants in mind.

How to apply

1. Confirm eligibility: non-EU/EEA national, remote income from a foreign employer or your own foreign company, meeting the 3x-average-salary income test for the last six months.
2. Assemble your file: valid passport, proof of remote work (employment or service contract, or proof you own the foreign company), six months of income evidence and bank statements, health insurance valid in Romania, proof of accommodation, and a clean criminal-record certificate.
3. Legalise foreign documents: translate into Romanian and apostille or legalise where required.
4. Apply for the D/AD long-stay visa at the Romanian embassy or consulate in your country of residence (an e-visa portal is available for parts of the process), and pay the visa fee.
5. Enter Romania on the visa, then apply to the General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI) in the county where you live — in person or via the IGI online portal — for your residence permit and biometric card.
6. Track your days: keep your stay to 183 days or less in any 12-month period to hold the tax exemption, and apply to renew the permit before it expires if you intend to continue.

Cost & timeline

Fee and duration figures move — Romania adjusted long-stay visa charges during 2026 and caps have shifted before. Confirm the current amounts with the Romanian consulate and IGI before you file.

How Expectat helps you get there

Romania's nomad visa can be genuinely efficient, but only if the 183-day exemption is planned around, not stumbled into. The visa duration and the tax line do not line up on their own, and that gap is where people accidentally trigger Romanian residency or lose the exemption. We work backwards from your numbers, not from a brochure.

• We map your situation and your numbers: current tax residence, day counts, income mix and whether your foreign income actually meets the 3x-salary test.
• We build a day-count and income plan so you stay inside the 183-day exemption, keep your foreign salary out of Romanian tax, and separate it cleanly from passive income Romania and your home country may still tax.
• We execute on the ground with vetted local partners: document preparation, certified translations, the D/AD visa at the consulate, and filing with the right IGI office for your permit and card.

Bring us your income sources and your intended calendar and we will tell you whether Romania is the right base or a costly detour. Book a strategy call.