Romania Market Entry

Subchapters:

Market entry
Forms and conditions of operation on the market
Marketing and Communications
Issues of intellectual property protection
Public procurement market
Payment terms, payment ethics and resolution of commercial disputes
Visas, fees, specific conditions of travel to the territory
Employment of citizens from the Czech Republic
Fairs and events

Market entry

The specifics of the Romanian environment are also reflected in the methods of market penetration. As in other countries, there is no one-size-fits-all recipe, but certain recommended and proven practices can be generalized. Since January 1, 2007, Romania has been a member of the European Union, so imports and exports, or the internal market rules of the European Union apply to intra-community trade. Check smber for agriculture and fishing facts of Romania.

Romanian customs standards are in line with the EU acquis.

Customs Information can be found on the website of the customs administration www.customs.ro, addressed directly in English. Contact: “Autoritatea Nationala a Vamilor” (General Directorate of Customs), address: Str. Alexandru Ivasiuc no. 34-40, bl. 5, sector 6, Bucureşti, CP 060305, email: relatiipublice@customs.ro, vama@customs.ro (department for communication with the public).

Regarding customs regulations when exporting to third countries , we also recommend visiting the website of the customs administration, where the customs law, including the implementing regulations, is available in English. By law, customs officers are obliged to answer all questions, including questions from foreign entities.

Certification – an important step in successfully entering the Romanian market, for selected products and technologies it is necessary to first find out the conditions of product certification with the relevant certification authority, as the harmonization of the legislation of Romania and the European Union continues to take place gradually. (Of course, foreign and domestic competition can skilfully take advantage of this situation.) The space for corruption is gradually decreasing, but this moment can still slow down entry into the market.

We recommend contacting reputable law firms.

Forms and conditions of operation on the market

Forms of operation and their advantages/disadvantages (sro, as, joint ventures…), use of local representatives, conditions for setting up an office, representation.

Laws – commercial companies are established according to Act. No. 31/90 on commercial companies. According to this law, natural and legal persons may merge and create the following types of business companies:

public company – SNC Societate în nume colectiv
limited partnership – SCS Societate în comandită simpla
joint stock company – SA Societate pe Acțiuni
limited liability company – SCA Societate în comandită pe acții
limited liability company – SRL Societate cu dìsìvere limitată

Conditions for establishing a company The Commercial Register, which deals with these matters, is available at www.onrc.ro in Romanian and partly in English. Similar to choosing the type of company, we recommend in any case to entrust matters regarding the establishment of a company (and generally all matters of a legal nature) to a law firm, as only they can give a binding and quick answer. The Embassy of the Czech Republic in Bucharest can recommend several verified offices (also with a Czech element).

The basic information page is on the ONRC website, www.onrc.ro e-mail: onrc@onrc.ro

However, ONRC services are subject to a fee except for the provision of a few basic data about companies.

It is convenient to have a representative on the Romanian market. Many companies work for a certain period of time with a Romanian sales and distribution representative (depending on the type of product or service, the representative is either national or multi-regional) or they pay their own Czech or Romanian representative, who operates directly on the Romanian market, concludes contracts and checks their fulfillment, creates network, functions as a coordinator of sales, service, etc. Subsequently, they often change to the form of a branch with majority Czech capital.

In any case, local representatives represent a very important element. Professional and language skills (at least English, usually also other languages such as French, Italian or German), a driver’s license, computer literacy and a willingness to work hard can be required of Romanian representatives. Good knowledge of the local environment and the ability to penetrate its complexities and peculiarities are a matter of course for a representative. Salary requirements have been rising recently, and the remuneration of a really well-functioning dealer or salesperson can significantly exceed EUR 1,700 (the average gross wage in the economy is lower, around EUR 1,100).

Marketing and communication

Requirements for promotion, marketing, advertising (use of HSP), important fairs and exhibitions in the territory

The background for promotional, marketing and advertising activity in Romania is made up of a relatively dense network of companies where similar working methods operate as in the Czech Republic. The possibility of advertising offers professional articles in economic periodicals through journalists who have long-term cooperation with the Embassy, PaulTrade or the Czech Center.

Selection from databases

It is not possible for the embassy to check whether all addresses, e-mail connections and contacts are still functional and correct, however, if the given contact is currently not working, it is sufficient to use one of the international search engines (www.google.com, www.yahoo.com) to verify the correctness, www.seznam.cz etc.) or Romanian ones (www.google.ro or www.cauta.ro). Romanian advertising server: www.adzone.ro.

Representation of PaulTrade : www.PaulTrade.ro

Promotion of Czech companies on the Romanian market

is one of the necessary conditions for establishing yourself on the Romanian market,
the Romanian partner considers the question of the Czech company’s participation in the costs of marketing and promotion of entrusted products in the initial phase to be self-evident,
the Czech company must therefore include these expected expenses in its price lists,
promotional materials can be prepared in Romanian, but English is also sufficient,
the possibility to present oneself in addition to advertising and the media also by participating (among other things at the ROMEXPO central exhibition center in Bucharest www.romexpo.ro or in the regions of Romania) at fairs still applies.

Issues of intellectual property protection

The issue of intellectual property protection is dealt with in accordance with the legislation of the European Union.

According to the representatives of the trademark protection department within the “Oficiul de Stat pentru Inventii si Marci” (OSIM, corresponding to the Czech Office of Industrial Property, www.osim.ro), as of 01.01.2007 approximately 670,000 registered European trademarks in Romania have guaranteed protection, however situations may arise where a dispute arises. In such a case, the only option is to go to court.

This area is also addressed by:

ANPCPPS Romania National Association for Consumer Protection and Promotion of Programs and Strategies from Romania InfoCons – Centrul Național de Consiliere și Informare în domini Protecției Consumatorului Bd. Mărășești Nr. 127-129, Sector 4, 040253 București, România Email: office@InfoCons.ro, office@anpcppsr.ro, secretariat.general@protectia-consumatorilor.ro Web: www.protectia-consumatorilor.ro

Public procurement market

Public contracts are announced and managed in accordance with the relevant European directives. The awarding of public contracts is mainly done by announcement in the press. The method of placement on the websites of public institutions (mainly ministries) is also starting to be applied. In addition, specialized agencies and entities such as the Commodity Exchange, Mediafax and others operate.

The Romanian state administration does not provide very flexible information yet. If the information is important to the applicant, it pays to be persistent. Representatives of local companies are of irreplaceable importance in this regard, but they also draw attention to the difficult access to information.

Probably the largest public procurement database available on the Internet can be found at www.licitatiiseap.ro (it also has an English version).

As a rule, the participant (provider) must meet at least the following requirements:

registration of the company by registration in the tender procedure,
purchase of a technical journal,
presenting the offer in accordance with the conditions stated in the technical journal,
fulfillment of the qualification conditions.

Websites with tenders (public contracts) on the market:

www.licitatia.ro
www.licitatie-publica.ro

Websites with tenders by field:

http://autoline-eu.ro/ – sale/purchase/tenders of all types of vehicles
http://licitatiiconstructii.ro – construction tenders/auctions
Programe de înzestrare – Direcția generale pentru armamente (dpa.ro) – documents of the General Directorate for Armaments

Payment terms, payment ethics and resolution of commercial disputes

The Romanian legal system belongs to the continental law family and is most influenced by the French concept. Commercial law underwent a practically complete legislative change after 1990, with the exception of some parts of the Commercial Code from 1887, which are still in force.

Regarding the legal environment in general, it should be noted that legislation changes quite often. Therefore, when concluding contracts with Romanian partners, regardless of the seriousness and nature of the concluded legal acts, we recommend paying extra attention to this issue and prefer to consult with lawyers. A good knowledge of the environment, traditions, local conditions and customs can prevent unexpected surprises.

The Embassy of the Czech Republic, PaulTrade and the Czech Center in Bucharest can also recommend vetted law firms. According to experience, the percentage of problematic orders or defaulters is not higher than anywhere else in Europe. As for the length of court proceedings, it is comparable to the situation in the Czech Republic. Arbitration is also available. The Chamber of Commerce of Romania (www.ccir.ro) also offers the option of resolving commercial disputes.

Visas, fees, specific conditions for traveling to the territory

Entry into the territory of Romania – documents

We strongly recommend following current events on the websites of the embassy or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs! Please note that due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the parameters of entry and stay in the territory of Romania may change. Citizens of the Czech Republic can travel to Romania with a valid passport or identity card. For family members of citizens of the Czech Republic, or The EU applies the same entry conditions, only if the family member is a citizen of a visa-required third country, they must apply for a Romanian entry visa at the relevant Romanian embassy. If the family member holds a valid residence permit for another EU member state, he does not need an entry visa.

Visas, fees, specific conditions for traveling to the territory (areas with increased risk for foreigners)

Input mode

Romania became a member of the EU on January 1, 2007, which also results in important changes for citizens of the Czech Republic who stay in Romania for a short or long term. If an EU citizen intends to stay in Romania for a maximum of 3 months, it is not necessary to complete any other formalities.

If an EU citizen wants to stay in Romania for more than 3 months, he must register at the nearest foreigner’s police station within 90 days of entry and at the same time meet one of the following conditions for the purpose of stay: employment or self-employment, financial independence and health insurance, studies, family reunification. On the basis of the documents presented below, EU citizens will be issued with a so-called registration certificate. The same will be the case with family members of EU citizens. Family members who are not EU citizens are only issued a confirmation valid until the residence card is issued. The deadline for its issuance is 90 days.

Documents required for individual purposes of stay:

Employment

completed application,
valid travel document or identity card in original and copy,
employment contract in original and copy, or employer’s statement,
print screen “from the general list of employees” (the part where you can find information about the employment contract with the stamp and signature of the employer), more information https://inspectiamuncii.ro,
proof of fee payment.

Selfemployment

completed application,
valid travel document or identity card in original and copy,
permit to carry out activity /business license/,
proof of fee payment.

Stay based on sufficient funds

completed application,
valid travel document or identity card in original and copy,
proof of financial resources in the amount of the Romanian subsistence minimum /bank account statement, pension certificate, etc./,
proof of health insurance /either in the Romanian health system or in another EU member state – European health insurance card/,
proof of fee payment.

Study

completed application,
valid travel document or identity card in original and copy,
proof of studies at an accredited institution,
proof of financial resources in the amount of the Romanian subsistence minimum /bank account statement, etc./, or affidavit,
proof of health insurance /either in the Romanian health system or in another EU member state – European health insurance card/,
proof of fee payment.

Family reunification

completed application,
valid travel document or identity card in original and copy,
registry document confirming the degree of kinship /birth certificate, marriage certificate, etc./,
a copy of the registration certificate of the EU citizen with whom the applicant lives in the same household,
proof of financial resources in the amount of the Romanian living minimum /bank account statement, etc./, proof of health insurance /either in the Romanian health system or in another EU member state – European health insurance card/,
proof of fee payment.

In the event that an EU citizen or his family members reside continuously in the territory of Romania for at least 5 years /the law provides for exceptions to this period and defines continuity/, they have the right to obtain permanent residence. For the issuance of a permanent residence card, it is necessary to apply to the foreign police, who will issue the card based on the application within 30 days, or 90 days for family members who are not EU citizens.

The place where EU citizens and their family members must register for residence, or to request the issuance of a registration certificate is the so-called INSPECTORATUL GENERAL PENTRU IMIGRĂRI /foreigner police/. In Bucharest, the institution is located at: str. Nicolae Iorga 23, sector 1. Outside of Bucharest, there are foreign police headquarters in all county towns.

Contacts for individual offices can be found, for example, on the website igi.mai.gov.ro.

More information in English can be found on the website of the General Inspectorate For Immigration http://igi.mai.gov.ro/en.

We recommend that you check the current conditions regarding entry and stay in the territory of Romania before going abroad at the Romanian embassy, which is fully competent for this. The embassy is located in the city center, the main landmark is the Piata Universitatii roundabout near the Intercontinental Hotel. The office building stands next to the Russian Orthodox Church (Biserica Rusa). There is public transport from the airport, bus no. 783, which goes directly from the airport to the center of Bucharest (to Universitate Square).

Public transport in Bucharest: Buses, trolleybuses and trams: www.stb.ro Metro: www.metrorex.ro Taxi services are more affordable than in the Czech Republic. Hotel services are widely available throughout the country, booking.com

Employment of citizens from the Czech Republic

In order to obtain more detailed information, we recommend for employment of citizens from the Czech Republic in Romania to visit the integrated portal of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic EURES adviser at the Labor Office of the Czech Republic (mpsv.cz).

The Embassy of the Czech Republic in Bucharest can recommend reputable recruitment agencies and law firms for specific consultations.

The minimum wage is 2550 RON (516 EUR) from January 2022. In the construction sector, the minimum wage is set at 3000 RON until the end of 2028.

Average net salary in Romania in January 2022 increased to 3698 RON (748 EUR), which is 8.9% more compared to the same month in 2021.

International Treaty on Social Security The Treaty between the Czech Republic and Romania on social security entered into force on March 1, 2004. The treaty is a modern contractual document that complies with all standard principles of social security coordination in relations between states.

Health insurance The Social Security Agreement ensures health care for insured persons of one state and in Romania, but only to the extent necessary, if the health condition of the insured person requires immediate provision of health care.

Pension insurance Changes in connection with the entry into force of the new Treaty on Social Security According to the 1957 Convention between the Czechoslovak Republic and the Romanian People’s Republic on Cooperation in Social Issues, which was still in force, pensions were not granted by both contracting parties, but only by the state of permanent residence of the entitled person, namely even for the period of insurance obtained in the other contracting state, without any compensation. The Czech side granted pensions to persons living in the Czech Republic even for their previous periods of employment in Romania, and the Romanian side proceeded similarly in the case of persons living in Romania who were insured/employed in the Czech Republic/Czechoslovakia in the past.

Fairs and events

The largest organizer of trade fairs in Romania is ROMEXPO – www.romexpo.ro (also in English)

The organization of fairs and events can also be followed through the Chamber of Commerce of Romania – https://ccir.ro/despre/contact/ (also in English)

The most important fairs