2. Romanian citizenship is acquired by birth, through adoption or through naturalization
(upon request). The latter is the method used by foreign nationals who have been
lawfully living in the country for a minimum number of years.
3. A foreign national who is ready to apply for Romanian citizenship will need to make
sure that he or she complies with the mandatory conditions concerning residency,
good conduct, minimum means of subsistence and language knowledge.
4. A foreign national lawfully living in Romania can
apply for citizenship if he or she has resided in
the country for at least 8 years before the
application date.
A shorter period of 5 years applies when the
applicant has been married to a Romanian
citizen.
Residence
5. Foreign nationals can apply for Romanian citizenship after the age of 18. The
applicant must not have any previous convictions in Romania or in another
country (certain types of offences disqualify the individual).
6. The applicant must also:
have sufficient Romanian
language knowledge;
have elementary knowledge
of the Romanian culture and
civilization;
be loyal to the Romanian
state and not engage in any
actions that compromise
national security.
7. Any foreign national willing to start the process of obtaining Romanian citizenship
submits a request with the National Citizenship Authority in Bucharest. The request is
submitted in person and the Committee will verify if the applicant is eligible.
8. An interview with the Citizenship Committee is mandatory for the written and
spoken language knowledge verification as well as the basic culture and
civilization knowledge assessment for the purpose of social integration.
9. Foreign nationals who wish to apply for Romanian citizenship can reach out to
our immigration lawyers for complete information about the application process,
the interview, and the mandatory citizenship oath.