EU Blue Card and Highly Qualified Work in Romania in 2026

Romania's EU Blue Card is the residence-and-work document for qualifying highly skilled third-country nationals.

Current 2026 eligibility framework

The current Romanian employment system treats a highly qualified worker as a person employed in a highly qualified job under a full-time contract for an indefinite period or for a fixed period of at least 6 months, with the required higher professional qualifications or qualifying professional skills.

For current highly qualified employment, Romanian law requires salary at least at the level of the average gross salary. This is an important update: older summaries that still state a two-times-average salary threshold should not be treated as the current Romanian rule.

Validity

Current IGI and Romanian statutory text state that highly qualified temporary residence is granted for the employment-contract period plus 3 months, up to a maximum of 3 years.

This is also newer than older pages that still show a two-year maximum.

EU mobility

Under the 2026 statutory mobility rules, qualifying EU Blue Card holders may have short-term business mobility and can use long-term mobility to Romania after the relevant qualifying residence period in another Member State. The precise mobility conditions depend on where previous Blue Cards were held and should be checked against the current law.

The Blue Card should not be confused with the ordinary D/AM2 work route or with a general EU-wide unrestricted work permit.

Official starting points: IGI — Single permit / EU Blue Card, IGI — Employment and posting, Romanian legislation — foreigner regime.

Related: Romania immigration hub, methodology, and the legal disclaimer.

Official and supporting sources

Related routes in Romania