Benefits in Romania

Employees must contribute into the compulsory pension benefit administered by the Romanian National Pensions House. Employees contribute 25% of their gross remuneration (withheld and paid by the employer monthly).

To be eligible for retirement pension, a person must have (1) contributed to the fund for at least 16 years and (2) reached the minimum retirement age. The standard retirement age is 65 years for men and 61 years and six months for women, increasing gradually to 63 years by 2030. The full contribution period is 65 years for men and 31 years and six months for women, increasing gradually to 35 years by 2030.

The actual amount received as pension is determined based on a system of points calculated each month, with the gross wage or insured income of the applicant being divided by the gross average wage earned at national level and reported by the National Institute for Statistics.

The state transfers part of the pension contribution paid by the employee to a privately managed pension fund chosen by the employee, known as Pillar II. The amount is currently 3.75% and is scheduled to increase gradually.

If a Romanian citizen’s employment contract is terminated by dismissal through no fault of the employee, they become eligible for unemployment indemnity paid by the Local Workforce Occupation Authority. This means the contract can’t be terminated by resignation, mutual agreement, or dismissal due to gross misconduct.

Here are the factors making a person eligible for unemployment indemnity in the case of dismissal:

• The person must have paid social security contributions for at least 12 months in the two years prior to the unemployment application.
• The person’s obtained income doesn’t place the person above the reference social indicator.
• The person cannot apply for pension due to reaching the age limit.
• The person has to be registered at the Local Workforce Occupation Authority, looking for a new job.
• The term of office for which the person was appointed or elected has ended, if the person hadn’t been previously employed, or if the resumption of the activity is no longer possible, since the employer no longer operates.
• The period for which the soldiers were employed on a contract basis has expired, or their contract has been terminated for reasons beyond their control.
• The person is no longer employed as a cooperative member for reasons beyond the person’s control.
• The person has concluded an unemployment insurance contract and (1) doesn’t generate income or (2) doesn’t generate income from activities authorized by law, which places the person below the reference social indicator.
• The person stopped working due to disability and, subsequently, regained the ability to work but hasn’t managed to find another job.
• The employer liquidated the person’s position or their service relationship while the person was off work for reasons not attributable to the person.
• The person aged at least 16 and a graduate of an educational institution for people with disabilities hasn’t been able to find professional work within 60 days following graduation.
• The person can no longer reintegrate into work (as ordered by a final court decision), since the units where the person was previously employed either took over the person’s assets or no longer operate.

For more details, see the End of Employment section.

Employees are entitled to time off paid by either the employer or the social security authorities in the following circumstances:

• illness, with medical proof
• maternity leave – 126 days
• paternity leave – 10 or 15 working days
• parental leave until the child turns two
• adoption leave
• special events (marriage, death of a relative, blood donation)
• compensation for overtime or work during legal holidays
• professional training, if not employer-provided

For more details, see the Leave section.