Relova Blog

Blog/April 10, 2026

How to Move to Romania in 2026: Digital Nomad Visa, Costs, and Expat Life

By Anna Moore

how to move to Romania 2026: Digital nomad income references often 3300 EUR monthly; Flat income tax headline around 10 percent; Bucharest and Cluj 1BR often...

Romania’s digital nomad visa (Law 22/2022, from January 2022) is still open in 2026 — one of the earlier Eastern European products that did not quietly expire. The income test is three times the national average gross salary at filing, about €3,700–4,100 a month (~18,500 RON) at the start of 2026, with six months of proof. On renewal the bar drops to one times average salary. That step-down is the part forums skip. It is also why some people wait to file until their trailing six months look clean rather than padding a weak month with a one-off invoice.

Filing threshold versus renewal threshold

Bring six months of remote-employment or business income that clears the 3× line. Contracts, bank statements, and tax certificates in a language the IGI will accept matter more than a pretty coworking photo. Insurance must cover at least €30,000. The medical certificate (“Nomad Checkup”) is routinely done at private networks such as Regina Maria, Medicover, or Medlife in Bucharest; the residence-card fee is about €170. Do the checkup in-country if that is what the current checklist wants; do not assume a PDF from your home GP will pass.

Renewal at 1× average is why some people file at the high bar knowing year two is easier — if the programme still exists in that form. Always re-check the order in force the month you apply. A 2022 Telegram screenshot of “€3,000 is enough” is not 2026 law.

Flat 10% personal income tax is the resident headline. Local business wrappers are PFA (sole trader) or SRL (company) with a more optimised corporate rate if you actually operate in Romania — that is a tax-advisor file, not a visa stamp. The nomad visa is a stay basis; it is not automatically a 10% deal on foreign payroll unless you have actually become a Romanian tax resident under the rules that apply to you.

Schengen since 1 January 2025

Romania is a full Schengen member as of 1 January 2025, including land borders. A Romanian residence card is a free-movement credential across 29 Schengen states, not a Romania-only cage. That is the 2026 upgrade versus the 2022 launch: you are not collecting extra stamps to visit Vienna for a client meeting. It also means your 90/180 tourist arithmetic is the wrong mental model once you hold the card — you are a resident of a Schengen state, with the duties that come with that, not a backpacker collecting days.

Permanent residence is typically discussed at five years of legal stay; EU citizenship at ten. Those clocks assume clean renewals, not creative overstays. Ten years is a long time to discover you never filed a tax return you were supposed to file.

City budgets

Comfortable Bucharest, rent included, is often €1,000–1,800 a month. Cluj-Napoca and Timișoara run 10–20% cheaper. Cluj is the other IT gravity well — useful if you want a smaller centre and still want English in offices. A one-bed in prestige Bucharest pockets (Floreasca, Dorobanți, centre) is €450–800. Cluj is similar or a shade less. International health insurance is €50–120 a month on top of the visa minimum — the €30,000 policy is the legal floor, not necessarily the plan you want after a ski weekend.

The average local net wage is not your wage; do not use it as a lifestyle target if you are paid in euros from abroad. It is a reminder that a €800 Floreasca one-bed is a local luxury, not a “cheap Eastern Europe” default.

First-month cash

Budget €3,000–4,500 beyond flights: two to four weeks of short-let, deposit, and a relocation fixer if you do not speak Romanian. That buffer is how people avoid signing a bad annual lease in the first 72 hours. Add the residence-card fee and the checkup so the “visa is cheap” story does not eat the emergency fund.

Romania in 2026 is 3× to file, 1× to renew, Schengen-wide movement, 10% PIT, and a Bucharest envelope under €1,800 if you are not collecting designer rents. The visa is still open. The paperwork is still Romanian. Start the six-month income file before you book the one-way ticket.

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