Romanian courses for foreign workers: what OUG 32/2026 makes employers provide
Since Romania's Emergency Ordinance 32/2026 on foreigners' access to the labour market, an employer who hires a non-EU worker must provide Romanian lessons. Article 7(1)(g) sets the floor: courses that also cover cultural and social integration, for at least 6 months from the day the worker starts, at least 6 hours a week. Breaking it is a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 lei per worker.
Everything below was read on 23 October 2026 in the text of the ordinance as filed with the Senate bill that approves it (L289/2026, senat.ro), and in the version the Senate adopted on 26 May 2026. The bill is still before the Chamber of Deputies; an emergency ordinance applies while Parliament debates it.
What article 7(1)(g) says
Employers who hire foreigners in Romania must "provide, directly or through accredited providers or in collaboration with public institutions, non-governmental organisations, international organisations or educational institutions, Romanian-language courses that also include elements of cultural and social integration for foreigners, for a period of at least 6 months from the date the activity in Romania began, as registered in REGES-ONLINE, lasting at least 6 hours a week" (our translation).
Six hours a week for six months is about 156 hours. That figure is our arithmetic, not the ordinance's, and it is a minimum. Course providers already advertise "156-hour" certificates built on it.
The clock starts at REGES-ONLINE, the national register of employment contracts, on the day the worker's activity is recorded as starting, not on the day they arrive or the day the permit is issued.
What it does not say
No level, no exam, no certificate. Article 7(1)(g) asks for hours of teaching. It names no CEFR level the worker must reach and no test at the end. A provider's certificate of attendance is the provider's own document, not one the ordinance requires.
No definition of "accredited". The text lets the employer teach directly or use accredited providers, public institutions, NGOs, international organisations or educational institutions, but does not say which accreditation it means. An employer buying courses will reasonably ask a provider which one it holds.
No price. The ordinance does not cap or set what a course costs.
Who pays, and when the worker may have to pay it back
The duty sits on the employer: article 7 lists it among the employer's obligations, beside paying wages into the worker's bank account and giving safety training in a language the worker understands.
There is one way back to the worker. Article 40(2) says the workers it covers (those referred to in article 27^2 of the aliens law, OUG 194/2002) may not, on their own initiative, change employer in the first 6 months, except for a serious breach by the employer. Article 40(9) adds that if the worker does not respect that period, the employer may recover what it spent on the Romanian courses, housing and transport. Read your contract for how that is calculated.
The fine
Article 42(2) makes breaking article 7(1)(a) to (d), (g) or (h) a contravention fined from 5,000 to 10,000 lei for each foreign worker. The version adopted by the Senate on 26 May 2026 rewrites other fines in article 42(3) and removes article 42(5)(b), but leaves article 42(2) as it was.
Some commentary quotes fines of up to 40,000 lei for the courses. In the text we read, the 25,000 to 40,000 lei band in article 42(5) is for placement-agency breaches, not for the course duty.
Since when
The ordinance was published in Monitorul Oficial no. 335 of 27 April 2026. Article 48 limited Title I, which contains article 7, until 7 August 2026 to registering employers, authorising placement agencies and testing the online platform. The national employment agency's Timiș office announced the WorkinRomania.gov.ro platform as launched from 7 August 2026.
Our reading: the course duty bites on workers whose activity started after the rules applied in full. Ask the Labour Inspectorate or a Romanian employment lawyer before relying on a date for a specific contract.
How this compares with the state course
Romania already ran a state initiation course in Romanian under Ministry of Education Order 6129/2022: at least 216 hours, normally in modules matching A1, A2 and B1, ending in an assessment and a free certificate. It is free once for holders of international protection and paid for others with a right of residence; our Romanian lesson-cost guide sets it out.
The two do different jobs. The state course aims at a level and certifies it; the OUG 32/2026 duty counts hours and names no level. A worker who later needs Romanian for citizenship is checked at an interview, and some applicants must hand in a B1 certificate (our citizenship guide). Hours alone do not produce that certificate.
What we are, and what we are not
We run a marketplace for one-to-one lessons with independent teachers, including Romanian. We are not an accredited provider, and a booking with us is not, by itself, proof that an employer met article 7(1)(g). A worker who wants extra speaking time on top of an employer's course, or at hours a shift pattern allows, can book a teacher directly; prices are set by each teacher, and there is no subscription.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Treating the course as something the worker must arrange and pay for.
Asking the employer for the course the ordinance requires them to provide.
OUG 32/2026 art. 7(1)(g) places the duty to provide Romanian courses, at least 6 hours a week for at least 6 months, on the employer.
Assuming the 6-month course leads to a B1 certificate.
Checking separately what level and certificate you need, for example for citizenship.
Art. 7(1)(g) sets hours and duration only; it names no level, exam or certificate.
Changing employer in the first 6 months without reading the contract.
Checking whether the employer can recover course, housing and transport costs.
Art. 40(2) and (9): a covered worker who changes employer on their own initiative within 6 months, outside a serious breach by the employer, may have to repay those costs.
Questions
Do employers in Romania have to provide Romanian courses for foreign workers?
Yes, for non-EU workers hired under Emergency Ordinance 32/2026. Article 7(1)(g) requires Romanian-language courses with cultural and social integration content, for at least 6 months from the start of activity registered in REGES-ONLINE, at least 6 hours a week.
What is the fine for not providing the Romanian course?
Article 42(2) of OUG 32/2026 sets a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 lei for each foreign worker. The Senate's amended version of 26 May 2026 leaves that paragraph unchanged.
How many hours is the OUG 32/2026 Romanian course?
At least 6 hours a week for at least 6 months, which works out at about 156 hours. That total is arithmetic; the ordinance states only the weekly hours and the minimum duration.
Does the course give a language certificate?
The ordinance does not require one. It names no level, exam or certificate. Providers may issue their own attendance certificates.
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