Do you have open positions, but local recruitment isn’t delivering results and you’re considering hiring foreign workers? Or perhaps you want to hire young people at the start of their careers or people from vulnerable groups and receive financial support from the state. In all these situations, the rules you need to follow have changed.
The new legislative provisions directly affect the decisions made by employers and HR managers: from the occupations for which foreign workers can be recruited to the conditions for receiving the employment stability bonus or hiring subsidies. At the same time, the documents used to claim reimbursement for medical leave benefits have also been changed.
Ioana Dobre, Senior Consultancy Manager at BIA Human Capital Solutions, presents the latest legislative changes that will impact hiring, as well as how to interpret them in order to ensure compliant employment relationships with your employees.
In this article, you will find out:
- what legal requirements you need to follow when hiring foreign workers;
- what changes have been made to the documents used to claim reimbursement for medical leave benefits;
- how much the stability bonus is for young NEETs and under what conditions it can be granted;
- what subsidies employers can receive when hiring people from vulnerable groups;
- in what situations the stability bonus and employment subsidies must be repaid.
Having trouble filling certain positions? The list of occupations in shortage becomes a key reference point for recruiting foreign workers
A shortage of workers may lead you to look for recruitment solutions outside Romania as well. By establishing an official list of occupations in shortage, the authorities aim to align access to foreign workers with the actual needs of the labour market.
Order 1073/2026 approving the List of shortage occupations provided for in Art. 1 para. (2) of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 32/2026 on the access of foreigners to the Romanian labour market, and for the amendment and completion of certain normative acts, published in the Official Gazette no. 335/27.04.2026, published in the Official Gazette no. 649 of 6 August 2026, makes the following clarifications:
Comment: This Order establishes the shortage occupations, in order to facilitate the access of foreign (non-EU) workers to the Romanian labour market, under the conditions provided by Government Emergency Ordinance no. 32/2026 on the access of foreigners to the Romanian labour market, and for the amendment and completion of certain normative acts.
For employers, the new provisions mean that recruiting a worker from outside the EU must be assessed in light of the framework established by Government Emergency Ordinance No. 32/2026 and the occupations included in the list approved by Order No. 1073/2026.
A New Form for Recovering Medical Leave Benefits: What Employers Need to Change
Another change affects employers who request reimbursement of medical leave benefits. Order No. 909/2026 updates the application form used to request and recover amounts from FNUASS. The change is specific, but it has a direct impact on the documentation employers need to prepare.
Order 909/2026 supplementing the Implementing Norms of the provisions of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 158/2005 on health social insurance leave and benefits, approved by the Order of the Minister of Health and the President of the National Health Insurance House no. 15/2018/1.311/2017, published in the Official Gazette no. 606 of 24.07.2026, makes the following clarifications:
Comment: This Order supplements Annex no. 10 of the Implementing Norms of GEO no. 158/2005 (Order no. 1311/2017) – namely the application form used by employers to request/recover sick leave benefits.
Thus, the form for recovering amounts from the FNUASS is supplemented with four new fields:
“- J1.2. …………………….. lei, representing benefits for temporary incapacity for work, caused by ordinary illnesses or accidents outside work, by applying a percentage of 55% to the calculation basis for sick leave certificates issued for a period of up to 7 days of temporary incapacity for work;
– J1.3 ……………………… lei, representing benefits for temporary incapacity for work, caused by ordinary illnesses or accidents outside work, by applying a percentage of 65% to the calculation basis for sick leave certificates issued for a period between 8 and 14 days of temporary incapacity for work;
– J1.4 ……………………… lei, representing benefits for temporary incapacity for work, caused by ordinary illnesses or accidents outside work, by applying a percentage of 75% to the calculation basis for sick leave certificates issued for a period of more than 15 days of temporary incapacity for work;
– J1.5 ……………… lei, representing benefits related to sick leave certificates granted for ordinary illnesses, resulting from recalculation (by applying the percentage of 55%/65%/75% to the calculation basis for the sick leave certificates issued);”
For HR and payroll departments, this change means paying close attention to how the reimbursement documentation is completed, so that the amounts being claimed are mentioned in the appropriate sections.
Looking to Hire Young People? Mention the Stability Bonus in the Job Ad
If you’re looking to grow your team by hiring young people you can train on the job, recruiting them may now be easier. You can motivate them with the stability bonus, which you can even mention in the job ad.
Government Decision 570/2026 amending and supplementing certain normative acts in the field of employment, published in the Official Gazette no. 614 of 28 July 2026, makes the following clarifications:
Stability bonus for young NEETs at their first job. Young people aged between 16 and 30, who are not in employment, education or training (NEET) and are registered with employment agencies, may receive monthly, for 24 months, the amount of 1,000 lei/month in the first 12 months and 1,250 lei/month in the following 12 months. The amount is non-taxable and is not subject to social contributions. This benefit is granted only for the first full-time job, based on a contract concluded for an indefinite period, and not for positions in public institutions, state-owned companies or entities with majority state capital.
The measure is designed to encourage young people to enter the labour market. As an employer, consider offering a full-time, open-ended employment contract so that young people can qualify for this bonus.
Hiring People from Vulnerable Groups? You Can Receive RON 2,250 per Month
Government Decision No. 570/2026 also introduces financial support measures for employers who hire people from vulnerable groups. The aim of these measures is to support the employment of people who face difficulties in accessing or keeping a job.
Subsidies for employers for 18 categories of vulnerable persons. Employers who hire unemployed persons over 50 years old, long-term unemployed persons, young NEETs, persons with disabilities, graduates, victims of domestic violence or trafficking, unemployed mothers with 3+ children, etc. may receive 2,250 lei/month for each employed person, for a period of 12 – 18 months depending on the category.
The financial support can help reduce the costs associated with recruiting and integrating people from groups that face greater difficulties in accessing the labour market.
However, it is important to check the specific eligibility conditions for each category, as well as the period for which the subsidy can be granted.
Be Careful If the Employment Contract Ends Early: You May Have to Repay the Money
The financial benefits granted under these measures are linked to maintaining the employment relationship for the period required by law. Therefore, as an employer, you need to consider not only the initial conditions for receiving the support, but also the obligations that arise afterwards.
Repayment obligation in the event of early termination of the employment contract. Both the stability bonus and the employer subsidies must be repaid in full if the employment relationship ends before the mandatory minimum period — 24 months for the bonus and 18 months for the subsidies — for reasons such as termination by mutual agreement, serious disciplinary misconduct, or the employee’s resignation.
Therefore, before benefiting from these measures, employers should also consider the obligation to maintain the employment relationship. Early termination of the contract, in the situations specified by law, may result in an obligation to fully repay the amounts granted.
Conclusion
The new provisions come in a context where employers need to find solutions both to address labour shortages and to support the integration into employment of people in vulnerable situations. At the same time, the changes introduce new administrative requirements that HR and payroll departments need to keep track of.
From checking whether an occupation is on the shortage list when recruiting a worker from outside the EU, to correctly completing applications for the reimbursement of medical leave benefits and complying with the conditions for employment incentives, correctly applying the new provisions is essential for employers.
Ioana Dobre, Senior Consultancy Manager at BIA Human Capital Solutions, recommends that employers keep track of legislative changes and, before implementing any measure, check the specific requirements set out in the relevant legislation.
The BIA Human Capital Solutions team, with more than 17 years of experience in HR consulting, closely monitors legislative developments and can support employers in interpreting and applying employment legislation.
📩 biaoffice@bia.ro 📞 0727 500 350!
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