Purpose of the procedure: The procedure is intended for the recognition of the professional qualification of legal adviser obtained in a third country and for its registration by the Ministry of Justice, for the exercise of professional activities in Romania – the host state – on a permanent basis.

Beneficiaries of the procedure: citizens of an EU Member State or of the EEA or the Swiss Confederation who wish to practice the profession of legal adviser, on a permanent basis, and who prove fulfillment of the requirements below.

Submitting the application

- by electronic means

· by e-mail, at dsc@just.ro

· via the Single Electronic Contact Point platform

- by post/courier (it is not necessary to indicate a contact person);

- in person/through a delegated person (power of attorney is not required) – at the registry of the Ministry of Justice.

Document submission schedule: https://www.just.ro/

Stages of the procedure

I. Evaluation stage:

- verification of compliance with the legal conditions for recognition of the professional qualification – 20 working days from the date of submission of the application;

- appealing the results of the recognition verification – 3 working days from communication of the results;

- resolution of appeals – 5 working days from the expiration of the deadline for submitting appeals;

II. Completion of a 3-year traineeship in Romanian law by the applicant and submission of proof of its completion to the Ministry of Justice

OR

II. Sitting the professional knowledge verification exam, which consists of a written evaluation, in the form of a multiple-choice test from the following fields: civil law, criminal law, civil procedural law, criminal procedural law, administrative law, labor law and commercial law.

III. Issuance of the order by the Minister of Justice granting the right to practice the profession of legal adviser – communicated within 15 days from its issuance, by the method indicated in the application

Language proficiency - Evaluation of language skills is not part of the recognition procedure. If there are serious and concrete doubts regarding the professional’s knowledge of the language for exercising the activity of legal adviser, the verification of Romanian language knowledge necessary for practicing the profession in Romania may be carried out only after recognition of the professional qualification.

Documents issued in a third country

Official documents issued in a third country must be apostilled or, as the case may be, superlegalized, except in cases where this requirement has been waived by international conventions. Additional information here: https://cnred.edu.ro/ro/lista-statelor-pentru-care-se-solicit%C4%83-apostilarea-sau-supralegalizarea.

Translation of official documents issued abroad

Official documents issued abroad are to be submitted as photocopies and must be accompanied by a translation, without the requirement for its legalisation. If, according to the requirements below, legalisation of the translation is necessary, the translation shall be carried out by an authorised interpreter and translator in Romania, whose signature is legalised by a notary public or by the diplomatic mission or consular office of Romania abroad. Translations performed by official translators from other EU Member States, EEA countries, or the Swiss Confederation are also accepted. If the document issued in an EU Member State refers to birth, marriage, domicile, residence, or criminal record, the translation is replaced by the multilingual standard form assisting with translation, issued according to Regulation (EU) No. 2016/1191. Additional information ​here.

Fee – If the applicant opts for undertaking the 3-year traineeship in Romanian law, a judicial stamp duty of 20 lei must be paid for the application to be processed. The judicial stamp duty shall be paid into the local budget of the administrative-territorial unit in Romania where the applicant has their domicile/residence (city hall). If the applicant has neither domicile nor residence in Romania, the fee is paid into the account of Sector 5 City Hall, Bucharest. To find out the account in which the payment is to be made, you may contact the competent Local Taxes and Duties Directorate. Payment can be made in cash / by bank transfer / online (including on www.ghiseul.ro), at the City Hall, banking units, CEC, State Treasury, or Romanian Post, but only to the local budget account of the above-mentioned city hall. The receipt must be marked with “judicial stamp duty for recognition of legal adviser qualification”. This stamp duty is not refundable if, after verifying the application and supporting documents, the conditions for recognition of the professional qualification are not met.

If the applicant opts for sitting the professional knowledge verification exam, the above-mentioned judicial stamp duty is not paid, but instead the examination fee, which will be determined later by the order of the Minister of Justice organizing the exam session.