Mandatory Standard Contract Templates for the Placement of Foreign Workers in Romania Have Been Published

The Ministry of Labour has published Order No. 655/2026, approving the mandatory standard contract templates to be used in the placement of foreign workers in Romania. The Order complements the legislative framework introduced by Government Emergency Ordinance (GEO) No. 32/2026 and represents another step towards standardizing the recruitment and employment procedures for third-country nationals.

What Does Order No. 655/2026 Introduce?

The new regulation approves three mandatory standard templates:

• the Service Agreement between the placement agency and the employer;
• the Mediation Agreement between the placement agency and the foreign worker;
• the standard Addendum used for amending the individual employment agreement.

Why Is This Important for Employers?

The new templates aim to:

• standardize the documentation used in the recruitment of foreign workers;
• increase transparency between agencies, employers, and workers;
• reduce compliance risks during inspections carried out by the authorities;
• protect foreign workers from being charged unlawful recruitment fees or commissions.

The Connection with GEO No. 32/2026

GEO No. 32/2026 introduced a new regulatory framework governing access of foreign nationals to the Romanian labour market, including additional obligations for employers and placement agencies, new authorization procedures, and the implementation of the WorkinRomania.gov.ro platform.

Order No. 655/2026 puts part of these new requirements into practice by standardizing the contractual documentation used throughout the recruitment process.

What Should Employers Do Next?

Companies recruiting foreign workers through placement agencies should:

• review the documentation currently in use;
• verify whether existing contracts comply with the new standard templates;
• update internal recruitment and onboarding procedures;
• inform and train HR and Global Mobility teams on the new requirements.

The new rules should be carefully assessed, as non-compliance may result in delays in recruitment processes and potential administrative risks for both employers and placement agencies.

Need help aligning your contracts and recruitment processes with Order No. 655/2026 and GEO No. 32/2026? Nestlers Group supports employers and placement agencies with compliance reviews, documentation updates, and end-to-end immigration and global mobility services.