CNRED qualification recognition for third country workers in Romania

A worker from outside the European Union whose studies must count on the Romanian labour market files with CNRED, the National Centre for the Recognition and Equivalence of Diplomas, inside the Ministry of Education. The maximum processing term is 30 days from a complete file, and the evaluation fee for third country citizens is 50 euro.

What CNRED does and when the certificate is needed

CNRED sits inside the Ministry of Education and issues the recognition certificate for study documents obtained abroad. The labour market procedure is not the same as equivalence for continuing studies. Here the declared purpose is taking up a post, and the output is a certificate that the employer and the competent authority can use as proof of the qualification level.

CNRED runs two separate procedures, both for labour market access. One covers pre-university study documents, meaning secondary school or vocational school diplomas, the other covers higher education documents, meaning bachelor, master or doctoral degrees. A Nepali electrician with a vocational certificate and an Indian engineer with a bachelor degree move through different files, even though the final document carries the same name.

For the employer, the point at which the certificate matters depends on the occupation. Where the post requires a qualification evidenced by studies, the CNRED certificate is the piece that evidences it before the Romanian authorities. Where the post is unskilled, the procedure is not mandatory and the employment authorisation file rests on other documents. The mechanics of that authorisation are set out in the employment authorisation procedure.

Apostille, sworn translation and a file that passes first time

Study documents obtained abroad must first be legalised in the issuing country. Where that state is party to the Hague Convention, the diploma receives an apostille. Where it is not, the document goes through super legalisation at the foreign ministry of the issuing state and at Romania's diplomatic mission. Only after that step may the document be translated, and the translation must be produced by a translator authorised by Romania's Ministry of Justice, with the signature legalised by a notary.

The order matters, and reversing it is the most common reason a file comes back. A diploma translated before it is apostilled produces a translation that does not contain the apostille, so the file is incomplete and the applicant repeats the translation and the notary. On a Nepal or India corridor that repeat usually adds three to six weeks, because the document has to travel physically back to the country of origin.

The file is submitted electronically, and the certificate is generated with an electronic signature in the applicant's PCUe account, per serviciipublice.gov.ro. The secured PDF has full legal value, so there is no paper copy to wait for by post, and the employer can receive the file directly from the worker.

How the procedure fits the hiring calendar

The 30 days run from a complete file, not from the first upload of documents. A file returned over a missing apostille effectively restarts the count, so realistic planning starts from the date the diploma leaves the country of origin apostilled, not from the date the worker signs a contract.

For a post that requires a qualification, the sequence that works is: apostille in the country of origin, authorised translation and notarisation in Romania, filing with CNRED, then the employment authorisation file with the General Inspectorate for Immigration. The 50 euro fee is small against the rest of the mobilisation budget, and the full amount the employer carries is broken down in the cost of hiring a non-EU worker.

The employer does not file with CNRED, because the applicant holds the study documents. In practice, though, the employer is the party that discovers the missing certificate, usually late, and the party that absorbs the delayed start date. The duties that remain with the employer once the worker arrives are grouped in the employer obligations guide.

If you are assessing a recruitment corridor into Romania for posts that require a qualification evidenced by studies, check on day one whether the origin state is party to the Hague Convention and how long apostille issuance takes there. That single check moves most of the calendar risk out of next quarter and into this week. How we work such corridors is described on the employers page.