WorkinRomania Barometer, October 2026: 45 companies registered out of more than 11,000, none authorised

On 19 October 2026, the public registers of the WorkinRomania.gov.ro platform show 45 registered employers, no authorised employer and 37 authorised placement agencies. Measured against the more than 11,000 companies that were already employing foreign workers back in 2022, this means that 4 companies out of 1,000 (0.4%) have so far entered the system created by OUG 32/2026, and 0% can recruit on the D/AM2 visa without an agency. The barometer below is built from our repeated checks of the three registers, from August to today, with each company's registered office verified with ANAF.

In brief

• R.A.S. (register of registered employers): 45 companies, i.e. 0.4% of the more than 11,000 companies that employed foreigners in 2022.
• R.A.A. (register of authorised employers): 0. No company can recruit directly on the D/AM2 visa; all D/AM2 recruitment goes through an agency.
• R.A.P.S. (register of placement agencies): 37, almost double the figure of 18 September (19).
• Since the 15 September freeze: R.A.S. has grown by 6 companies, R.A.P.S. by 18 agencies. Agency authorisation is not among the disabled workflows.
• Agencies: half have their registered office in București; 26 counties have no authorised agency based there.
• Registered employers: they are spread across 18 counties; transport, courier services and HoReCa account for half of them.

The percentages: how much of the market has joined the platform

The 11,000 benchmark comes from 2022: more than 11,000 companies employed foreign workers at that time, according to the Foreign Workforce Employers' Association (Patronatul Forței de Muncă Străine), and in January–July 2022 alone ANOFM received applications from 10,839 companies for the certificate on available workforce, the mandatory step at the time before the IGI work permit. The market has grown since then: the number of foreign employees rose from 103,255 (December 2022) to 140,865 (May 2024), according to the Ministry of Labour, and IGI reported more than 140,640 non-EU employees at the end of 2024. Measured against today's market, the share of companies that have joined the platform is therefore below 0.4%.

Registration in R.A.S. is the precondition for any new hiring of a foreign worker, whether directly or through an agency (art. 4 para. 1 OUG 32/2026). Authorisation in R.A.A. is the next step: it allows the company to recruit on the D/AM2 visa without an agency (art. 12 et seq.).

How the registers have evolved

The agency register was empty on 18 August and had reached 19 agencies by 18 September. Since 15 September, the platform has disabled employer registration, employer authorisation and the submission of the single D/AM2 application, following the suspension of Order 1073/2026 on the List of shortage occupations (dosar 5633/2/2026). The warning is still displayed on the platform's home page. We follow the status of the case in our resource on the suspension of Order 1073/2026.

This explains the different pace: agencies have kept entering the register, on average four per week, while the list of registered employers grew by only 6 companies in almost a month, and the register of authorised employers has remained empty.

Authorised placement agencies, by county

The agencies are based in 16 counties, and 26 counties have no authorised agency. However, the registered office does not limit the area in which an agency can operate: an employer in Constanța can work with an agency from București or Timiș.

Registered employers, by county

The map of the register does not resemble the map of the market. At the end of 2024, most foreign employees worked in București (around 25,500), Ilfov (12,183), Constanța (5,692) and Timiș (4,963). In the register, București has 9 companies, Ilfov and Timiș 2 each, and Constanța none. By contrast, Iași and Vaslui together have 9 companies, one fifth of the register.

Registered employers, by sector

Half of the registered companies are in transport, courier services and HoReCa, the sectors with the largest staff shortages. Seven companies have recruitment or temporary work as their main activity and registered as employers, separately from the 37 placement agencies.

What this means for employers

1. If you are not in R.A.S., you cannot apply right now. The registration workflow has been disabled since 15 September. You can, however, prepare the whole file: the account on hub.mai.gov.ro, the qualified electronic signature, the tax clearance certificate and the list of workers you want to hire. The steps are detailed in our resource on the 39 registered employers.
2. For the D/AM2 visa, the only route is an agency listed in R.A.P.S. With R.A.A. empty, no company recruits directly on this route. Check the agency in the register before signing the service contract.
3. The D/AM1 route works for employers already registered: citizens of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia, as well as highly qualified workers.
4. When the platform reopens, whoever is ready first wins. ANOFM has up to 30 working days to process a registration, and the more than 10,000 companies outside the register will all apply in the same days.

The employer's full obligations are set out in our OUG 32/2026 guide for employers.

How to check the registers yourself

1. Go to WorkinRomania.gov.ro and open the „Registre” (Registers) section.
2. Choose the register: R.A.P.S. for agencies, R.A.S. for registered employers, R.A.A. for authorised employers.
3. Search by company name or CUI. The lists are in alphabetical order, 15 companies per page.
4. Agencies' contact details (email, phone) are shown only after logging in to your account.

The check is useful for workers too: before accepting an offer, they can see whether the company is registered and whether the agency recruiting them is authorised.

Frequently asked questions

How many companies are registered in WorkinRomania?

45 employers, in the R.A.S. register, as of 19 October 2026. Measured against the more than 11,000 companies that employed foreigners in 2022, that is 0.4%.

How many companies are authorised to recruit directly?

None. The R.A.A. register is empty on 19 October 2026, as it has been at every check since September.

How many placement agencies for foreigners are authorised?

37, in the R.A.P.S. register, as of 19 October 2026, based in 16 counties; 19 of them are in București.

Why are there so few registered employers?

The platform was launched on 6 August 2026, and after only five weeks, from 15 September 2026, the registration and authorisation workflows were disabled following the suspension of the List of shortage occupations. Companies that had not completed registration by then are waiting for it to reopen.

How do I check whether my employer or agency is in the register?

On WorkinRomania.gov.ro, under „Registre” (Registers), by searching for the name or CUI. Without registration in R.A.S., a company cannot legally hire a new foreign worker.

Where does the data come from?

From the public WorkinRomania.gov.ro registers (R.A.P.S., R.A.S., R.A.A.), consulted by WantJOB between 18 August and 19 October 2026; from the ANAF public taxpayer lookup service, for each company's registered office and CAEN code (19.10.2026); from the figures of the Foreign Workforce Employers' Association and ANOFM for 2022 (cited by CursDeGuvernare, December 2022), of the Ministry of Labour (May 2024) and of IGI (end of 2024). The percentages and the grouping by sector and county are calculated by WantJOB.

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This resource is for information purposes only and reflects the state of the registers on 19 October 2026. The registers are updated periodically and the figures change from week to week; check the platform before taking any action. This material does not constitute legal advice.

Recruiting workers from outside the EU? The WantJOB platform covers your post-hiring obligations: bilingual contracts, occupational health and safety training in the worker's language and the integration programme required by OUG 32/2026.