Foreign apprentice: can you hire a non-EU worker on an apprenticeship contract? What Legea 279/2005 and OUG 32/2026 allow

A master carpenter with a PFA wants to train a skilled tradesman. A small construction company has a young Ukrainian eager to learn bricklaying. A restaurant owner is thinking of bringing in "apprentices" from Asia, because it seems simpler than looking for qualified workers. All three arrive at the same question: can I hire a non-EU foreigner on an apprenticeship contract (contract de ucenicie)?

The short answer: yes, but not on every route. The apprenticeship law expressly accepts foreigners as apprentices. However, the immigration rules in OUG 32/2026 leave only two paths open: the D/AM1 route and foreigners who already have the right to work in Romania. The D/AM2 route, used for workers from Asia, does not fit apprenticeship. The guide below explains why, what your obligations are and how to obtain the state subsidy.

In brief

What the apprenticeship contract is

Apprenticeship is vocational training carried out at the workplace, based on an apprenticeship contract (art. 1 Legea nr. 279/2005). The contract is a special type of individual employment contract, for a fixed term (art. 6 para. 1). At the end, the apprentice takes the exam and receives the certificate of professional qualification.

The basics:

• who can be an apprentice: a person who has turned 16 and has no qualification in the occupation in which the apprenticeship takes place (art. 7 para. 1). The law sets no maximum age.
• minimum duration: 6 months for qualification level 1, 12 months for level 2, 24 months for level 3 and 36 months for level 4 (art. 9 para. 1).
• probation period: at most 30 working days (art. 9 para. 2).
• working hours: 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week, and for apprentices under 18, 6 hours a day and 30 hours a week. Theory hours are part of the normal working time (art. 9 para. 4 and 6).
• salary: at least the national gross minimum base salary (art. 9 para. 5).
• registration: the contract is concluded in writing, registered in REGES-ONLINE before work begins and with the territorial labour inspectorate within 20 days (art. 6 para. 3 and 4).

A foreigner can be an apprentice

The apprenticeship law expressly allows foreign citizens and stateless persons who have the right to work in Romania to be employed as apprentices (art. 7 para. 2 letter a Legea nr. 279/2005). The text still refers to a "work permit", a wording left over from the old regime. Today, the right to work comes from the long-stay visa for employment, the single permit or the residence permit that includes it.

So the real question is not whether a foreigner can be an apprentice, but through which route they obtain the right to work. This is where OUG nr. 32/2026 comes in.

The D/AM1 route: the apprentice from the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine or Serbia

For citizens of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia, the employment visa is D/AM1. The single application is filed exclusively by the employer, on the WorkinRomania platform (art. 27^1 para. 1 letter e OUG nr. 194/2002). On this route:

• no qualification is checked. The employer uploads the contract registered in REGES-ONLINE, travel medical insurance of at least 30.000 euro, the criminal record from the country of origin, proof of means of subsistence for 90 days and a copy of the passport (art. 27^1 para. 2).
• the contract must be full-time. The apprenticeship contract meets this condition, because it is carried out on a full-time schedule.
• no agency is needed, and the occupation does not have to be on the List of shortage occupations.
• the employer must be registered in WorkinRomania. The one-year activity requirement for registration does not apply to D/AM1 workers (art. 5 para. 1 letter b OUG nr. 32/2026).

The minor apprentice. A 16- or 17-year-old can be an apprentice. For the visa, the file must include the consent of both parents, given before a notary, apostilled or superlegalised and with a certified translation into Romanian (art. 27 para. 4 letter k OUG nr. 194/2002). Their working time is 6 hours a day.

On the platform. In the firm job offer in WorkinRomania, you select visa type AM1 and the worker type „Cetățean din Republica Moldova, Ucraina și Republica Serbia” (Citizen of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and the Republic of Serbia). In the qualification field there is the option „Nu există calificare” (No qualification), which is suitable for an apprentice.

Watch out for the blockage. Since 15 September 2026, the employer registration flow in WorkinRomania has been disabled. An employer that is already registered can file D/AM1 single applications. One that is not registered has to wait for registrations to resume.

The D/AM2 route: why it does not fit apprenticeship

For workers from other non-EU countries, the visa is D/AM2, and the single application is filed by the authorised placement agency or the authorised employer. Before filing it, the agency must make sure that the foreigner meets the vocational training and work experience requirements for that job (art. 27^2 para. 3 letter a OUG nr. 194/2002). This is proven with the foreigner's CV and the documents recognising their studies (para. 4).

The apprenticeship law requires exactly the opposite: the apprentice has no qualification in the occupation concerned (art. 7 para. 1 letter c Legea nr. 279/2005). Apprenticeship is for someone learning a trade, while D/AM2 is for someone who already has one.

Moreover, the placement agency is responsible for the match between the worker and the job. If labour inspectors find, within six months, that more than 10% of the placed workers do not have the qualification required for the job, the agency's authorisation is suspended (art. 30 para. 1 letter a OUG nr. 32/2026).

Conclusion: apprentices are not brought in on the D/AM2 route. If you need people from Asia, the legal option is a worker already qualified in an occupation on the List of shortage occupations. You can then provide further training through the usual upskilling courses.

Foreigners already in Romania: the simplest route

Some foreigners work on the basis of the residence permit they already hold. For them, no single application is filed and the employer does not need to be registered in WorkinRomania (art. 4 para. 2 OUG nr. 32/2026 and art. 132^1 para. 1 OUG nr. 194/2002). Those who can become apprentices include:

• long-term residents (letter a). Details in the guide on long-term residence.
• family members of Romanian citizens (letter b). Details in the guide on employment with a family reunification permit.
• beneficiaries of a form of protection in Romania (letter f), including young Ukrainians with temporary protection.

For these apprentices, the employer sends to IGI, within 10 days of the start of work, a copy of the contract and the document showing the foreigner's category (art. 132^1 para. 6). Any amendment or termination of the contract is notified to IGI within 5 working days (para. 7).

Foreign students cannot be apprentices. They may only work part-time, at most 6 hours a day (art. 132^1 para. 2), while apprenticeship is carried out on the full 8-hour daily schedule set by law.

Foreigners under the "amnesty" (art. 52 OUG nr. 32/2026). Those who registered within the 60-day deadline can apply, until 31 December 2026, to extend their right of residence for work purposes without a new visa. However, the extension is granted on the conditions of the work visa for their category (art. 52 para. 3), so the rule above applies here too:

• citizens of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia can be apprentices. They follow the D/AM1 conditions, with no qualification check. The single application is filed directly by the employer registered in WorkinRomania, and the contract is signed without a start date, which is set by an addendum after the single permit is issued (art. 52 para. 4).
• the others cannot be apprentices. They follow the D/AM2 conditions, and art. 52 does not exempt them from the vocational training requirement for the job. Their application is filed by the authorised placement agency.

Details in the guide on hiring foreigners under the amnesty.

Who can take on an apprentice

An apprentice employer is any natural or legal person that can hire on the basis of an individual employment contract (art. 4 letter a Legea nr. 279/2005). In practice:

• a company (SRL, SA) takes on apprentices under the usual conditions.
• a sole proprietorship (întreprindere individuală) hires, including apprentices, within the limit of 8 employees set by OUG nr. 44/2008.
• a PFA can conclude apprenticeship contracts if it proves that it has carried out the activity for which it was authorised for at least one year. The PFA holder is also the apprentice's coordinator (art. 8 para. 1 and 2).

For the limits on hiring foreigners by a PFA or II, see the guide on the natural person, PFA and II as employers.

Obligations of an employer of a foreign apprentice

The employer has two sets of obligations, which add up.

Under the apprenticeship law:

1. The apprenticeship coordinator. You appoint an employee qualified in the occupation, with at least 2 years of experience in that occupation in the last 5 years. Their duties are set out in an addendum to their employment contract (art. 5 Legea nr. 279/2005 and the norms approved by HG nr. 855/2013).
2. Training. If you are not yourself an authorised training provider for the qualification concerned, you conclude a contract with an authorised provider after the probation period. You bear the cost of the programme, unless it is funded from other sources (art. 6 para. 6 letter d).
3. The apprentice learns and does nothing else. Using the apprentice for activities other than those in the training programme is prohibited (art. 14 para. 2). The fine for this breach is 10.000 lei (art. 23).
4. The declared job. The apprentice position is declared to the county employment agency. On the ANOFM job-matching platform, in the job offer you select „Ucenici” (Apprentices) in the „Destinatari” (Recipients) field.

Under OUG nr. 32/2026, as for any employer of foreigners (art. 7):

• the salary is paid into the apprentice's bank account.
• the contract is concluded in Romanian and in a language the apprentice understands.
• occupational safety training is given in a language they understand.
• you provide Romanian language courses of at least 6 months, minimum 6 hours a week.
• unjustified absence of more than 3 working days and termination of the contract are notified to IGI within 5 working days.

The retention clause. At signing, you can agree that, after the apprenticeship ends, the apprentice will stay with you for at least a period equal to the duration of the apprenticeship contract, if you financed the programme (art. 10 para. 2 Legea nr. 279/2005).

The subsidy: 2.250 lei per month

An employer that concludes an apprenticeship contract receives, on request, 2.250 lei per month for each apprentice, for the entire duration of the contract, from the unemployment insurance budget (art. 16 para. 2 Legea nr. 279/2005). The law does not exclude foreign apprentices.

How it works:

• the agreement with AJOFM is signed separately for each contract, within at most 60 working days of the end of the probation period. If the deadline passes, the subsidy for that contract is lost.
• the competent AJOFM is the one covering the area where the apprentice has their domicile or residence. For an apprentice who came on a D/AM1 visa, the residence is the one in the residence permit obtained after arrival. A 30-day probation plus 60 working days leaves you enough time.
• it is not paid for the probation period or for periods when the contract is suspended (art. 16 para. 3 and 4).
• you do not receive it if you have already had the same apprentice for the same qualification, if they already had the qualification or if they worked for you in the last year (art. 17).
• you must keep the apprentice for the entire duration of the contract. If the relationship ends early by mutual agreement or by dismissal for reasons not related to the apprentice, you repay the entire subsidy, with the BNR reference interest rate (art. 18).

Three real-life cases

1. The carpenter with a PFA and the apprentice from the Republic of Moldova. The PFA has three years of activity and is already registered in WorkinRomania. It concludes a 24-month apprenticeship contract with a 19-year-old from the Republic of Moldova for the carpenter qualification, registers it in REGES-ONLINE and files the single application for the D/AM1 visa. The PFA holder is the coordinator. After arrival and obtaining the residence permit, the PFA signs the agreement with AJOFM and collects 2.250 lei per month.

2. The construction company and the young Ukrainian with temporary protection. The young man already lives in Timișoara. The company needs neither a single application nor WorkinRomania registration. It concludes the apprenticeship contract for the bricklayer qualification, registers it in REGES-ONLINE, sends IGI a copy of the contract and of the protection document within 10 days and applies for the subsidy at AJOFM Timiș.

3. The restaurant that wanted "apprentices" from Asia. The owner drops the idea: on the D/AM2 route, the agency must prove the worker's vocational training for the job, and an apprentice, by definition, does not have it. The legal option is an already qualified cook, brought in through an authorised agency, in an occupation on the List of shortage occupations.

Costly mistakes

• The apprenticeship contract used as "cheap labour". Assigning the apprentice to activities other than training leads to a 10.000 lei fine and checks by labour inspectors.
• Reduced hours for an adult apprentice. The law sets 8 hours a day and 40 a week. The breach is also fined 10.000 lei.
• The AJOFM agreement signed too late. After 60 working days from the end of probation, the subsidy for that contract is lost.
• A foreign apprentice without the right to work. Starting work before the visa or permit is illegal work, with the highest fines in the field.
• Apprentices brought in on D/AM2. The file fails the vocational training requirement, and the agency puts its authorisation at risk.

What WantJOB can do

WantJOB specialists can check whether your apprentice qualifies for the D/AM1 route or among foreigners who already have the right to work, prepare the firm job offer, the bilingual contract and the single application file, and help you with the steps for the apprenticeship subsidy. Contact: office@wantjob.eu.

Sources

• Legea nr. 279/2005 on workplace apprenticeship, consolidated version (ANOFM)
• Methodological norms approved by HG nr. 855/2013 (Labour Inspectorate)
• ANOFM: Subsidies granted for apprenticeship programmes
• OUG nr. 32/2026 on foreigners' access to the labour market in Romania (igi.mai.gov.ro)
• OUG nr. 194/2002 on the regime of foreigners in Romania, consolidated version (igi.mai.gov.ro)
• The WorkinRomania.gov.ro platform
• WantJOB guide: the natural person, PFA or II as an employer of foreigners

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This resource is for information purposes and reflects Legea nr. 279/2005 and OUG nr. 32/2026 as in force on 15 October 2026. On that date, the employer registration flow in WorkinRomania was disabled. For a specific situation, we recommend consulting the county employment agency, IGI or a specialist.