What can you do if your Residence Permit has expired?

Are you a holder of a temporary residence permit in Romania? In that case, you likely know that your residence permit has an expiration date, and you have a legal obligation to apply for a renewal at least 30 days before its expiry.

But what happens if, for various reasons, you fail to renew your residence permit within the legal timeframe? Can you still submit your application to the competent authority? Are you required to leave Romania? What penalties might you face?

Here, we will try to answer the most common questions related to the expiration of temporary residence permits.

Strictly interpreting the law, if you haven’t met the legal deadlines for renewing your residence permit, you are considered to be in illegal residence in Romania.

Illegal residence is understood as the presence on Romanian territory of a foreign national who no longer meets the entry or residence conditions required by law.

For residence permit renewal, you first need to schedule an online appointment to submit your application at the local Immigration Office. Given that in some counties the waiting times for these appointments exceed 30 days, what penalties do you risk if these delays cause you to miss the 30-day deadline?

Under strict interpretation of the law, the applicant is at fault for missing the legal deadline, as they should have acted diligently to renew their residence permit within all legal timelines.

However, a burdensome internal process on the part of the competent authority should not be attributed to the applicant. Therefore, a fair interpretation would suggest that no penalties should apply if the applicant can prove they scheduled an online appointment at least 30 days before the residence permit's expiry, regardless of the actual date of application submission.

What happens, though, if the foreign national couldn’t even schedule an online appointment within the 30-day legal timeframe? What penalties might they face?

In this case, the officer receiving the application at the Immigration Office may identify the irregularity and apply an administrative fine to the applicant.

Regardless of the duration of the illegal stay, the competent authority cannot refuse to receive and register the application. However, calculating the exact duration of the illegal stay is crucial, as depending on it, the applicant may face either an administrative fine or even a departure order (requiring them to leave Romania).

If there were objective reasons preventing you from submitting the renewal application on time, could you avoid penalties?

Any well-founded reasons must be submitted in writing to the Immigration Office along with the renewal application and supported by evidence. If the illegal stay only lasted a few days, and the foreign national can provide evidence of an objective inability to submit the application, then the competent authority may issue only a written warning. Ignorance of the law does not constitute a valid reason, which is why consulting a specialized attorney can save you from numerous complications.

My employer said they would handle the renewal of my residence permit application but failed to do so on time. Am I still responsible?

In practice, there are many cases where foreign nationals don’t submit their residence permit renewal applications on time, assuming their employer would handle this process. Legally, the obligation to renew a residence permit rests solely with the holder of that document.

If I am in an extended period of illegal residence (over one month), regardless of the reasons, can I submit an application to renew my residence permit, or would it be better to leave Romania voluntarily?

If we are talking about a prolonged period of illegal residence (over one month), not only will the residence permit renewal application be rejected, but you will also likely receive a departure order along with an additional penalty of being barred from re-entering Romania for a period ranging from six months to one year.

Thus, it is much more prudent for the foreign national to voluntarily leave Romania, and if they wish to return, to begin the work permit and long-stay visa application process again.

Of course, there is also the possibility of challenging in court the Immigration Office’s decision to refuse residence permit renewal, as well as the departure order. However, we will cover this procedure in a future article.

Renewing a residence permit is an essential obligation for foreign nationals in Romania. Ignoring legal deadlines can lead to penalties, from fines to entry bans. If you find yourself in this situation, make sure you have all the necessary documents and can prove any objective reasons for delays. And if you need assistance, consult a specialized attorney to avoid additional complications and ensure compliance with legal requirements.