Owning a car in Romania

Hi,

You don't need to be Romanian and the procedure is a little complicated from what I understand - lots of registering documents at various offices and paying taxes. If you don't speak Romanian then you'll probably want a Romanian with you to help you through the process. Never registered a car here myself (I just rent when I need one, much less hassle) so I wouldn't like to risk giving you the wrong info.

Hi Maykal,

Thanks for your response
If I get the car from the UK can I pay the insurance in Romania?

Jos.

Again, I'm not the best person to ask but as far as I know if you bring a car from the UK, you can use it here with your UK insurance for a certain period of time (6 months maybe?) before you either have to stop using it, or get it reregistered in Romania with a Romanian set of plates - this can cost quite I bit, so I hear, because the first time you register a car in Romanian you have to pay various taxes. Only really worth it if the car is worth something, or the price you got it for in the UK is a lot less than the price in Rom. And then there's the LHD RHD thing - not sure how that affects your ability to register it here.

Hi Maykal,

Let's say I buy the car here in Romania would that be better to do.Do you need a romanian ID card or if I am a member of the E.U it is Ok?

Jos

You can buy a car here, no problems. You'll need ID to register it after you've bought it, but your passport should do, and maybe your 'certificat de inregistrare' (the thing you have to get if you want to stay here more than three months). I don't know which you need, or whether you need both (possibly) but I know lots of expats with cars and you don't need Romanian ID.

Actually, I don't even think the owner of the car has to be there during the registration process, so a lot of people pay someone else to go and stand in all the queues for them.

Here the response from the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Car registration division)regarding if foreigners can own/buy a car in Romania as a private individual:

Urmare solicitarii dumneavoastra, transmisa institutiei noastre prin posta electronica in data de 23.06.2010, prin care ne solicitati informatii cu privire la inmatricularea unui vehicul in Romania de catre un cetatean strain, va comunicam faptul ca in conformitate cu prevederile art.1, alin.2, din Ordinul Ministrului administratiei si internelor 1501/13.11.2006, privind procedura inmatricularii, inregistrarii, radierii si eliberarea autorizatiei de circulatie provizorie sau pentru probe a vehiculelor, inmatricularea se efectueaza de serviciile publice comunitare regim permise de conducere si inmatriculare a avehiculelor in a caror raza de competenta proprietarii isi au domiciliul sau sediul ori resedinta, in cazul persoanelor fizice cu domiciliul in strainatate.

Ca urmare, in vederea inmatricularii permanente in România a unui vehicul, este necesar ca proprietarul persoana fizica cu domiciliul in strainatate, sa faca dovada resedintei pe teritoriul României. De asemenea, va informam faptul ca in conformitate cu prevederile art.6, alin.2 si 4 si art.10, alin.1, din Omai 1501/13.11.2006, in cazul persoanelor fizice
care nu au domiciliul sau resedinta în România, se poate efectua inmatricularea temporara pentru export, pentru o perioada de maximum 30 de zile, dar care nu poate depasi termenul de valabilitate al asigurarii internationale – carte verde.

Cu deosebita stima,

DIRECTOR,
Comisar sef
DRAGOMIR ALINA


Conclusion: You cannot buy a car with just a foreign passport, you need to have domicile/officiel residence in this country to be able to buy/own one as a private individual. There is one exception: you can buy a car as a foreigner in Romania (without having residence) for maximum 30 days upon which you have to export it .

In case you wish to drive around in Romania with a foreign car, one can do so, but there are limitations and obligations.

The Romanian traffic police ("Polita Rutiera") also mentions on their website the following regarding the "90 day rule" upon which one is obliged to get Romanian number plates (and effectively importing the car + paying the "polution tax")

Cât timp se poate circula pe drumurile publice din România cu un autovehicul înmatriculat în străinătate?

Pe drumurile publice din România se poate circula cu un autoturism înmatriculat în străinătate o singură perioada de maxim 90 de zile de la intrarea în România. La expirarea termenului, poliţia reţine certificatul şi plăcuţele cu numerele de înmatriculare străine, care vor fi remise autorităţilor emitente.

http://www.igpr.ro/DPR/intrebari_frecvente.htm


If you drive longer than 90 days, and the police catches you, they can take of the foreign license plates and prohibit you from driving your car until you have duly registred your car with the Romanian authorities and have obtained new license plates.

The law regarding the new "Polution tax" (which you pay when importing a foreign car as a private individul) was adopted by the Romanian Chamber of Deputies on December 15th 2012 and sent to President Basescu to be signed and published in the National Gazette ("Monitorul Oficial").

See here the link to the actual law as adopted by parliament 
http://webapp.senat.ro/pdf/11L613LP.pdf


It shows you the formula's (which are hard to understand). and therefore the mentioned link below with the "tax calculator" will take that work out of your hands in case one wishes to import a foreign car

http://www.4tuning.ro/calculator-taxa-auto-2012/

Btw: Right wheel drive cars from the UK, can be registred with Romanian number plates, as confirmed by the Romanian RAR (Car Registration Authority):

http://www.rarom.ro/RO/article--Se_pot_ … --200.html


I hope this is helpful:)

PS: there are ways around for driving in Romania with a foreign car, but not recommended (and if I am correct, they're closing down, or already having closed down, this loophole)

Hello Mark,

Thanks for taking your time to write me this detailed explanation.
May I ask you if you are a foreigner in Romania and if you own a car here.
I will be staying here for long term and I will have a rented apartment.Do I have to own the appartment to own a car here?

In conlusion What is the best way in your opinion to drive around and have your own car.

Let's say you get a car with E.U plates can you by pass this system by going out of the country every 90 days?

Much obliged and thanks again

Jos.

josefzamm wrote:

Hello Mark,

Thanks for taking your time to write me this detailed explanation.
May I ask you if you are a foreigner in Romania and if you own a car here.
I will be staying here for long term and I will have a rented apartment.Do I have to own the appartment to own a car here?

In conlusion What is the best way in your opinion to drive around and have your own car.

Let's say you get a car with E.U plates can you by pass this system by going out of the country every 90 days?

Much obliged and thanks again

Jos.

Hi there,

I am a foreigner living in Romania for quite some years. I don't own a car (but my wife does). I could own a car if I want to on my own name, as I have residence in Romania and my own Romanian fiscal number called "CNP".

The best way in my opinion to have a car, is just to buy a local car (assuming that you will obtain the "Residence Certificate"). If you have a steady job, with steady income, you could also be eligable for finance (leasing/personal loan), al though loan rates are not the cheapest in Romania.

As far as I know you cannot bypass the system by leaving the country every 90 days (in order to drive a car with non-Romanian number plates). In practice, it can of course be done, assuming you won't get caught or that you're willing to bribe a police officer when getting caught.

But as you drive around in Romania (with Romanian or foreign number plates) you need to get pay road tax anyhow (which you can buy at any local gas station). This already registers your car in the national system, and if you decide to not pay the road tax (in order to avoid any effidence of you driving more than 90 days with non-Romanian number plates), it could be possible that a fine would be sent to your home country.

Since last year (if I am correct),they inaugurated a new road-tax-monitoring center, whereas they photograph numberplates to check if taxes were paid. Of course with foreign number plates they might not bother, but you never know.

If there is no evidence of your car in the road tax system (as you did not pay for it) and you get caught, you will be fined for not having paid your taxes. Then the police officer also will verify if you have respected the 90 days rule (which he can't proof as you can simply tell him that you're here on holiday for instance).

Regarding the appartment: you can own/buy an appartment as a foreign citizen without having to have residence in Romania as you can own the "dwelling" as per Romanian Civil Code legislation. Since 01.01.2012 an EU citizen can also own any adjoining landquota (parking space/common grounds/garden) for which you also do not need to have residence in Romania anymore as EU citizen.

For buying a car, the current rules state that you need residence to buy a car (not to buy a property).

My advice: get a residence certificate. It's simple and straightforward and you need 3 documents

1. foreign passport + copy
2. EHIC insurance card of your home country + copy *
3. Romanian bankstatement with a balance of at least 200 RON (signed and stamped by a local Romanian bank)

* in case you do not have an EHIC card, you can buy local health insurance for 1 month (40-50 EURO) and with the evidence of being insured you can apply for the residence certificate. Of course in case you have a job in Romania, you need to get proof of the Public Health Insurance House, mentioning you are covered on the matter.

Once applied on monday morning 09:00, the document is released at 15:30 to be picked up. If you don't know Romanian, take someone with you to fill in the application form.

Mark_W wrote:

My advice: get a residence certificate. It's simple and straightforward and you need 3 documents

1. foreign passport + copy
2. EHIC insurance card of your home country + copy *
3. Romanian bankstatement with a balance of at least 200 RON (signed and stamped by a local Romanian bank)

* in case you do not have an EHIC card, you can buy local health insurance for 1 month (40-50 EURO) and with the evidence of being insured you can apply for the residence certificate. Of course in case you have a job in Romania, you need to get proof of the Public Health Insurance House, mentioning you are covered on the matter.

Once applied on monday morning 09:00, the document is released at 15:30 to be picked up. If you don't know Romanian, take someone with you to fill in the application form.

In fact you need few more things in order to get the certificat de inregistrare. In addition to those mentioned above, you should also bring the necessary fee, which is a 2 RON 'timbru fiscal', which you can obtain from any post office.

Secondly, depending on the basis of your stay in Romania, they may ask for an additional documents. The documents listed above by Mark_W are for those who intend to live here off their own means.

The bank statement proving you have 200 RON is also incorrect. The amount varies depending on the size of the family and is 125 RON for a single person and increases for each additional family member.

If you have all the correct documents you can complete it in one day. To expand on and correct the opening hours in the above post, you can drop off the application on any morning from 8.30am (not 9am) EXCEPT Tuesdays. The office is open for submissions until 12.30. In addition, you can drop off the application on Wednesday afternoons between 4.30pm and 6.30pm.

If you drop off the documents in the morning, they will, in most cases, be ready by the afternoon and can be collected on any day (EXCEPT Tuesdays again) between 2.30pm and 4.30pm, with an extension until 6.30pm on Wednesdays.

Thanks Mark and Maykal for your time

I intend to live in Romania by my own means, therefore I would require this to get residency:

1. foreign passport + copy
2. EHIC insurance card of your home country + copy *
3. Romanian bankstatement with a balance of at least 200 RON (signed and stamped by a local Romanian bank)

Thanks again

Jos.

Hi Jos,

Don't forget the 2 RON stamp from the post office.

Your note says "* in case you do not have an EHIC card, you can buy local health insurance for 1 month (40-50 EURO)"...
can you tell me where I can buy local health insurance in Bucharest for example?
I have been looking online but cannot find it.
I found Regina Maria and Metlife, but they seem like private network of hospitals rather than a national health insurance so I don't know they qualify ?

I currently reside in the USA. Will my American health insurance card be sufficient?

Thanks !

smadjaa wrote:

Your note says "* in case you do not have an EHIC card, you can buy local health insurance for 1 month (40-50 EURO)"...
can you tell me where I can buy local health insurance in Bucharest for example?
I have been looking online but cannot find it.
I found Regina Maria and Metlife, but they seem like private network of hospitals rather than a national health insurance so I don't know they qualify ?

I currently reside in the USA. Will my American health insurance card be sufficient?

Thanks !

Please search the forum as there are already topics relating to health insurance.  You can find them under the Health System category.

To quickly answer your question though, NO, your American health insurance card is most likely worthless here.  You'll need local health insurance, private or national is ok. 

Please, if you want to continue discussion about this, use another appropriate topic or PM me Thanks.

Romaniac
Expat.com Experts Team

Hi,

I have my NIF (not CNF yet) and was wondering if I can import/register/insure my car.

I have contacted 3 insurance companies and they keep saying I cannot do this with a NIF and that I have to wait 6 months for my CNF.

I intend to actually live in Romania starting from May so will have an official address from then.

Obviously I don't want to park my car for 6 months so I wanted to check if there is a way around.

Thank you.

Greetings