Romania clarifies telework rules
Romanian reporting says telework remains widely used in 2026 and that labour law lays out employee rights, employer obligations and what must be paid under telemuncă arrangements. The piece lists practical rules employers must follow when organising remote work, making local compliance a concrete factor for cross-border hires. (monitoruldevaslui.ro)
Romania’s telework rules in 2026 still hinge on a written agreement: employers cannot simply label a job remote and move on. Telework under Law No. 81/2018 must be voluntary and written into the individual employment contract or an addendum. (legislatie.just.ro) The law defines telework as work done regularly outside the employer’s organized workplace using information and communications technology. It also says an employee’s refusal to accept telework cannot be used to unilaterally change the contract or to impose discipline. (legislatie.just.ro) Romanian law also requires telework contracts to spell out practical details, not just the word “remote.” The agreement must cover where telework is performed, how working time is recorded, when the employer may check activity, and the conditions for paying telework-related expenses. (doingbusiness.ro) Working hours are not left entirely open-ended. Law No. 81/2018 says the teleworker’s schedule is organized by agreement with the employer, and overtime for a full-time teleworker requires the employee’s written consent when the employer requests it. (legislatie.just.ro) The compliance burden sits with employers even when the desk is at home. Romanian legal summaries of the statute say employers must address health and safety, provide or specify equipment, train staff on safety rules, and set measures to avoid isolating teleworkers from the rest of the workforce. (doingbusiness.ro) One point that often causes confusion is money. Romania’s tax code was updated on December 17, 2025, and the earlier tax-favored treatment for telework expense payments of up to 400 lei had already been removed from January 1, 2024, under Government Emergency Ordinance No. 115/2023. (anaf.ro, vialtopartners.com) That means employers can still pay telework costs, but the old blanket tax break is gone. In practice, the key legal question in 2026 is less “is there a 400 lei allowance?” and more “what exactly did the contract say the employer would cover?” (vialtopartners.com, doingbusiness.ro) For foreign companies hiring in Romania, the takeaway is simple and local. A cross-border remote role still has to comply with Romanian employment-law paperwork, scheduling, oversight and expense rules if the worker is employed there. (theromanianlawyers.com, legislatie.just.ro) Romania did not abolish telework or replace it with a lighter 2026 regime. It kept the 2018 framework, amended it for electronic signatures in 2021, and left employers with the same basic test: if the work is remote, the contract has to say how it works. (legislatie.just.ro, euroavocatura.ro)
