In a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, a consular officer at the Embassy of Romania in Ottawa indicated that a marriage that took place abroad has no legal effect in Romania unless it is in the Romanian civil registers (19 Oct. 2004). Once the marriage has been registered, the same residence provisions apply to the foreign spouse even if the marriage was performed abroad (Embassy of Romania 19 Oct. 2004).

The consular officer also indicated that residence rights for the foreign spouse of a Romanian citizen are described within Emergency Ordinance No. 194 of 12 December 2002 on the Regime of Aliens in Romania (ibid.). An English translation of this ordinance is available on the Website of the Romanian Embassy in London at http://www.roemb.co.uk/index.php?what=consular/legislation.

Long-stay visa and residence permits

According to information found on the Embassy of France in Romania website, any person staying in Romania for more than 90 days must obtain a residence permit from the Interior Ministry (n.d.). In a 29 October 2004 telephone interview, the consular officer at the Embassy of Romania in Ottawa explained that a long-stay visa is valid for 90 days only and that "temporary-stay right" (renewable every year) and "permanent stay right" (establishing domicile in Romania) are two categories of residence permit. The documents that need to be submitted to obtain a residence permit depend on the individual's specific situation (student, worker, foreign spouse, etc.) (Embassy of France in Romania n.d.).

The following articles of the Emergency Ordinance No. 194 of 12 December 2002 on the Regime of Aliens in Romania specifically address the steps that a foreign spouse must follow to obtain the documents mentioned above:

Article 46 states that the foreign spouse of a Romanian citizen can request a long-stay visa by, among other things, submitting a marriage certificate to the Aliens' Authority within the Ministry of Administration and Internal Affairs or its territorial units (Embassy of Romania 15 Oct. 2004).

Article 49 states that a [translation] "[long-stay] visa may be granted to an alien married to a Romanian citizen under the condition that the alien is not in one of the situations which would prohibit entry into Romania [defined in Article 8 of the Emergency Ordinance: criminal activities, breach of a previous visa, etc.] and that the marriage is not of convenience" (Embassy of Romania 15 Oct. 2004).

The Aliens' Authority within the Ministry of Administration and Internal Affairs or its territorial units has to be contacted for both kinds of residence permit: temporary-stay right and permanent stay right (Embassy of Romania 19 Oct. 2004).

Articles 62 and 63 state that the temporary-stay right of a Romanian citizen's foreign spouse can be granted for family reunification purposes and can be subsequently renewed provided that the Romanian citizen can prove that he/she has the financial means to support his/her spouse (ibid.).

Article 71 of the December 2002 Emergency Ordinance contains the conditions for an alien to apply for "permanent stay right", which include having stayed legally in Romania for three consecutive years in the case of an alien married to a Romanian citizen (ibid.).

The consular officer indicated that the foreign spouse of a Romanian citizen must wait for five years to apply for Romanian citizenship (29 Oct. 2004).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Embassy of France in Romania. n.d. "Vie pratique: Formalités locales d'installation." http://www.ambafrance-ro.org/article.php3?id_article=329 [Accessed 18 Oct. 2004]

Embassy of Romania in Ottawa. 29 October 2004. Telephone interview with a consular officer.

_____. 19 October 2004. Telephone interview with a consular officer.

_____. 15 October 2004. Correspondence from a consular officer.

Additional Sources Consulted

Internet sites, including: European Country of Origin Network, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania, UK Home Office Country Information, UNHCR, US Embassy in Romania, US Department of State.