• Increase efforts to proactively identify trafficking victims by screening for trafficking indicators among vulnerable populations.
• Increase the availability of protection services, particularly medical assistance and long-term reintegration support, for all trafficking victims.
• Investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes and seek adequate penalties for convicted traffickers, including complicit officials, which should involve significant prison terms.
• Train investigators, prosecutors, and judges on victim-centered approaches to trafficking cases, including advanced training on trafficking investigations and prosecution, and establish formalized mechanisms to refer cases to trained prosecutors and judges.
• Train relevant authorities, particularly social workers in regions outside of the capital, on understanding trafficking and assisting victims.

The government increased anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts.

Articles 165 and 206 of the criminal code criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking. The law prescribed penalties of six to 12 years’ imprisonment for trafficking crimes involving an adult victim and 10 to 12 years’ imprisonment for those involving a child victim. These penalties were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with those for other grave crimes, such as rape. Article 168 of the criminal code also criminalized forced labor and imposed penalties of up to three years’ imprisonment.

In 2024, authorities investigated 67 trafficking cases (22 sex trafficking, 27 labor trafficking, and 18 unspecified forms of trafficking), a notable increase from 49 investigations in 2023. Authorities prosecuted 119 alleged traffickers, a nearly two-fold increase from 64 prosecutions in 2023. Courts convicted 33 traffickers (22 sex trafficking, nine labor trafficking, and two unspecified forms of trafficking) under the trafficking statute, the same number of convictions as in 2023. The government did not provide sentencing data for all convicted traffickers but reported 14 traffickers received prison sentences. Moldovan authorities cooperated with their European counterparts on several extraditions, judicial assistance requests, and trafficking-related investigations, including a joint investigation team with Romanian authorities involving a person with disabilities subjected to forced begging. In addition, Moldovan authorities participated in a Europol-led hackathon on online human trafficking and a Frontex-led operation on criminal networks engaged in human trafficking. Authorities also participated in two taskforces with Ukrainian counterparts focused on fostering information exchange and identifying areas for strengthened coordination on emerging challenges in law enforcement and prosecution, including online recruitment and exploitation.

Corruption and official complicity in trafficking crimes remained significant concerns. In 2024, a Moldovan court convicted a former police officer of labor trafficking and issued a 20-year prison sentence. Judges sometimes re-qualified cases from trafficking crimes to crimes with lesser penalties or postponed hearings – a practice common among judges suspected of corruption. To increase transparency and efficiency in the assignment of judges to cases, all courts in the country utilized an electronic case management system.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) – the lead ministry for law enforcement – faced chronic understaffing and high turnover that was particularly acute in its subordinate units with investigative mandates, such as the Center for Combating Trafficking in Persons (CCTIP) – the unit responsible for coordinating trafficking investigations throughout the country. While the CCTIP maintained investigators working on trafficking cases, it did not staff prosecuting officers; the General Police Inspectorate (GPI) carried out all prosecutorial actions. Other MIA subdivisions had human trafficking within their mandate, but they too were understaffed and covered other crimes. In addition, the CCTIP did not have the technical ability to conduct surveillance or undercover operations and required assistance from the GPI who often lacked the capacity to assist. Authorities also reported challenges in communication, such as language barriers, during the documentation of cases, that complicated interagency cooperation, obstructed access to justice, and hindered the identification and assistance of victims. Furthermore, the lack of sufficient resources, such as funding, technology, and transportation, hindered proactively and timely to identify, investigate, and prosecute trafficking crimes. The National Investigation Inspectorate Center for Combating Cybercrime (CCCC) maintained a cyber unit that supported the CCTIP’s online investigations, including online commercial sexual exploitation of children. Through a project with an international organization, the CCCC trained police in collecting digital evidence for trafficking cases using “web crawlers” to identify suspicious activity online, data analysis, and supply chain tracking; collaborated with social media or technology companies; and launched awareness campaigns on internet safety. The project focused on strengthening investigative and prosecutorial capacities and improving child victims of abuse and exploitation. The GPI maintained sexual assault response teams to serve rural regions of Moldova where police typically did not have proper resources to respond to reported trafficking cases.

Similar to the MIA, the Office of the Prosecutor General (PGO) faced staffing challenges. The PGO maintained a unit with specialized prosecutors, who coordinated anti-trafficking prosecution policies and supervised the work of regional territorial prosecutors when working on trafficking cases. The reorganization required territorial prosecutor offices to hire specialized prosecutors on human trafficking. The PGO also investigated child sex trafficking and online sexual exploitation cases involving information and communication technologies and provided guidelines for identifying, investigating, and prosecuting such cases. The Organized Crime Prosecution Office, a subdivision of the PGO, had a specialized unit for prosecuting trafficking cases initiated by the CCTIP as well as cases involving criminal organizations. Within the judiciary, there were specialized judges trained specifically to handle trafficking cases. In 2024, the government, in partnership with other governments, NGOs, and international organizations, conducted a range of trafficking-related trainings for judges, prosecutors, and investigators, including on financial investigations and asset recovery, interagency coordination, investigative techniques, and victim identification.

The government maintained victim protection efforts.

In 2024, the government identified 149 trafficking victims (34 sex trafficking, 87 labor trafficking, and 28 unspecified forms of trafficking), a decrease from 167 identified victims in 2023. Most identified victims were men exploited in labor trafficking or forced criminality. Authorities identified 34 child trafficking victims (23 sex trafficking, eight labor trafficking, and three unspecified forms of trafficking), an increase from 21 in 2023. Government and civil society representatives reported a lack of general awareness and limited knowledge of trafficking indicators among front-line personnel hindered identification. The government continued to implement its four-year National Referral Mechanism for Victims of Crime (NRMV), including trafficking victims; the NRMV acted as a coordination mechanism for interagency and intersectoral interaction, providing victim assistance and protection. The MoLSP maintained a guide on the identification of trafficking victims that served as an operational tool outlining procedures for different stakeholders and, in 2024, began updating the guide, with input from civil society, to align with emerging trends and recent regulatory changes from the ongoing social assistance reform. The guide was legally binding only for the MoLSP and only covered citizens of Moldova. In 2024, the MoLSP and an international organization developed a separate guide with practical tools for early identification and referral of trafficking victims among foreign nationals; front-line personnel received training on implementing identification protocols. However, identification of potential foreign national victims remained inconsistent throughout the country. To address this gap, the government and an international organization provided trainings for Roma community mediators on identifying trafficking victims among refugee and Moldovan national Roma.

The government provided specialized services to trafficking victims, primarily at the national level. At the local level and under the direction of the national coordination council, multidisciplinary teams and case managers assessed victims’ needs and referred them to services. In 2024, the MoLSP developed a standardized case assessment tool and integrated digital case management systems to streamline the provision of victim assistance by enhancing interventions and ensuring timely and secure access to information. Similar to previous years, authorities did not adequately refer victims to available services, and only a limited number of victims received assistance – 37 of 149 identified victims (25 percent) – in 2024, compared with 36 of 167 victims (22 percent) in 2023.

The law permitted identified victims access to shelter and most services irrespective of their willingness to participate in criminal proceedings; however, access to free specialized medical services were unavailable to foreign national trafficking victims without legal residency because Moldovan law did not extend compulsory health insurance benefits to those individuals. Observers reported authorities typically referred to shelters only the most vulnerable victims, including children, individuals experiencing homelessness, and victims who needed protection to participate in criminal proceedings. Victims received assistance for up to six months from two dedicated shelters operated by the government in partnership with an international organization: (1) the Center for Assistance and Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking (CAP) for women and children; and (2) the Service for the Assistance and Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking (SAP) for men. Male victims received specialized services, including social and support services, and accommodation at SAP in Chisinau. The government funded several other centers and shelters across the country for female trafficking and domestic violence victims, offering medical, legal, and psychological assistance regardless of their participation in criminal proceedings. The government continued to conduct a two-year pilot project in Ungheni for a regional integrated service for female victims of sexual violence, including trafficking, serving victims from six districts and offering specialized services. Moldovan law permitted foreign victims a 30-day reflection period, during which they could receive assistance and protection while determining whether to participate in the criminal proceedings. Foreign victims who chose to do so received temporary residency.

In 2024, the government reported spending 5.17 million Moldovan lei (MDL) ($282,510) on victim protection, a decrease from 5.7 million MDL ($311,480) in 2023. The government allocated most of its resources to service centers in Balti and Chisinau, while resources for rural areas were much more limited. The government often relied on NGOs and international organizations to supplement government funding. CAP employees reported funding for long-term assistance for victims, particularly long-term reintegration support, such as counseling and job-placement, remained limited, leaving victims at risk of re-victimization. Observers reported providing specialized services to all victims was challenging as most centers and shelters lacked capacity and trained staff members to accommodate some victims. Moreover, government representatives noted challenges in communication and counseling, especially psychological counseling, when providing services and shelter to foreign national trafficking victims, particularly large groups of victims identified simultaneously. During the reporting period, lack of resources and limited space in shelters hindered access to services for foreign victims. To address these needs, in 2024, the government created and filled new positions for specialists in domestic violence prevention and crime victim recovery, including trafficking, within territorial social assistance agencies, social assistance structures, and institutions responsible for child protection in Chisinau and Gagauzia – a Turkic-speaking autonomous territorial unit.

The government maintained two referral mechanisms to support child victims: the NRMV and the Intersectoral Cooperation Mechanism (ICM) for the protection of children. The NRMV referred child victims to NGOs that provided psychological, social, and legal aid. The ICM enabled social services to refer cases to police when children were presumed to be at risk of violence, neglect, exploitation, or trafficking. The ICM centered on collaboration between authorities at the central or local level without civil society. Separately, the Ministry of Education and Research maintained a mechanism for identifying and reporting child abuse, including trafficking, in state institutions. During criminal investigations, CAP assisted child victims and offered legal, social, and psychological assistance, as well as accommodation to child victims. The CAP facility in Chisinau remained the only shelter for child victims and provided limited social services for 30 days followed by placement into permanent housing and continued counseling and assistance. Child protection authorities also placed child victims in foster care, orphanages, state residential schools, group homes, or other types of temporary residential facilities – where the quality of care for child trafficking victims was inadequate – due to lack of dedicated facilities. The government maintained a regional Barnahus center in Balti for integrated assistance for child victims of crime, including trafficking, providing crisis interventions, medical and forensic examinations, and interviews in one place, thus, protecting child victims from re-traumatization during criminal proceedings. The government continued to implement its four-year national child protection program that included measures to address online child sexual exploitation. Additionally, the Ministry of the Internal Affairs and an NGO maintained a hotline to report online child sexual exploitation, including trafficking, and identified 14 child trafficking victims in 2024.

Moldovan law exempted at-risk victims and child victims from required attendance in court proceedings, and the government utilized video recording of interviews to prevent re-traumatization. The law also mandated law enforcement interview child victims of sexual abuse or exploitation, including trafficking, in specially equipped rooms in accordance with international standards; in 2024, the government approved a directive ensuring child victims received uniform treatment during criminal proceedings, including by establishing a uniform layout of interview rooms and beginning renovations. The law allowed trafficking victims access to free legal assistance upon request; in 2024, the PGO reported 34 trafficking victims received legal assistance. Not all public lawyers received special training to assist victims and did not always implement a victim-centered approach to criminal justice. The law allowed victims to file civil suits for compensation for material damage, such as medical treatment costs or destruction of property, but only if prosecutors filed criminal charges against traffickers or cases ended in convictions. In 2024, courts ordered restitution, totaling 815,360 MDL ($44,560), to 13 victims. Despite the criminal code including provisions to prevent the inappropriate penalization of trafficking victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked, if authorities classified cases under related statutes, such as the article criminalizing forced labor, victims were no longer exempt from criminal liability. Similarly, if authorities reclassified sex trafficking cases to “pimping” cases, victims were no longer exempt from punishment and could be charged with commercial sex crimes.

The government increased prevention efforts.

The government continued to implement its 2022-2024 NAP and began developing a new NAP for 2025-2026 with civil society input. The Directorate for Coordination in the Field of Human Rights and Social Dialogue monitored implementation of the current NAP. In 2024, the government enacted a four-year national program for combating and preventing human trafficking with a particular focus on vulnerable populations and measures that included addressing child trafficking, strengthening the national anti-trafficking framework, and developing the expertise and skills of anti-trafficking specialists. The Permanent Secretariat of the National Committee for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, which oversaw the coordination, monitoring, and evaluation of all anti-trafficking policies, was responsible for implementation of the program. The government also implemented its national program for combating and preventing violence against women and domestic violence for 2023-2027, which included measures to prevent trafficking among individuals with vulnerabilities. The government did not report its budget for prevention activities; each public authority conducted prevention activities according to its respective institutional action plan within the limits of its budget and in cooperation with international partners. In general, the government was dependent on assistance from international partners and civil society for many of its prevention activities. At the local level, each municipality and Gagauzia maintained an anti-trafficking territorial commission to coordinate efforts, identify potential trafficking victims among vulnerable populations, and strengthen partnerships among public institutions, non-commercial organizations, and the private sector. The commissions encompassed local elected officials, law enforcement, prosecutors, and social service providers. Observers reported capacity, knowledge, and resources varied across commissions. The government conducted several studies and research projects in collaboration with international partners, including one project analyzing the challenges of territorial commissions and ways to strengthen them. Additionally, in 2024, the government participated in a Roma mapping exercise aimed to provide a comprehensive mapping of the displaced Roma population from Ukraine currently residing in Moldova, identify trafficking victims, and ensure assistance to those victims. In 2024, the government conducted multiple awareness campaigns and information sessions on the risks of trafficking, referral pathways, available support, and emerging trends. Several agencies and offices operated trafficking hotlines available in Romanian and Russian; hotline staff received training throughout the year and, in 2024, identified 94 trafficking victims. The MoLSP supported two hotlines, allocating 1.76 million MDL ($96,180) in 2024. The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.

The government lacked comprehensive legislation governing foreign labor. Additionally, the informal labor market, which affected both foreign workers and Moldovan citizens, was prevalent in Moldova, particularly in rural areas among “unskilled” agricultural labor, leaving workers without protections and vulnerable to trafficking. To address this issue, in 2024, the Drochia district established a group of specialists, comprising the SLI, police, and social workers, to focus on combating illegal and informal employment, including labor trafficking, and identifying victims. The government took additional steps to enforce labor laws in the informal sector, such as requiring work contracts for employment, but did not have an effective mechanism to monitor compliance and protect workers. Furthermore, the law allowed foreign nationals of 47 non-EU countries to work in Moldova without a visa for up to 90 days, leaving workers vulnerable to illicit labor practices, including labor trafficking.

Moldovan law authorized the State Labor Inspectorate (SLI), which oversaw the occupational safety and health inspections, to regulate employment agencies, recruiters, and unlicensed labor agents and required recruiters to provide transparent, legally binding contracts for prospective workers. Agencies in violation faced criminal charges for trafficking, among other penalties. The SLI had the authority to issue civil penalties for labor law violations, including crimes against children. Moldovan law prohibited agencies from charging prospective workers fees or taxes as part of the recruitment process. The law permitted collection of payment for additional services from Moldovan citizens seeking jobs abroad but forbid charges to job seekers for services performed by recruiters. To ensure the protection of Moldovan workers abroad, the MoLSP maintained several bilateral labor agreements with foreign governments, including Bulgaria, Israel, and Germany, regulating the recruitment, employment, and transportation of those workers.

Under Moldovan law, the SLI conducted unannounced labor inspections – which were the country’s main mechanism to identify child labor, including forced child labor – at worksites known or suspected of human trafficking or unreported employment. The law permitted the SLI to conduct unannounced inspections regardless of whether they received a written complaint or assessed an imminent threat. The law also permitted the SLI to conduct unannounced inspections when they had suspicions or visual evidence of businesses’ involvement in forced child labor. The SLI reported the number of labor inspectors was insufficient to monitor effectively all areas and sectors where forced child labor occurred. In cases of the worst forms of child labor, including trafficking, when inspectors identified a potential case, they immediately informed the SLI. In 2024, authorities reported initiating 19 criminal investigations relating to suspected child labor crimes, including trafficking. Moldova’s public procurement law banned government agencies from contracting with any person or company convicted of trafficking crimes or child labor violations in the previous five years.

Trafficking affects all communities. This section summarizes government and civil society reporting on the nature and scope of trafficking over the past five years. Human traffickers increasingly exploit domestic and foreign victims in Moldova, and traffickers exploit victims from Moldova abroad. Populations vulnerable to trafficking include children, migrants, persons from poor rural areas, persons with disabilities living in residential institutions, undereducated adults, the unemployed, unhoused persons, refugees, and Roma. Sexually abused women are highly vulnerable to sex trafficking in the country and abroad. Sex trafficking victims are overwhelmingly women and girls. Traffickers recruit victims through familial ties or personal contacts. Traffickers increasingly use technology, including social media, instant messaging applications, and videochat, to recruit victims, particularly children, through fake job advertisements and exploit victims in commercial sex. Traffickers exploit children in online child pornography, which they use as a grooming method for sex trafficking. Traffickers exploit children, some as young as eight, in child labor trafficking, mostly in agriculture, particularly harvesting commercial crops, as well as construction, hospitality, restaurants, and manufacturing. Children living on the street or in state institutions (such as orphanages), aging out of such institutions, abandoned by parents migrating abroad, or from Romani communities remain vulnerable to trafficking. Labor trafficking remains the most prevalent form of exploitation among adult male victims. Traffickers exploit men from Bangladesh and India in labor trafficking in textile factories. The undocumented or stateless population within Moldova, including the Romani community, are at risk of trafficking, primarily in the agricultural and construction sectors. Informal laborers in the agriculture construction, fisheries, and forestry sectors are especially vulnerable to labor trafficking. Persons with intellectual disabilities are among the most vulnerable to labor trafficking, particularly in remote rural areas. Women from the Gagauzia Autonomous Territorial Unit are vulnerable to sex trafficking in Türkiye. Approximately 100,000 refugees fleeing the Russia-Ukraine war remain in Moldova and are highly vulnerable to trafficking. Low-level complicity in trafficking crimes continues to be a problem.

The breakaway region of Transnistria remained outside the administrative control of the Government of the Republic of Moldova; therefore, Moldovan authorities were unable to conduct trafficking investigations or labor inspections, including for forced child labor, in the region. Furthermore, Transnistria representatives did not communicate their law enforcement efforts to authorities in Chisinau. Consequently, there were no known trafficking investigations. However, there were reports that the unrecognized de-facto authorities unlawfully recruited child soldiers as young as 16 to join the Transnistria “militia.” Additionally, there were no known officially identified trafficking victims, the same as in 2023; an NGO identified eight trafficking victims and 13 potential victims in 2021. Furthermore, there were no statistics or qualitative analysis on forced child labor, but civil society representatives noted the situation in Transnistria did not differ significantly from the rest of Moldova. Moldovan legal protections or social services were available to all residents of Moldova but only accessible in Chisinau-controlled territories. Observers noted insufficient victim assistance, including immediate and long-term reintegration, and protection left victims vulnerable to re-victimization. Presently, the toll-free, NGO-run hotline represented the main tool for addressing trafficking in the region and one of the few anti-trafficking initiatives supported by Transnistria representatives. The hotline provided access to information, identification, and referral to assistance for potential victims, including among refugees from Ukraine entering or transiting Moldova. An NGO operated a shelter for victims of violence, including trafficking victims, and offered legal, social, and psycho-social assistance as well as accommodation. Information related to Transnistria representatives’ efforts to prevent and combat trafficking remained limited, and multiple reports expressed concern of systematic human rights abuses in the region, increasing vulnerabilities to trafficking. While in previous years Transnistria was a predominant source for sex trafficking victims beyond Moldova, in countries such as Poland, Ukraine, and Russia, recent reports indicated fewer victims from the region. NGOs confirmed a decrease in trafficking in and through Transnistria since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war. Due in part to the presence of Russian peacekeepers in Transnistria, Ukraine closed the Transnistria segment of the Ukraine-Moldova border. As a result, Moldovan authorities did not believe significant volumes of traffic went undetected between the Transnistria region and Ukraine. Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, more than 240,000 refugees have entered the region, with many transiting. The region hosted an unknown number of refugees, although reports estimated 6,000 refugees in Transnistria; this population remains vulnerable to trafficking.