|Published on: 18th June 2026|Categories: News|
The updated AIDA Country Report on Romania provides a detailed overview of legislative and practice-related developments in asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention of asylum applicants and content of international protection in 2025. It is accompanied by an annex providing an overview of temporary protection.
A number of key developments drawn from the overview of the main changes that have taken place since the publication of the update on 2024 are set out below.
(A) International protection
Asylum procedure
- Key statistics: 1,199 applications for international protection were registered in Romania in 2025. This represented a 49% decrease compared to the previous year. There was also a 50% decrease in the number of first-time applicants (1,163). The authorities issued 615 decisions which resulted in the granting of refugee status to 309 people and subsidiary protection to 306 others.
- Border procedures: 24 applications were processed under the border procedure in 2025.
- Pact implementation: In February 2026, the Ministry of Internal Affairs published a draft law intended to transpose the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum into national legislation. In parallel, a draft national immigration strategy for the period 2026-2030 was published for consultation in March 2026.
Reception conditions
- Reception capacity and conditions: Reception conditions remained broadly unchanged in 2025. The reception capacity was 1,100 places with the possibility of increasing by 262 places. As a result of the significant decrease in the number of asylum applications, there was a decrease in occupancy rates in all centres. The average occupancy rate in 2025 was just 15%.
Detention of asylum applicants
- Detention statistics: 397 people on the move, including 42 applicants for international protection, were detained in public custody centres in Arad and Otopeni in 2025. Two of the detained people had special reception needs and one was a minor. The two centres had a combined capacity of 354 places and the average duration of people’s detention was 35 days.
Content of international protection
- Access to rights and integration: Beneficiaries of international protection (BIPs) continued to face practical challenges in accessing housing, employment and specialised support in 2025 despite the legal framework guaranteeing access to a broad range of rights. Integration support remained largely dependent on NGOs and EU-funded projects. 1,019 BIPs participated in integration programmes.
(B) Temporary protection
- Statistics and registration: According to the EU Statistical Office (Eurostat), 27,330 people were granted temporary protection in Romania in 2025. Registration procedures remained accessible and no significant delays or obstacles were reported.
- Access to services: Temporary protection beneficiaries continued to face challenges in accessing housing, healthcare and education. In addition, concerns remained about rising rental costs, language barriers, administrative difficulties and limited accommodation options for vulnerable people. Regarding education, many Ukrainian children continued to combine participation in Romanian schools with Ukrainian online learning.
- Labour market and inclusion: By the end of 2025, 3,411 Ukrainian citizens had benefited from employment support services. However, several support activities and inclusion measures were reduced or discontinued due to funding shortages.
The full report is available here and the annex on temporary protection is available here.
For more information about the AIDA database or to read other AIDA reports, please visit the AIDA website.
