Translations for Romanian company formation documents

Why translations matter for Romanian company formation

Translations for Romanian company formation are one of the steps where foreign founders most often lose time, because the Trade Register (ONRC) works in Romanian and expects foreign-language documents to arrive in a specific, certified form. When a document was issued abroad, in English, French, Italian, Arabic or any other language, the registry will generally not accept the original on its own. It needs a Romanian version produced by an authorised translator, and in several situations that translation also has to be legalised by a notary. Getting this right early is what keeps a filing moving rather than being returned for correction.

The exact requirements depend on the document, your citizenship and whether the shareholder is an individual or a foreign legal entity, so the safest approach is to confirm the list before paying for any translation. To see which papers usually fall into scope for an individual founder, start from our overview of the required documents and treat that as the baseline you adjust to your own case.

Authorised and legalised translations explained

Romania distinguishes between an authorised translation and a legalised one, and the difference matters for your file. An authorised (sworn) translation is signed and stamped by a translator licensed by the Ministry of Justice, who certifies that the Romanian text faithfully reflects the foreign original. A legalised translation goes a step further: a notary attests to the translator's signature, which adds an extra layer of formality that some submissions require. After document review we can tell you which of your papers can travel as authorised translations and which the registry is likely to want legalised.

In many standard cases the documents that need attention are personal identification, proof of address where requested, and, for corporate shareholders, the company's constitutive documents and certificate of good standing. For a foreign legal entity acting as shareholder, the registry tends to scrutinise the extract and representation documents more closely, so those almost always require careful, certified handling.

Apostille and document legalisation before translation

Before a foreign document can be translated and filed, it often has to be authenticated in its country of origin. For states party to the Hague Convention this is done through an apostille; for non-member states it is a fuller consular legalisation chain. This is the part that produces the search "apostille Romania", and it is worth understanding that the apostille is generally affixed in the country that issued the document, not in Romania. Only after the apostille is in place does the translation step make sense, because the translator usually renders both the document and the apostille into Romanian.

This sequencing is one of the most common sources of delay. Where the order is reversed or a step is skipped, the file may be returned, which is why we map the whole chain for your specific documents before anything is sent for translation.

• Confirm whether each document needs an apostille or full consular legalisation
• Obtain the apostille or legalisation in the issuing country
• Have an authorised translator produce the Romanian version, including the apostille text
• Arrange notarial legalisation of the translation where the registry requires it

Name spelling consistency and translated documents at ONRC

A detail that causes real problems with translated documents at ONRC is name spelling. Your name, and the names of any corporate shareholders, must read identically across your passport, the translations, the power of attorney and the company's articles of association. Transliteration from non-Latin alphabets, accented characters, and middle names that appear on one document but not another can all create mismatches that the registry flags. We ask founders to choose one authoritative spelling, taken from the passport, and to keep it consistent everywhere so the file presents as one coherent identity.

The same care applies to dates, places of birth and company registration numbers. Small inconsistencies that look harmless can hold up an otherwise clean submission, so this review is part of how we prepare a file for the Romanian SRL for foreigners route.

Timing and cost

Translation timing affects your filing date more than founders expect. An apostille can take days or weeks depending on the issuing authority, and authorised translation plus notarial legalisation adds further turnaround. Because the registry treats the file as complete only once every document is present in acceptable form, the slowest document tends to set the pace. Planning the translation chain at the start, rather than after the rest of the paperwork is ready, is what keeps the overall schedule realistic.

On cost, Romanian SRL formation for foreign citizens starts from €300, with a registered office available from €150/year or a combined remote SRL and registered office package from €450. Later company changes start from €200. Translation and legalisation fees are charged separately by the translators and notaries involved. Every figure here is indicative: the final quote depends on your citizenship, your documents, the number of shareholders, whether translations are required, and whether the shareholder is an individual or a foreign legal entity.

Check your documents

If you would like us to confirm exactly which translations Romanian company formation will require in your case, send us a short message and we will review your situation before you commit to any apostille or translation spend. Tell us your citizenship, your current country of residence, whether you need a registered office, and the business activity you plan to carry out. Reach us on WhatsApp or through the contact form, and we will reply with a clear document list and an honest assessment of whether your case looks standard or more complex.