Working in Romania from Togo: Visa, Permit, Costs (2026)

Romania does hire foreign labour in welding, construction, driving and hospitality, and that route is technically open to Togolese nationals. But there is no established Togolese community or bilateral agreement feeding workers into Romania, so you are applying as an individual into the general quota, with extra document steps because Togo is outside the Hague Apostille Convention. This is doable with a real employer behind you - it is not realistic to try alone with no job offer in hand.

How the process is ordered

The Romanian employer applies first for a work authorisation (autorizație de muncă) through the General Inspectorate for Immigration, IGI. This step happens entirely in Romania, before you are involved. Once IGI approves the request, you then apply for the long-stay employment visa (D/AM) at the Romanian diplomatic mission designated to serve Togo.

Knowing this order protects you: no application for your Romanian work permit can be "in progress" before a real, named Romanian company has filed with IGI. If someone tells you otherwise, they are not describing the actual system.

Where to apply from Togo

Romania does not have an embassy in Lome. Check the current list published by the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to confirm which mission serves Togo for visa purposes - coverage for this part of West Africa sometimes runs through a neighbouring country's Romanian embassy, but confirm the live arrangement rather than assuming, since it can change. Contact that mission's visa section directly once your IGI approval is in hand to confirm travel requirements for biometrics.

Documents and the legalisation Togo requires

• Signed employment contract naming the Romanian employer, job and wage.
• Valid passport with sufficient remaining validity.
• Police clearance certificate issued in Togo.
• Proof of trade experience - certificates, licences, or reference letters.
• Medical fitness certificate.

Togo is not party to the Hague Apostille Convention, so Togolese documents need full consular legalisation rather than a simple apostille: authentication by the relevant Togolese ministry, then legalisation at the Romanian mission covering Togo, before certified translation into Romanian. Do the legalisation before the translation - translating first often means paying for the translation twice.

What to budget

Romania sets and periodically changes its visa fee - verify the current figure with the embassy rather than relying on an old number; it is commonly cited around approximately 100 to 120 euros. The work authorisation fee is the employer's cost inside Romania, not yours.

On the Togo side, rough figures to plan around: police clearance (a modest fee in CFA francs), medical exam (approximately 15,000-40,000 XOF), authentication and legalisation fees across the chain (often the largest and slowest cost, since it may involve more than one office), certified translation (approximately 20-50 EUR per document once legalised), and a flight to Bucharest, typically routed through a European hub, commonly approximately 500-900 EUR. These are rough planning ranges that will move with the market.

No legally operating employer or recruiter in Romania may charge a worker for the job itself - recruitment costs sit with the employer, and you should confirm the precise rule with IGI or the embassy rather than take a middleman's word for it. Watch for "Europe placement" agents in Lome who demand payment up front for a Romanian job with no verifiable employer, often using the real legalisation requirement to invent extra fake fees - that pattern, not the legalisation process itself, is the scam.

Build a realistic timeline: legalisation of Togolese documents through multiple offices can easily take several weeks on its own, the employer's IGI filing takes weeks more, and the visa appointment adds further time. Six months or more from a signed offer to actually starting work in Romania is a reasonable expectation, not a sign that something has gone wrong.

Jobs Romania is actually hiring for

Drivers are in steady, documented demand across Romania, and foreign licence holders are regularly sponsored when the licence category fits the job. Construction trades - welding, masonry, general site work - remain a consistent hiring area tied to ongoing building activity. Warehouse and logistics work around Bucharest is growing as distribution centres expand.

As with Uganda, there is no established Togolese worker pipeline into Romania, so most employers you reach will be hiring from your country for the first time. That is not a reason to give up - it just means you should expect the employer's own paperwork and decision-making to move slowly too, not only the embassy side.

Myths vs facts

Myth: French being widely spoken in Togo means you will manage fine at a Romanian job site. Fact: Romanian is the everyday working language on most sites; French will not substitute for it long-term.

Myth: A notarised copy from a local notary in Lome is good enough for Romania. Fact: Togo is outside the Apostille Convention, so full consular legalisation is required, not a local notary stamp alone.

Myth: Paying extra to a "fast-track agent" speeds up the IGI work authorisation. Fact: IGI processing runs on its own timeline inside Romania; no outside agent controls or speeds that government process, no matter what fee they quote you.

Myth: Once you arrive, you can simply switch to a better-paying Romanian employer. Fact: your permit is tied to the sponsoring employer, and changing jobs generally requires a fresh authorisation.

Myth: If you arrive on a tourist visa first, you can sort out the work paperwork once you are already in Romania. Fact: Romania's system requires the work authorisation and visa to be arranged before travel - arriving as a tourist and trying to switch to work status does not work.

Before you sign

• Have you verified the Romanian employer is a real, registered company?
• Does the contract clearly state wage, hours, job title and accommodation?
• Has IGI actually approved the work authorisation - have you seen the document?
• Have you started consular legalisation on your Togolese documents, not just notarisation?
• Have you confirmed, directly with the embassy, which mission currently handles Togo?
• Have you budgeted six months or more for the full process, including legalisation?
• Have you kept duplicate copies of every legalised and translated document, in a separate place from the originals?

Put this on your Workuro profile

Add the details to your Workuro profile: that you know the route runs through IGI's work authorisation and the D/AM visa, that your documents need consular legalisation rather than an apostille, and what trade and licences you bring. A Romanian employer reading that sees someone who has already done the hard part of the research. Workuro is free for workers - employers pay to search the register, and nobody may charge you for a job.