How to Open an IT Company in Romania

Romania is one of the preferred locations to open an IT company in Europe. Our country has tax advantages, a business climate that welcomes foreign investors and a pool of talented employees, at the same time keeping the general employment costs lower compared to other countries.

The business field offers opportunities for several types of services, from IT support and outsourcing services to programming, web design, hosting or security. There are numerous entrepreneurial opportunities in this field, however, before incorporating a new company, investors are advised to learn the basic rules of company formation in Romania, along with the special provisions that are in place in this business field.

In this article, you will learn

• how to open an IT company in Romania,
• what are the steps in forming an IT company and
• what happened to the income-tax exemption for IT employees (abolished from 1 January 2025).

If you need more details than the ones presented herein, you can reach out to the experts at our law firm in Romania.

The IT sector definitely is the big star of these years, in Romania as everywhere else in the world.

IT companies are permanently hunting for new talents, recruitment ads are everywhere online and on street billboards, almost each day a new software product is advertised by the industry, signs of a vital industry that is in a strong process of development.

Big companies recruit their future employees from universities and most IT students choose to emigrate as soon as they complete studies. In order to stop this real exodus of talents, the authorities granted for many years an income-tax exemption for the salaries of IT employees; this exemption was abolished from 1 January 2025 (GEO 156/2024).

Opening an IT company is easier today than it was 10 years ago. 

Steps to open an IT company

Below, our lawyers in Romania list the most essential steps in opening a new company. They apply to IT companies, as well as to any new firm that opens in Romania:

1. Choose the business scope: this is the activity sector for the business, according to the NACE codes; a primary activity is selected and it can be followed by secondary ones.
2. Choose the type of company: most IT companies in Romania are incorporated as a private limited liability company, suitable for small or medium-sized businesses.
3. Choose the company name: it needs to be a unique one, that does not infringe any other names already in use by registered companies.
4. Establish the registered address: this address is needed for incorporation purposes, however, it can be different from the company headquarters.
5. Draw up the documents: these are the company’s constitutive documents, its Articles of Association, along with other documents that may be required.
6. Register the business: the new company is registered with the National Trade Register Office; once this is done, it can commence its business activities.
7. Post-registration steps: these can include equipping the new office space and hiring employees; unlike other business fields, there is no need to obtain special permits and licenses for most of the activities in the IT sector.

All of these steps are detailed below by our Romanian lawyers. Foreign investors should keep in mind that the requirements described herein apply to opening a new company or a subsidiary if they choose to do business in Romania via a locally registered legal entity. Those who are interested in setting up a branch can also do so, with the mention that although the branch may be subject to lower requirements in terms of registration, accounting, and reporting, it is also registered with the National Trade Register Office.

Choosing the activity sector

The activity sector is defined according to the CAEN Code. Since 2025, activities are classified under CAEN Rev. 3 (Order of the National Institute of Statistics no. 377/2024). IT firms fall mainly into division 58 (Section J) and divisions 62 and 63 (Section K), with their sub-categories:

582 Publishing of software products

5821 Publishing of computer games

5829 Publishing of other software products

62 IT SERVICES

621, 622, 629 Computer programming, consultancy and other IT services (former group 620)

6210 Computer programming activities (former 6201)

6220 Computer consultancy and computer facilities management activities (former 6202)

6220 also covers the former 6203 (management of computer facilities)

6290 Other information technology and computer service activities (former 6209)

63 Computing infrastructure, data processing, hosting and other information service activities

631 Computing infrastructure, data processing, hosting and related activities

6310 Computing infrastructure, data processing, hosting and related activities (former 6311)

6391 Web search portal activities (former 6312; other web portals may fall under 6039, other content distribution activities)

A new company must have one sole Main Activity Object and more (unlimited) Secondary Activity Objects. We recommend that investors choose several secondary activity objects because a subsequent addition will imply several steps and in some cases it can be a somewhat lengthy procedure. However, investors who do decide to change the company particulars after its incorporation can request the specialized service offered by our team of agents who specialize in company formation in Romania.

Choosing the legal form of the new company

The most usual legal forms chosen by IT firms are Limited liability company (SRL) and Joint-stock companies (SA). Below, we describe the main business forms that can be incorporated in Romania:

• LLC (SRL in Romanian) are the most frequent type of IT company in Romania. This type of firm is led by the General Assembly of Associates, while the daily operations are supervised by Managers appointed by the associates.
• Start-up LLC (SRL-D): similar to the LLC, the number of shareholders is limited to 5; this type of company can be maintained for a limited time; it has to be converted to a LLC.
• Joint-stock companies (SA in Romanian) are bigger firms, with at least 2 shareholders, whose share capital is divided into registered (nominative) shares; bearer shares were abolished by Law no. 129/2019.
• Commandite company: the simple and the share commandite company allow for two types of shareholders: fully liable and partly liable.
• Collective company: the shareholders have unlimited liability; however, this is not a very popular bususiness form.

The LLC or the SRL remains the most popular business form in Romania not only because the shareholders have limited liability (up to the extent of the invested capital) but also because it has a low minimum share capital of 500 RON for a newly incorporated company (5,000 RON once its net turnover exceeds 400,000 RON).

All new companies must be registered with the National Trade Register Office (ONRC), a public institution subordinated to the Ministry of Justice.  Proof of paying the share capital is no longer filed at registration: an SRL must pay in at least 30% of the subscribed capital within 3 months of registration (and before starting operations) and the rest within 12 months for cash contributions (2 years for contributions in kind); a bank account in Romania is normally opened for this purpose.

When choosing the most appropriate business form for starting an IT company in Romania, investors can consider the following issues listed below by our Romanian lawyers:

• the number of company founders;
• the available capital;
• the taxes applicable to the chosen type of legal entity as well as the requirements for VAT registration.
• the annual accounting and reporting requirements (for example, these are generally more complex for the SA compared to the SRL).

Registering the name of the company

Before choosing the name of their future company, entrepreneurs should check the availability of the name on ONRC’s web site https://portal.onrc.ro/ONRCPortalWeb/ONRCPortal.portal. Then they will apply for a name reservation at the same institution. It is recommended to prepare more than one company name, in the eventuality in which the first option is not available.

Setting up a registered office

The new company’s HQ can be established either on its own property, or under a rental or bailment agreement signed by the company with the owner of the space, based on the name reservation certificate issued by ONRC. The costs associated with equipping the office space should be take into consideration by business owners. The experts at our Romanian law firm can help you with the rental agreement. 

Establishing the Articles of association

The provisions to be included in the Articles of Association depend on the legal form chosen for the new company.

However, there are several provisions they must include, regardless of the legal form:

1. main activity object,
2. eventual secondary activity objects,
3. name of the company and reservation number issued by ONRC.
4. the names of the company directors and the administrator as well as other information.

The company formation experts at our law firm in Romania can help you prepare the Articles of Association.

Tax treatment of IT employees (exemption abolished from 2025)

The income-tax exemption for the salaries of IT employees (Fiscal Code art. 60(2)) was abolished from 1 January 2025 (GEO 156/2024); IT employees are now taxed like any other employee.

Romania has consolidated its position as a top location to base an IT company in the region. Many foreign companies have relocated to Romania or outsourced their activities here, including actual programming and software production.

Investors can open an IT company in Romania by following a few key steps, as outlined in this article. Please keep in mind that these guidelines are only general ones and the actual process for company registration in Romania can differ and require additional steps. One of our lawyers in Romania can help entrepreneurs comply with the latest requirements and legal provisions for this business sector. You can always reach out to us if you have any questions before commencing the actual company registration process.

The IT sector in Romania

The IT sector continues to display a reasonable percentage of growth despite the local political changes.

If you are interested in buying property in Romania, that will be used as the registered office or the headquarters of the new IT company, our lawyers can also assist you during this phase. When working with us, you can have both essential stages performed in order, or as needed in order to ensure a smooth process and an early start for your company in the newly purchase building.

Investors who wish to know more about the legal and fiscal regime for IT companies in Romania can reach out to our Romanian lawyers.

Our law firm provides solid background for all clients interested to set up an IT Romanian company.

The business team in this law firm delivers solutions indicating all necessary details referring to the process of incorporation.

Please contact one of our lawyers in Bucharest to give you a free consultation regarding your company formation inquiries.