Romania has uncovered a large-scale fraudulent scheme for obtaining EU citizenship, involving forged documents and falsified claims of origin to legalize thousands of foreigners, primarily Russian citizens. This practice has taken on a systemic character and has exposed serious gaps in Romania’s migration and citizenship policies.

The core of the scheme lies in the use of the legal provision for the “restoration” of Romanian citizenship, in force since 1991, which allows individuals whose ancestors lived in the territories of the former Kingdom of Romania (1918–1940) to obtain a passport without a mandatory residency requirement. Originally intended for ethnic Romanians, this mechanism became an object of manipulation: fraudsters fabricated fictitious genealogical documents, in some cases even assuming the identities of fallen Ukrainian soldiers to substantiate supposed family ties to territories now located in Moldova and Ukraine.

The issuance of such passports was facilitated through fictitious addresses, particularly in northern regions of Romania, where a sudden population increase – from 3,420 to nearly 10,000 residents in one municipality – drew the attention of authorities. Investigations revealed that many applications contained false residence data, often registered without the consent of property owners. Forged documents, including civil status certificates and citizenship papers, were in some cases produced with the involvement of local registry officials and intermediaries.

According to prosecutors, in 2025 alone an identified group of seven individuals – Ukrainian citizens acting in coordination with Romanian notaries, lawyers, and translators – submitted more than 900 naturalization applications, mostly on behalf of Russians. Several hundred suspicious documents have been annulled or placed under review in civil registration offices, while the total number of individuals with fictitious residence registrations exceeds 18,700 from countries of the former Soviet Union.

Commercial incentives also played a significant role: services offering “facilitated access to European citizenship” on the shadow market are valued at several thousand euros, making the scheme attractive to those seeking the right to live, work, and move freely within the EU, or to circumvent international sanctions.

Experts note that the exposed practice not only undermines trust in Romania’s citizenship system but also raises broader questions about its vulnerability to abuse and the influence of transnational criminal networks. The tightening of procedures in 2024, including mandatory confirmation of Romanian language proficiency for applicants, has so far failed to deliver a decisive effect, as fraudsters have quickly adapted their methods, including the outright forgery of citizenship certificates.

Official investigations are ongoing, and a key task for Romanian authorities is not only to suppress existing violations but also to reform the legal framework in order to eliminate systemic loopholes actively exploited by organized intermediary groups and criminal networks.

#ROMANIA

30.12.2025 11:37