Romania does not recognise same-sex marriage or civil unions. Registered partnerships have been debated several times since 2008, though no bill on the matter has successfully passed the Parliament of Romania. In May 2023, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Romania was violating the European Convention on Human Rights by not recognizing same-sex unions. The government appealed the decision to the Grand Chamber in August 2023, but this appeal was rejected on 25 September 2023. The ECHR imposed a positive obligation on the government to establish a legal framework recognising same-sex unions. It may risk financial sanctions from the Council of Europe if it fails to change the law.
In June 2018, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that same-sex spouses of European Union citizens should be granted a right of residency in Romania.JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Grand Chamber) 5 June 2018Legal effects of EUCJ Decision on Coman case - RO EUCJ interpreted the word "spouse" from Directive 2004/38 to include same-sex spouses invoking that EU law is autonomous system of law and its terms have autonomous meaning The ECJ expanded on this ruling on 22 November 2025 when it ruled in Jakub Cupriak-Trojan and Mateusz Trojan v Wojewoda Mazowiecki, a Polish case, that all member states of the European Union must recognise same-sex marriages validly performed within the European Union. The Constitution of Romania does not define marriage directly, but Article 48 of the Constitution defines marriages between "spouses" as the foundation of the family.art. 48, alin. (1) Constituția României - "Familia se întemeiază pe căsătoria liber consimţită între soţi, pe egalitatea acestora şi pe dreptul şi îndatorirea părinţilor de a asigura creşterea, educaţia şi instruirea copiilor."
Unregistered cohabitation In June 2019, the Chamber of Deputies voted in favour of amending patient rights legislation, allowing patients to designate any person over 18 years of age as their "legal representative" through a statutory declaration. This allows a person in a same-sex relationships to visit their partner in hospital and to make medical decisions on their behalf. The initiator of the law specifically referred to the fact that about 10% of Romanian couples at the time were unmarried as one of the reasons for the reform. The law was promulgated by President Klaus Iohannis on 24 July and came into effect on 28 July 2019. While the law does not specifically mention same-sex couples, it provides a mechanism for same-sex couples to obtain equal visitation and medical decision-making rights to different-sex married couples, by appointing themselves as a "legal representative" () through a public notary.
Registered partnerships Summary Registered partnerships (, ) are not available in Romania, despite several previous unsuccessful attempts to change the law. The first bill to recognise registered partnerships was introduced in 2008. In 2023, the European Court of Human Rights imposed a positive obligation on the government to establish a legal framework recognising same-sex unions, otherwise risking financial sanctions from the Council of Europe.
Early bills The primary LGBT advocacy group in Romania is ACCEPT, which advocates for partnership rights and same-sex marriage. The organisation launched a campaign to legalise same-sex registered partnerships in Romania during Bucharest Pride in 2006, which lasted from 30 May to 4 June, and was organised under the theme "Same-sex marriage and civil unions in Romania". This event provoked widespread debate over the issue in the media. ACCEPT activists organised a public debate and seminar on same-sex partnerships on 31 May 2006, and called on the Government of Romania to legalise same-sex marriage or registered partnerships, offering its assistance in drafting a legislative proposal. A treia ediţie GayFest (The third edition of GayFest), HotNews, 25 May 2006 Romaniţa Iordache, the executive director of ACCEPT, said on 31 May 2006 that "Article 200 [the last anti-gay law] has been abrogated, but we [the LGBT community] still do not have equal rights, even though the Constitution guarantees this." Homosexualii romani vor casatorie cu acte (Romanian gays want to marry legally), Libertatea, 31 May 2006 A spokesman for ACCEPT, Florin Buhuceanu, claimed that "guaranteeing the equality of rights through the recognition of gay marriage... is just a step forward."Romanians launch campaign to legalize same-sex marriage , AP/Dallas Voice, 1 June 2006
On 23 February 2008, Péter Eckstein-Kovács, a parliamentarian from the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, proposed a bill to legalise registered partnerships, providing unmarried same-sex and opposite-sex couples a number of legal rights and benefits. He said that the current Family Code was "adopted more than fifty years ago and no longer reflected social realities, both in the case of homosexuals and heterosexuals". Eckstein cere drepturi civile pentru cuplurile de homosexuali (Eckstein asks for civil rights for homosexual couples), Cotidianul, 23 February 2008 This marked the first time in Romania that a politician had explicitly supported registered partnerships for same-sex couples. The bill failed to pass. Eckstein-Kovács re-introduced a partnership bill on 23 July 2008. However, that bill died in the Senate following the 2008 election. "Propunere legislativă privind parteneriatul civil" (L646/2008) , at the Romanian Senate website Another registered partnership bill was introduced by Viorel Arion from the Democratic Liberal Party in February 2011. It would have provided same-sex and opposite-sex couples with some of the rights of marriage, and received a favourable recommendation from the Legislative Committee of the Chamber of Deputies. However, the bill was opposed by the government, and ultimately failed to pass.Oficializarea legăturilor gay, interzisă în România
In April 2013, MP Remus Cernea from the Green Party announced he would introduce a bill to grant same-sex couples the same rights as opposite-sex couples, prompting fierce reactions from opponents of the move. Among the most vehement reactions was from Senator Puiu Hașotti, who described homosexuals as "sick people" and "not natural", prompting a formal complaint by ACCEPT to the National Council for Combating Discrimination.(Romanian) DEZBATERE Legalizarea parteneriatelor civile între homosexuali. Parlamentarii oscilează între „nu“ şi „nu prea“ On 4 July 2013, Cernea introduced the bill to the Senate. Propunere legislativă privind parteneriatul civil (Legislative proposal on the civil partnership) (Romanian) Propunere legislativă privind parteneriatul civil A few months later, the Romanian Government issued a statement confirming it would not support the bill, and on 17 December 2013 it was rejected by the Senate by 2 votes to 110.(Romanian)L597/2013|raport de respingerePunct de vedere - Guvernul Romaniei On 13 March 2014, a judicial committee unanimously advised the Parliament to reject the proposal.(Romanian) Proiectul parteneriatului civil intre persoane de acelasi sex a fost respins On 11 June 2014, the bill was rejected by the Chamber of Deputies with 298 votes opposed to the bill, 4 in favor and 5 abstentions.(Romanian)PL 670/2013|Derularea procedurii legislative (Romanian)PL 670/2013|Respingere PL 670/2013 privind parteneriatul civil On 31 March 2015, another civil union bill was rejected by the Senate with 49 votes against the bill, 8 in favor and 3 abstentions.(Voting Results)PL 670/2013| L 52/2015 Vot raport de respingere(Romanian)L 52/2015| Propunere legislativă privind reglementarea parteneriatului civil
Reform attempts in 2018–2019 In April 2018, Liviu Dragnea, the President of the Chamber of Deputies, expressed his support for registered partnerships.Romania could be about to introduce civil partnerships as it seeks a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages On 9 October 2018, just days after the failed referendum to constitutionally ban same-sex marriage, the Minister for European Affairs, Victor Negrescu, said that a bill allowing registered partnerships had been finalized and would be introduced in mid-October. However, in mid-October 2018, media outlets reported that the introduction of the bill had been postponed, and that the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) and Dragnea himself were no longer supportive.Surse: PSD NU mai susține legea parteneriatului civil. Proiectul nu a mai fost depus în ParlamentCe şanse sunt ca Parlamentul să adopte legea parteneriatului civil. Surse: Dragnea s-a răzgândit. PNL e împărţit On 29 October, the Senate rejected a partnership bill introduced by Independent MP Oana Bîzgan.Parteneriatul civil a fost respins de Senat On 31 October, a group of 42 deputies from different parties submitted another bill to the Chamber of Deputies.Proiectul privind parteneriatul civil a ajuns în ParlamentProiect de lege privind parteneriatul civil, depus la Parlament
Two separate civil union bills were rejected by the Senate in March 2019. One bill would have recognised same-sex and opposite-sex couples "for the purpose of setting up a shared private life and household", while the other bill would have granted shared rights for couples entering a partnership and covered aspects such as succession rights, protection from domestic violence, the obligation to support an incapacitated partner, and fiscal facilities or social benefits granted by the state.
Buhuceanu ruling and aftermath On 23 May 2023, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in Buhuceanu and Others v. Romania that the government had violated the human rights of 21 same-sex couples by refusing to recognise their relationships. The lead plaintiff was Florin Buhuceanu, the former executive director of ACCEPT. The couples had sued in 2019 and 2020 for being "deprived of their dignity as spouses", and cited disadvantages, such as being barred from spousal bereavement leave, mortgage programmes or joint health insurance. The ECHR ruled that Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights obliges the government to recognise same-sex unions. The government was given three months to appeal the decision, but if the appeal was rejected, Romania would be obliged to pass legislation recognising same-sex unions, otherwise risking sanctions from the Council of Europe. Reacting to the decision, President Klaus Iohannis said the topic was "a complicated issue for Romania". Members of the Orthodox Church and the Alliance for the Union of Romanians called for the decision to be "ignored", which is legally impossible. The government announced its intention to appeal the decision in August 2023. According to Csaba Ferenc Asztalos, such an appeal was unlikely to succeed, as the ECHR had already ruled in the case of Fedotova and Others v. Russia in January 2023 on the same issue being appealed by the government. The ECHR later also issued similar rulings with respect to Ukraine in Maymulakhin and Markiv, Bulgaria in Koilova and Babulkova and Poland in Przybyszewska and Others. If the appeal was rejected, the decision would become mandatory for all 46 members of the Council of Europe.