Romanian Embassy In Chisinau Receives Thousands Of Citizenship Requests Daily – Foreign Ministry

The Foreign Ministry said the Romanian embassy in Moldovan capital Chisinau is an intermediary between the citizen and the Ministry of Justice and Citizen Liberties, the only institution able to grant Romanian citizenship. The Foreign Ministry pointed out that Government Emergency Ordinance 36/2009, amending and completing the law of Romanian citizenship, “institutes a series of procedural facilities as regards regaining citizenship.” These facilities are not destined for people form a certain area, but offer a more flexible procedure to former Romanian citizens who live in any other country.

Romanian Foreign Minister Cristian Diaconescu said in late April that there can be no question of granting Romanian citizenship en masse to Moldovan citizens, but that there will be an individual evaluation. “We will not give out passports for hundreds of thousands of people. There will be an individual evaluation and the first decisions about this will be taken after five-six months, according to procedure,” the Minister said.

The Romanian Government recently simplified these procedures for Moldovan citizens. The maximum term for the evaluation of a file has been reduced from six to five months. Also, the right to request citizenship has been extended to third degree descendants.

President Traian Basescu had stated earlier that 800,000 citizens of the Republic of Moldova had requested to regain Romanian citizenship.