Romania introduces a COVID-19 vaccination leave

The Romanian government recently passed Law No. 221/2021 enabling employees to take a full day of paid leave to get vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus during their working hours.

The new law entered into effect on 29 July 2021.

Key details

As the vaccination campaign accelerates, the Romanian government introduced a law granting a paid day off to receive a COVID-19 vaccination (in addition to all other leaves available to the employee) to encourage as many people as possible to be vaccinated.

The full-day vaccination leave applies to all employers and all employees for each required injection until employees are fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. The new vaccination leave does not apply to employees vaccinated prior to entry into force of this law. The day off may not be granted when the vaccination is organized by the employer at the workplace.

One parent or guardian of a child under age 18 (age 26 when a child has a disability) is also allowed to take this day off to accompany their child for vaccination.

Employees are required to notify their employer of the appointment options available for vaccination to ensure the day off does not affect the activity of the employer. In addition, employees must provide their employer with evidence of the vaccination appointment as well as the vaccination certificate on the workday following vaccination.

Additional resource

Law No. 221/2021 (opens a new window)