Law 489/2006
on the Freedom of Religion and the General Status of Denominations
Published in the Official Journal, Part I, issue #11/08 Jan. 2007
The Parliament of Romania adopts this Law:
CHAPTER I
General Stipulations
Art. 1 – (1) The Romanian State observes and guarantees the fundamental right to
freedom of thought, conscience and religion for any individual on the territory of
Romania, under the Romanian Constitution and the international treaties Romania is a
party to.
(2) No one shall be prevented from adopting a religious opinion or joining a
religious faith; no one shall be coerced into adopting a religious opinion or joining a
religious faith, contrary to his/her persuasion, and no one shall be subject to any
discrimination, or be harassed or placed in an inferior position on account of their faith,
membership or non-membership in a religious group, association or denomination, or for
the exercise, within the law, of their freedom of religion.
Art. 2 – (1) Freedom of religion includes the right of every individual to have or embrace
a religion, to manifest it individually or collectively, in public or in private, through
practices and rituals specific to that denomination, including through religious education,
as well as the freedom to preserve or change one’s religion.
(2) The freedom to manifest one’s religion cannot be subject to any restrictions
other than those required under the law and which are necessary in a democratic society
for the protection of the public, of public order, health or morality, or for the protection of
fundamental human rights and liberties.
Art. 3 – (1) Parents or guardians have the exclusive right to opt for their underage wards’
religious education, based on their own beliefs.
(2) The religion of a child who has turned 14 years of age cannot be changed
without his/her agreement; a child who has turned 16 year of age shall have the right to
choose his/her own religion.
Art. 4 – Any individual, cult, religious association or religious group in Romania shall be
free to establish and maintain ecumenical and brotherly relations with other individuals,
cults or religious groups and with inter-Christian and inter-religious organizations, at both
national and international level.
Art. 5 – (1) Any individual shall have the right to manifest their religious beliefs
collectively, according to their own convictions and the provisions in this Law, both
within religious structures with a distinct legal entity status and within religious structures
without a distinct legal entity status.
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(2) The religious structures with a distinct legal entity status as regulated by this
Law are religious denominations and associations, and the religious structures without a
distinct legal entity status are religious groups.
(3) Religious communities shall be free to choose the association structure within
which they wish to manifest their religion: denomination, religious association or
religious group, in observance of this Law.
(4) In their activities the denominations, religious associations and religious
groups are under an obligation to observe the Romanian Constitution, and laws, to not
threaten public safety, order, health, morality and the fundamental human rights and
liberties.
(5) The processing of personal data concerning religious beliefs or membership of
denominations is hereby forbidden, except for the case of a national census as sanctioned
under the law or the situation where the concerned individual has provided explicit
agreement to that effect.
(6) It is hereby forbidden to compel an individual to declare their religion, in any
relationship with public authorities or private-law legal entities.
Art. 6 – (1) A religious group is a form of association, without a distinct legal entity
status, of individuals who, without a preliminary procedure, freely adopt, share and
practice the same religion.
(2) A religious association is a private-law legal entity, established under this
Law, and made up of individuals who adopt, share and practice the same religion.
(3) Under this Law, a religious association can become a denomination.
CHAPTER II
Denominations
Section I
Relationship between the State and Denominations
Art. 7 – (1) The Romanian State recognizes the denominations’ spiritual, educational,
social-charitable, cultural and social partnership role, as well as their status as factors of
social peace.
(2) The Romanian State recognizes the important role of the Romanian Orthodox
Church and that of other churches and denominations as recognized by the national
history of Romania and in the life of the Romanian society.
Art. 8 – (1) Recognized denominations are public-utility legal entities. They shall be
organized and shall operate under the Constitution and under this Law, autonomously,
according to their own bylaws or canonic codes.
(2) The components of denominations are also legal entities, as they are
established in the denominations’ bylaws or canonic codes, if they meet the conditions set
in the latter.
(3) Denominations shall operate in observance of the laws and of their own
bylaws and canonic codes, whose provisions are only applicable to their followers.
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(4) The name of a denomination cannot be identical to that of another recognized
denomination in Romania.
Art. 9 – (1) There is no State Religion in Romania; the State is neutral towards any
religious persuasion or atheistic ideology.
(2) The denominations are equal before the law and public authorities. The State,
though its authorities, shall neither promote nor support the granting of privileges or the
instatement of discrimination towards any denomination.
(3) Public authorities shall cooperate with the denominations in matters of
common interest and shall support their activity.
(4) The Romanian State, though its jurisdictional public authorities, shall support
spiritual-cultural and social activities carried out in other countries by denominations
recognized in Romania.
(5) The central public authorities can sign partnerships with recognized
denominations, in domains of common interests, as well as agreements for regulating
certain aspects specific to the tradition of denominations, which agreements shall be
submitted to approval by law.
Art. 10 – (1) Expenditures for maintaining denominations and for their activities shall be
financed primarily form their own income, as created and managed under their bylaws.
(2) The denominations can set contributions from their worshipers in order to
support their activities.
(3) The State shall promote citizen support for denominations through tax breaks,
and shall encourage sponsorship of denominations, under the law.
(4) On request, the State shall support the pay funds for the clerical and nonclerical
staff of recognized denominations through contributions, based on the number of
their worshipers who are Romanian citizens and based on their genuine needs of
subsistence and activity. The State shall grant higher contributions for the pay fund of
denomination employees to denomination units that have a low income, under the law.
(5) No one can be coerced, through administrative measures or other methods, to
contribute to the funds of a religious denomination.
(6) Recognized denominations can receive material support from the State, on
request, for expenditures related to the operation of denomination units, for repairs and
new buildings, based on the number of worshipers as resulting from the latest census and
based on their genuine needs.
(7) The State shall also support the activity of recognized denominations in their
capacity as providers of social services.
(8) On request, the public authorities shall grant any individual the right to receive
counseling according to his/her religious beliefs, by enabling religious assistance.
Art. 11 – State support can also come in the form of tax breaks, under the law.
Art. 12 – The use of funds received from the State budget or local budgets and
observance of the destination for assets received as property or for use from the local or
central public authorities shall be subject to auditing by the State.
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Art. 13 – (1) Relationships between denominations, as well as between religious
associations and groups shall be based on mutual understanding and respect.
(2) Any form, means, act or action of religious defamation and antagonism, as
well as public offending of religious symbols are forbidden in Romania.
(3) Preventing of interfering the freedom of exercise of a religious activity that is
carried out under the law constitutes a criminal violation.
Art. 14 – (1) Every denomination must have a national leadership or representation body.
(2) Denomination units, including branches without a distinct legal entity status,
will be established and organized by denominations according to their own bylaws,
regulations and canonic codes.
(3) The establishment of a denomination unit must be reported, for recording
purposes, to the Ministry of Culture and Religious Denominations.
(4) The denomination units that have been recently established as legal entities
can request and be grated financial support, under the law.
Art. 15 – The seals and stamps used by a denomination or by a local denomination unit
must include the official name under which the denomination was recognized, or the
initials of that name.
Art. 16 – (1) In the exercise of their activities, recognized denominations can use any
language they choose. Financial and accounting records shall be kept in the Romanian
language.
(2) In their official relations with the authorities of the State the denominations
shall use the Romanian language.
Section II
Recognition as a denomination
Art. 17 – (1) Recognition by the State as a denomination is acquired through a
Government Decree, following a proposal submitted by the Ministry of Culture and
Religious Denominations, and goes to religious associations that, through their activities
and number of worshipers, provide guarantees of sustainability, stability and public
interest.
(2) Recognition of bylaws and canonic codes is granted insofar as they do not, in
their contents, threaten public safety, order, health and morality or the fundamental
human rights and liberties.
Art. 18 – A religious association that requests recognition as a denomination shall apply
at the Ministry of Culture and Religious Denominations, and shall provide the following
documents:
a) proof they are legally established and have been operating uninterruptedly on
Romanian territory, as a religious association, for at least 12 years;
b) the original membership lists containing a number of Romanian citizens
resident in Romania equal to at least 0.1% of Romania’s population, according to the
latest census;
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c) their own declaration of faith and bylaws for organization and operation, that
include: name of the denomination, its central and local organization structure, form of
leadership, management and oversight, representative bodies, manner of establishing and
dismantling of denomination units, status of its employees, as well as provisions specific
to the respective denomination.
Art. 19 – (1) Within 60 days of the date the application was filed the Ministry of Culture
and Religious Denominations shall submit the recognition documentation to the
Government, accompanied by its own consultative opinion report concerning the
documentation on file.
(2) If the documentation is incomplete or the bylaws contain provisions that are
contrary to the law, such documentation shall be sent back to the applicant, accompanied
by the relevant explanations, so it can be amended or supplemented, and the finalization
deadline shall be extended accordingly.
Art. 20 – (1) Within 60 days of receiving the consultative opinion report, the
Government shall return a justified decision to grant or deny the application.
(2) That Government Decree shall be published in the Official Journal, Part I, and
can be challenged in court, under the law.
(3) In case its application is denied, a religious association can repeat the
procedure for recognition as a denomination only if they can produce evidence that the
grounds for denial have ceased to exist.
(4) The rights and obligations pertaining to the recognized denomination status
can be exercised as of the date the Government Decree to grant recognition comes in
force.
Art. 21 – On proposal from the Ministry of Culture and Religious Denominations, the
Government can, through Decree, withdraw the status of recognized denomination when
that denomination’s activity seriously threatens public safety, order, health, morality or
the fundamental human rights and liberties.
Art. 22 – (1) Amendments and supplements to bylaws on organization and operation or
to canonic codes shall be reported, for purposes of obtaining recognition, to the Ministry
of Culture and Religious Denominations.
(2) Administrative documents issued on the basis of this Section, as well as the
failure to issue such documents by their legal deadline, can be challenged in court, under
the law.
Section III
Employees of the denominations
Art. 23 – (1) Denominations elect, appoint, hire or terminate staff according to their own
bylaws, canonic codes or regulations.
(2) The employees of denominations can be disciplined for violating the
denomination’s doctrine principles or moral principles, based on the denomination’s
bylaws, canonic codes or regulations.
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(3) Clerical staff and that which is assimilated to clerical staff in the recognized
denominations cannot be compelled to reveal facts entrusted to their knowledge or
learned during the exercise of their functions.
(4) The exercise of the function of priest or any other position that involves the
exercise of the function of priest, without explicit authorization or agreement from those
religious structures, whether they be legal entities or not, shall constitute a criminal
violation.
Art. 24 – (1) The employees and insured staff of denominations, whose Retirement
Offices are part of the State system of social security, shall be subject to the relevant
State law on social security.
(2) The employees and insured staff of denominations, who have their own
private Retirement Offices or pension funds, shall be subject to the regulations adopted
by the leadership of their denominations, according to their bylaws and in agreement with
the general principles of relevant State law on social security.
Art. 25 – Clerical staff and that which is assimilated to clerical staff, as well as monastic
staff that belong to recognized denominations shall be exempt from military service.
Art. 26 – (1) Denominations may have their own religious courts for matters of internal
discipline, according to their bylaws and internal regulations.
(2) Internal discipline matters are subject to bylaws and canonic regulations
exclusively.
(3) The existence of a denomination’s religious courts does not preclude
applicability of Romanian law on infractions and criminal violations.
Section IV
Assets of the denominations
Art. 27 – (1) Recognized denominations and their units can own and acquire, as property
or for use, movable assets and real estate, of which they can dispose according to their
own bylaws.
(2) Holy assets, namely those devoted directly and exclusively to the faith, as
established through a denomination’s own bylaws based on its traditions and practices,
cannot be seized and are not subject to a statute of limitations, and can be disposed of
only in accordance to bylaws specific to that denomination.
(3) The stipulations in paragraph (2) do not affect the recovery of holy assets that
were abusively seized and forfeited by the State in the period 1940 – 1989, as well as of
those take over by the State without any title.
Art. 28 – (1) Local denomination units can have and maintain, alone or in association
with other denominations, denomination graveyards for their worshipers. Denomination
graveyards shall be managed according to the regulations of the denomination that owns
them. The denomination identity of historic graveyards is protected by law.
(2) In the locations that do not have a local public graveyard and certain
denominations do not have their own graveyard, deceased persons who were members of
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those denominations can be buried according to that denomination’s rites in the existing
functional graveyards.
(3) The stipulations in paragraph (2) do not apply to graveyards that belong to the
Mosaic and Muslim denominations.
(4) The authorities of the local public administration are under the obligation to
establish local public graveyards in every village and town.
(5) Village or town graveyards shall be organized of such manner as to include
appropriate sections for every recognized denomination, if so requested by the
denominations that operate in the respective village or town.
Art. 29 – (1) Denominations have the exclusive right produce and sell objects and goods
needed for their religious activity, under the law.
(2) The use of musical works in the activity of recognized denominations shall be
exempt from the dues normally owed to IPR authorities.
Art. 30 – Church or similar assets located in other countries and owned by the Romanian
State or denominations can make the object of bilateral agreements signed by the
Romanian State, on the request of interested parties.
Art. 31 – (1) The assets that a denomination acquires in any manner – contributions,
donations, inheritance – as well as any other assets that become the legal property of a
denomination cannot be subject to subsequent reclamation action.
(2) Individuals who leave a recognized denomination cannot raise claims to the
assets of that denomination.
(3) Asset-related disputes between recognized denominations shall be settled
amiably and, failing that, shall be subject to common law litigation.
(4) In case a denomination is stripped of its status as recognized, under this Law
or following dissolution, its assets’ destination shall be the one stipulated in its bylaws.
Section V
Education organized by denominations
Art. 32 – (1) The teaching of religion in the public and private education system is
guaranteed by law for recognized denominations.
(2) The religion-teaching staff in public schools shall be appointed in agreement
with the denomination they represent, under the law.
(3) In case a teacher commits serious violations of his denomination’s doctrine or
morals, that denomination can withdraw its agreement that he teach religion, which will
lead to the termination of that person’s labor contract.
(4) On request, in the situation where the school cannot provide teachers of
religion who are members of the denomination the students are members of, such
students can produce evidence of studies in their respective religion that is provided by
the denomination they are members of.
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Art. 33 – (1) Denominations have the right to establish and manage education facilities
for the training of their religious staff, of religion teachers, as well as of other specialists
needed in their religious activity, under the law.
(2) Every denomination is free to establish the formats, level, numbers and
admission plan for their own education facilities, under the law.
Art. 34 – (1) Denominations develop their own education plan and curriculum for
undergraduate theological studies and the curricula for the teaching of religion. Such
plans and curricula shall be submitted at the Ministry of Culture and Religious
Denominations for review, and at the Ministry of Education and Research for approval.
(2) As regards higher education, education plans and curricula shall be developed
by the education institutions, based on agreement with the respective denomination, and
shall be approved by the University Senates.
Art. 35 – (1) The teaching staff of the theological education facilities that are integrated
in the public education system shall be recognized by the Ministry of Education and
Research, under the law, based on preliminary agreement from the relevant bodies of the
denominations concerned.
(2) The teaching staff of the theological education facilities that are not integrated
in the public education system shall be appointed by the relevant bodies of the
denominations concerned, according to their bylaws. The staff who teaches religion in
schools must meet the requirements of Law #128/1997on the Status of Teaching Staff, as
subsequently amended and supplemented.
Art. 36 – (1) In children’s institutions operated by public agencies, or by private entities
or by denominations, religious education shall be provided to the children according to
their religious membership.
(2) In children’s institutions, irrespective of their financing entity, religious
education for children whose religion is knot known shall only be provided based on
agreement from the persons who are in charge of them under applicable law.
Art. 37 – The pay of teaching and administrative staff in theological education facilities
that are not part of the public system shall be provided by the denominations. On request
from the denominations the State, through the Ministry of Culture and Religious
Denominations, can provide a contribution towards that pay, proportionally with the
number of that denomination’s worshipers.
Art. 38 – Recognition of diplomas and certificates of theological studies obtained in
another country shall be made according to the law.
Art. 39 – (1) Recognized denominations have the right to establish and manage
denomination education facilities of all levels, profiles and specialties, under the law.
(2) Diplomas for the graduates of private education facilities of a denomination
shall be issued according to applicable law.
(3) The State shall provide financial support for denomination education, under
the law.
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(4) Denomination education facilities shall have organizational and functional
autonomy, according to their standards and canons, and in observance of the legal
provisions applicable to the national education system.
(5) Pupils or students can enroll in denomination education, irrespective of
religion or persuasion, and they are guaranteed freedom of religious education according
to their own religion of persuasion.
CHAPTER III
Religious associations
Art. 40 – (1) Freedom of religion can also be exercised in religious associations, which
are legal entities comprised of at least 300 members, citizens of Romania or resident in
Romania, who associate in order to manifest a religious belief.
(2) A religious association receives legal entity status by registering with the
Registry of Religious Associations, which shall operate at the Clerks’ Office of every
Trial Court in whose jurisdiction the association’s head office is located.
Art. 41 – (1) Any one of the members, based on a power of attorney given by the rest of
the members, can apply for the registration of that association with the Registry of
Religious Associations.
(2) The registration application shall be accompanied by the following
documents:
a) notarized articles of incorporation, which shall include the name of the
religious association – which cannot be identical or similar to that of a denomination or
another recognized association – identification and signature of the members, head office,
starting assets in the equivalent of at least twice the national monthly pre-tax pay,
contributed in currency or in kind by the members, as well as the first management
structures;
b) declaration of faith and status of the religious association, which must include:
its central and local organization structure for management, administration and oversight,
manner of establishing and dismantling local units, rights and obligations of members,
the main activities the association intends to undertake in order to attain its spiritual
goals; other stipulations specific to that particular religious association;
c) evidence of existence of a head office and starting assets;
d) consultative opinion from the Ministry of Culture and Religious
Denominations;
e) evidence the chosen name is available, obtained from Ministry of Justice.
Art. 42 – (1) Within 3 days of applying for registration and filing the documents required
under Art. 41 (2), a judge, appointed by the court’s Chief Judge, shall verify their
compliance with the law and shall return a decision to list the association in the Registry
of Religious Associations.
(2) Once the registration is complete, the judicial decision to that effect shall be
automatically announced to the local fiscal authority that has jurisdiction over the
association’s head office, for tax registration, and will include the registration number
given in the Registry of Religious Associations.
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Art. 43 – Religious associations can establish subsidiaries that have legal entity status,
according to their bylaws, under the procedure stipulated at Art. 41 and 42.
Art. 44 – (1) Religious associations shall receive tax breaks related to their religious
activity, under Law #571/2003 on the Tax Code, with its subsequent amendments and
supplements.
(2) Religious associations shall also come under the relevant stipulations of
Article 10 (2), Art. 15, Art. 16 and Art. 28 in this Law.
Art. 45 – A jurisdictional court of law shall rule to dissolve a religious association when
that association, through its activities, poses serious threats to public safety, order, health,
morality and the fundamental human rights and liberties, or when that religious
association pursues a goal that is different from the one it was established for.
Art. 46 – The stipulations in this Article shall operate in conjunction with those in
Government Order #26/2000 on Associations and Foundations, as approved with
amendments and supplements through Law #246/2005.
Art. 47 – (1) Existing associations, established according to the laws on associations and
foundations, whose main objects are the exercise of a religious faith and who desire to
acquire the status of religious association, must file with their local Trial Court for a
transformation of that association, for its being stricken from the Registry of Associations
and Foundations and for its registration with the Registry of Religious Associations at the
Clerk’s Office of the same Trial Court, accompanied by the relevant documentation
stipulated at Art. 41.
(2) The application must bear the signatures of the legal leadership structures of
the association, and must explicitly request the transformation of the original association
into a religious association.
(3) The delegate-judge shall rule both on the transformation of the association and
on its registration, and shall establish for how long the association has had the exercise of
a religious faith as its object.
(4) The operation duration found by the court shall be taken into consideration
and added to the overall period of existence of the religious association with a view to the
latter’s acquiring recognized denomination status.
Art. 48 – (1) In all manner of motions and judicial action concerning the acquisition or
loss of the status of religious association each session shall be conducted in the presence
of a prosecutor and of a summoned representative of the Ministry of Culture and
Religious Denominations.
(2) Decisions or rulings returned by a court of law in cases concerning religious
associations can be challenged within 15 days of pronouncement, in an appeal on law at
the Tribunal.
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CHAPTER IV
Transient and final stipulations
Art. 49 – (1) At the date this Law is enacted, there are 18 recognized denominations in
Romania, as seen from the Appendix that constitutes an integral part of this Law.
(2) Within 12 months of the enactment of this Law, the denominations existing in
Romania and included in the Appendix to this Law shall submit their bylaws and canonic
codes to the Ministry of Culture and Religious Denominations, in order to obtain
recognition.
(3) Recognition shall be granted through the mechanism of the Government
Decree, based on a proposal from the Ministry of Culture and Religious Denominations,
and shall be published in the Official Journal, Part I. The stipulations of Art. 17 (2) shall
apply accordingly.
Art. 50 – (1) Any amendment or supplement to this Law shall be brought after
preliminary consultation with the recognized denominations and in observance of the
legal regulations on decision-making transparency.
(2) The representatives of religious denominations have the right to take part, as
guests, in the debate in Parliament and in the proceedings of its Committees concerning
the draft pieces of regulation on religious life, the activity of denominations,
denominational education, social assistance and national heritage issues that involve the
denominations.
Art. 51 – On the date this Law is enacted, Decree #177/1948 on the General Status of
Religious Denominations , published in the Official Journal of Romania, issue #178 of 4
August 1948, as subsequently amended and supplemented, as well as any other
provisions contrary to this Law, shall have been repealed.
Appendix
List of Recognized Denominations in Romania
1. Romanian Orthodox Church
2. Serbian Orthodox Bishopric of Timisoara
3. Roman-Catholic Church
4. Romanian Church United with Rome, Greek-Catholic
5. Archbishopric of the Armenian Church
6. Russian Old-Rite Christian Church of Romania
7. Reformed Church of Romania
8. Evangelical Church of Romania
9. Evangelical Lutheran Church of Romania
10. Unitarian Church of Transylvania
11. Union of Christian Baptist Churches of Romania
12. Christian Church of the Gospel in Romania – Union of Christian Churches of the Gospel in
Romania
13. Romanian Evangelical Church
14. Pentecostal Union – The Apostolic Church of God of Romania
15. Adventist Seventh-Day Christian Church of Romania
16. Federation of Jewish Communities of Romania
17. Muslim Denomination
18. Religious Organization Jehovah’s Witnesses
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This Law was adopted by the Parliament of Romania, in observance of the provisions of
Art. 75 and Art. 76 (1) of the Constitution of Romania, as republished.
Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies for Chairman of the Senate
Bogdan Olteanu Doru Ioan Taracila
Bucharest, 8th of January 2007