Family
Family law inside the Civil Code with administrative divorce
The 2011 Civil Code absorbed the old Family Code. Where the spouses agree and there are no minor children, divorce may be pronounced by the civil registrar or a notary rather than a court, which made uncontested separation an administrative matter.
Key rules
- Divorce by agreement may be handled by a registrar or notary, and by notary even with children.
- The statutory regime is community of property, alterable by notarial matrimonial convention.
- Joint exercise of parental authority is the default after divorce.
- Same-sex marriage and civil partnership are not recognised in domestic law.
Governing law
- Civil Code (2009)Book Two on the family.
- Code of Civil Procedure (2010)Law 134/2010, divorce actions.
- Law No. 272/2004 on child protection (2004)
In practice
The Coman judgment obliges Romania to grant residence to the same-sex spouse of an EU citizen even though the marriage itself has no domestic effect, a gap the ECtHR criticised again in 2023.