LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA

of August 24, 2026 No. 183

About recognition of professional qualifications

The Parliament adopts this organic law.

This law shifts:

- Article 1-4, 4a, 4f, 5-19, 21, 21a, 22, 23, 23a, 24-33, 33a, 33b, 34-43, 43a, 43b, 44-49, 49a, 49b, 50-55, 55a, 56, 56a, 57, 57a, 57b, 59-61 and appendices I, IV, V-VII of the Directive 2005/36/EU of the European parliament and Council of September 7, 2005 about recognition of professional qualifications, published in the Official magazine of the European Union by L 255 of September 30, 2005, CELEX: 32005L0036, with the subsequent changes made by the Delegated directive of the commission (EU) 2024/2100 of June 29, 2022;

- Article 1-11 of the Directive (EU) 2018/958 European parliament and Council of June 28, 2018 about evaluating proportionality before acceptance of the new regulations regulating professions, published in the Official magazine of the European Union by L 173 of July 9, 2018, CELEX: 32018L0958.

Section I. General provisions

Article 1. Regulation subject

(1) This law establishes conditions and the procedure of recognition of the professional qualifications received in one of member states of the European Union (further - the EU), in one of the states entering European economic space (further - EEP), in the Swiss Confederation and in the third states, for the purpose of receipt of access to regulated professions and their implementation in the Republic of Moldova, conditions and the procedure of partial access to implementation of regulated profession, and also recognition of the professional training passed in one of EU member states, EEP or in the Swiss Confederation (further - state member).

(2) This law establishes regulations of evaluating proportionality according to Article 69 for the purpose of ensuring high level of consumer protection.

Article 2. Scope

(1) Operation of this law extends to the following categories of citizens which acquired professional qualifications in one of the states provided by part (1) Articles 1, and wish to perform regulated profession in the Republic of Moldova as workers or self-employed workers, namely:

1) citizens of the Republic of Moldova;

2) citizens of one of state members;

3) spouses of citizens of the Republic of Moldova, and also the lineal descendants and ancestors who are dependent on the citizen of the Republic of Moldova irrespective of their nationality;

4) members of the family of the citizen of one of the states, stipulated in Item 2), namely:

a) not married minor children born in scrap or out of scrap and also adopted by both spouses or one of spouses and also entrusted to both or one of spouses by the decision of competent authority of the State of origin under condition that they really were on care of one of spouses;

b) not married full age children of the owner of the right to stay or its spouse or spouses if they do not may support themselves for health reasons;

c) the parents who are on content of the owner of the right to stay or its spouse / spouse;

d) persons concerning whom are established guardianship or custody;

5) the citizens of the third states, persons who submitted the application for receipt of the right to stay or for receipt of any form of protection in the Republic of Moldova or persons who already have such rights or such form of protection;

6) persons having the resident status provided to one of state members.

(2) This law is applied also to citizens of state members which passed professional training outside origin state member.

(3) This law is applied also to confirmation by the competent authorities provided by appendix 1, of the document on qualification received in the Republic of Moldova, in case of need added with working experience or regulated professional training for the purpose of receipt of access to regulated profession or for the purpose of its implementation in state member or the third state.

(4) This law is applied to the citizens provided by part (1), also if they are owners of the document on qualification received in the territory of the third state answer the conditions provided by part (3) Articles 3, and intend to perform in the Republic of Moldova regulated profession in value of Item 12 parts (1) Article 3.

(5) assessment of proportionality which is Carried out according to article 69 is applied to the legislative, normative or administrative provisions provided by part (2) Articles 1, which limit access to regulated profession either its implementation or one of forms of its implementation, including use of professional ranks and implementation of the types of professional activity permitted based on such ranks regulated by this law.

(6) In departure from part provisions (2) Articles 1 assessment of proportionality is applied also to the new or changed legislative, normative or administrative provisions which after their acceptance limit access to regulated professions or their implementation. Within this assessment are considered as the purpose which was supposed to be reached in case of their acceptance, and their effects estimated after acceptance, and also the permanent changes in the field of regulated profession which happened later acceptances of this measure.

(7) This law is not applied in case:

a) recognitions of specific regulated profession concerning which other special provisions which are directly concerning recognition of professional qualifications are provided in the separate act of the right of the EU;

b) recognitions of professional qualifications of seamen, notaries and types of notarial activities;

c) recognitions of specific profession if the separate act of the EU establishes special requirements to its regulation which do not leave to state members of opportunity to determine specific method by which they shall be shifted.

Article 3. Concepts

(1) for the purposes of this law the following concepts are used:

1) the reserved types of activity - form of regulation of profession in case of which access to professional activity or group of types of professional activity is directly or indirectly reserved based on legislative, normative or administrative provisions for persons performing regulated profession who have certain professional qualification including if such activities are performed together with other regulated professions;

2) competent authority - any body or the organization which is specially authorized by state member to issue or receive documents on qualification or other documents or information, and also to receive applications and to make decisions on the regulated professions falling within the scope of their competence;

3) general system of preparation - general set of the minimum knowledge, skills and competences necessary for implementation of certain profession;

4) professional qualification - the qualification supported by the document on qualification, the certificate on competence provided by the subitem and) Item 1) Articles 13, and/or working experience;

5) the European professional card - the electronic certificate, confirmatory or accomplishment by the specialist of all necessary conditions for temporary and incidental provision of services in the accepting state member, or recognition of professional qualifications for reasons for the specialist in the accepting state member;

6) the director of the company - any person who at the company of the respective professional sphere performed one of the following functions:

a) the deputy of the owner or the director of the company, if these functions provide the responsibility corresponding to responsibility of the represented owner or the director;

b) the leading employee who is carrying out commercial and/or technical tasks and responsible for one or several divisions of the company;

c) director of the company or department;

7) working experience - the actual and legal implementation of the corresponding profession in state member on the terms of full employment or, in case of part-time employment, - during the general period equivalent to work on the terms of full employment;

8) regulated professional training - any professional training which is specially directed to implementation of certain profession and consisting of complete cycle of the training added if necessary with professional training, professional training or professional practice;

9) training at extent of all life - all forms of the general education, professional education and professional training, informal education and informalny training received throughout all life of which enhancement of knowledge, skills and competences which can include professional ethics according to regulations of the Section VII of the Code on education No. 152/2014 is result;

10) the imperative reasons of general interest - the reasons recognized as those in court practice of Court of the European Union such as preserving financial balance of system of the state social security; consumer protection, receivers of services and workers; ensuring proper administration of justice; ensuring conscientiousness of commercial transactions; fight against fraud and prevention of cases of tax avoidance and bypass of the tax liabilities, and also ensuring efficiency of tax control; safety of transport; environment protection and urban environment; health of animals; intellectual property; protection and preserving national historical and art heritage; purposes of social policy; purposes of cultural policy;

11) check of professional skills - the examination, skills and professional competences of the applicant held or recognized by the competent authorities provided by appendix 1, for the purpose of assessment of capability of the applicant to perform regulated profession in the Republic of Moldova;

For conducting this check competent authorities constitute the list of disciplines which based on the comparison of education and preparation required in the Republic of Moldova with the education and preparation undergone by the applicant are not confirmed by the diploma or other documents on qualification which are available for the applicant.

Check of professional skills shall consider the fact that the applicant is qualified specialist in state member of origin or state member from which it arrived. It covers the disciplines which are selected from included in the list which knowledge is essential to implementation of the corresponding profession in the Republic of Moldova. Check can also cover knowledge of the regulations of professional ethics applied to the related activity in the Republic of Moldova.

The procedure for conducting check of professional skills, and also the status of the applicant for preparation for this check are determined by the competent authority provided by appendix 1;

12) regulated profession - professional activity or set of types of professional activity, access to which which implementation or one of methods of implementation of which are directly or indirectly caused based on legal and administrative acts by availability of certain professional qualifications, and also other types of activity, directly stipulated by the legislation. Restriction by means of such provisions of use of professional rank by persons having certain professional qualification represents one of methods of implementation of professional activity. If the first provision is not applied, the profession provided by part (2), it is considered regulated profession;

13) the European translation system and accumulatings of the credits or the credits of ECTS - the system of the credits for the higher education used in the European space of the higher education;

14) adaptation training - the period of implementation of regulated profession in the Republic of Moldova under responsibility of the specialist having qualification in this profession, at the same time such period can be followed by additional professional training. The adaptation training is subject to assessment. Conditions of passing of adaptation training and condition of its assessment, and also the status of the trainee migrant are established by the competent authority provided by appendix 1. The status of the trainee in the Republic of Moldova includes the right to the stay granted by competent authority for foreigners and also its rights and obligation for training, including the social privileges, benefits and remunerations established by the competent authorities provided by appendix 1, according to the national legal system and international agreements which participant is the Republic of Moldova;

15) professional training - without prejudice to part provisions (4) Articles 53, the period of the professional practice which is taking place under observation if it is condition of access to regulated profession and can be performed in the course or on completion of educational cycle with receipt of the diploma;

16) origin state member - the member state of the European Union, the state, being the participant of European economic space, or the Swiss Confederation in which the specialist gained professional qualification or three-year working experience based on recognition of the professional qualification acquired in the third state;

17) the accepting state member - the member state of the European Union, the state, being the participant of European economic space, or the Swiss Confederation in which the specialist having the professional qualification received in other state member or the third state addresses for its recognition for the purpose of implementation of the corresponding profession in the territory of the accepting state member;

18) the third state - the state other than the Republic of Moldova, member states of the European Union, the states of European economic space or the Swiss Confederation;

19) general examination in professional training - the standardized check of professional skills available in all state members participating in development of general system of professional training and intended for persons having certain professional qualification;

20) the document on qualification (qualification rank) - diplomas, certificates and other official documents about the qualifications issued by the body of state member appointed according to legal and administrative acts of this state member, and certifying the professional training received substantially in Community. If the first provision is not applied, the document specified in part (3), it is considered the document on qualification;

21) the protected professional rank - form of regulation of profession in case of which use of rank when implementing professional activity or group of types of professional activity is directly or indirectly caused, based on legislative, normative or administrative provisions, with availability of certain professional qualification and in case of which unauthorized use of this rank attracts application of punishments.

(2) is considered the Regulated profession also the profession performed by members of consolidation or the professional organizations provided by appendix 2, main objective of which increase and maintenance of high standard of knowledge, competences and practical skills of their members in the respective professional sphere is, in particular, and which for achievement of this purpose use recognition from the state in certain form issue to the members the document on qualification, provide observance of the regulations of professional ethics established by them and grant them the right to use the rank, abbreviation or the status corresponding to this document on qualification.

(3) the Document on qualification also any document on qualification issued in the third state is considered if its owner has three-year working experience in the corresponding profession in the territory of the state member which recognized this document on qualification according to part (4) Articles 2, confirmed with this state member.

Article 4. Recognition effects

(1) Recognition of professional qualifications by the competent authority provided by appendix 1, allows receivers to have access in the Republic of Moldova to the same profession by which they have qualification in origin state member, and to perform professional activity in the Republic of Moldova on the same conditions, as citizens of the Republic of Moldova.

(2) for the purposes of this law the profession which the applicant intends to perform in the Republic of Moldova is considered the same profession for which it is qualified in origin state member if the types of professional activity connected with its implementation are comparable.

(3) In departure from part (1) partial access to profession in the Republic of Moldova is provided on conditions, stipulated in Article 6.

Article 5. European professional card and mechanism of the notification

(1) the accepting state member through competent authorities issues to Persons having professional qualification according to their statement the European professional card.

(2) If for certain profession the European professional card is entered, the owner of the corresponding professional qualification can address for receipt of such card or for recognition of qualification according to provisions of Sections II and III.

(3) the List of professional qualifications for which the European professional card is issued the competent authorities responsible for conducting individual cases of the applicants (further - IMI case) created in the Information system of the domestic market (further - IMI), issue of the European professional cards, the rights of persons having such qualifications and also procedure for issue of the European professional card and use of the mechanism of the notification affirm the Government.

(4) Organa, provided by part (3), provide impartial, objective and timely consideration of the applications on receipt of the European professional cards. The center of support concerning recognition of professional qualifications (further - the center of support), stipulated in Article 77, can also act as competent authority. Competent authorities and the center of support inform citizens, including potential applicants, on functioning and value added of the European professional card for professions concerning which it is available.

(5) Any collection which can be levied from applicants in connection with ministerial procedures of issue of the European professional card shall be reasonable, proportional and correspond to the expenses incurred by the competent authority of state member of origin and competent authorities of the accepting state member provided by part (3), and is not obstacle to the request for receipt of the European professional card.

(6) If person having professional qualification intends to provide the services other than the services regulated by part based on the Section II (6) Articles 9, the competent authority of state member of origin issues the European professional card according to the procedure provided by part (3). If necessary the European professional card is the declaration, stipulated in Article 9.

(7) If person having professional qualification intends to locate in the Republic of Moldova based on Chapters I-III of the Section III or to provide services based on part (6) Articles 9, the competent authority of state member of origin performs all preparatory stages connected with IMI case. The competent authority of the Republic of Moldova issues the European professional card according to the procedure provided by part (3).

(8) For the purpose of reasons for the specialist issue of the European professional card does not grant automatically the right to implementation of certain profession if in the Republic of Moldova before introduction of the European professional card for the corresponding profession registration requirements or other control procedures were established.

(9) the European professional card is valid in all territory of the Republic of Moldova until its owner keeps the right to implementation of professional activity based on the documents and information containing in IMI case.

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