Can I stay in Romania for more than 90 days in a 180-day period by combining a short-term C visa and a German residence permit?

Question

I am a non-EU citizen, a German resident with a long-term EC residence permit (Daueraufenthalt-EU).

With my German residence permit, I can stay in Romania for 90 days in any 180-day period, as Romania recognizes it as equivalent to a national visa (Decision 565/2014/EU). I have almost maxed out my 90 day stay and would like to be able to return to Romania without waiting 90 days for the current period to reset.

I had a conversation with the border police, and they suggested that I get a short stay Romanian national visa (type C, private visit). Thus, according to them:

1. I can stay 90 days in Romania on a national visa
2. Leave Romania
3. Re-enter using my German residence permit

This way the total length of stay may exceed 90 days in a 180-day period, but the stay on a national visa will not be considered in the calculation of days to stay on a residence permit and vice versa.

I was skeptical, but the border police officers insisted on the possibility of a combination of these stays. Moreover, on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the section on stays, there is the following sentence:

"Periods of stay authorised under a residence permit or a national long-stay visa are not taken into account when calculating the period of stay."

This, to be honest, may refer only to the Romanian residence permit.

My question: Сan I really combine periods of stay on a national Romanian short-term C visa and a German residence permit, potentially staying in Romania for up to 180 days in a 180-day period? Otherwise, can you please point me to the legal act that prohibits such a stay.

Answer 1

Simple answer: No.

The time limits for a stay (90 days in 180 days) apply to you as a person and is not something you can add up if you for some reason should have multiple credentials.

I would even doubt that you would be issued a Romanian short stay visa. You would have to apply for the Romanian short stay visa in Germany since that is your place of residence. The Romanian authorities would therefore be aware of your German residence permit and since the German residence permit gives you exactly the same rights to stay in Romania as a Romanian short stay visa, the issuance of the Romanian short stay visa would have no effect on your rights to stay there and I assume the consulate would refuse to process the application.

The sentence you are quoting applies to stays in Romania with a Romanian residence permit.

Answer 2

No, you cannot.

A 'national long-stay visa' is not a 'national Romanian short-term C visa'.

Also the visas are not relevant to determine if you (as a person) have exceeded the 90 days within a total period of 180 days limit, it is the passport entry/exit stamps that counts.

A visa only allows you to enter if all of the other entry conditions are fulfilled, among them: that you have not exceeded the 90 days limit.