Romania‑Moldova social welfare reforms

Romania’s long‑term care strategy now includes a formal caregiver allowance: families contract with local authorities and receive a monthly payment equal to half the gross base salary of a qualified home caregiver. At least 30 % of the funding comes from the state budget, the remainder from municipal budgets and EU funds. Moldova continues to keep the statutory retirement age unchanged while seeking to close its pension‑fund deficit through the sale of under‑used state assets and a gradual rollout of a second, personal‑account pillar. Both governments broadened family‑related benefits. Romania amended its pension law to grant mothers early‑retirement credits proportional to the number of children they raised, allowing retirements up to three and a half years earlier for large families. Moldova passed legislation extending maternity indemnity to unmarried mothers, with benefits calculated on the father’s insured income when paternity is recognised. In a further step, Moldova’s Parliament approved a first‑reading law that lets independent workers opt into the full social‑security package—including maternity, paternity, child‑raising and adoption allowances—by paying a higher contribution. The measure also extends maternity benefits to the spouses of independent workers and maintains the provision for unmarried or otherwise uninsured women to receive maternity allowance based on the child’s father’s insured income. About 50,000 independent workers are currently covered only by old‑age pensions and death benefits. In July 2026, Romania announced the rollout of the caregiver allowance under the National Strategy for Long‑Term Care 2023‑2030, shifting funding from residential homes to family caregivers. The programme includes contracts with local public assistance services, monthly payments equal to half the gross base salary of a qualified home caregiver, and at least 30 % state financing complemented by municipal and EU funds.