Romania and Israel are parties to the 1961 Hague Convention. A power of attorney from an Israeli notary needs an apostille, not consular legalisation.
Parties as in the passport, the property with its land register number, price, permitted acts, related acts such as NIF and mortgage, and validity.
Drafting by a Romanian lawyer, signing before a notary, apostille, certified translation in Romania, and an advance check with the notary.
Under the Civil Code, a mandate with no term ends after three years. Better to set a short, explicit date.
Revocation is made by notarial deed and recorded in the national RNNEPR register. The notary checks it before relying on a power of attorney.
Power of attorney for a property deal in Romania: the short answer
Yes, you can buy property in Romania without attending the signing, by using a power of attorney. Because the sale contract is a notarial deed, the power of attorney must be notarial too. A power of attorney signed in Israel needs an apostille and a certified translation into Romanian, and it must be special, meaning it names the property and the acts your representative may perform.
Signing before a Romanian notary cannot be done remotely. That is why a power of attorney is the tool that lets most of our investors close a deal without building the timeline around a flight. But a badly drafted one can stop the deal on the morning of signing.
Why the power of attorney must be notarial
The Romanian Civil Code applies a rule known as the "symmetry of forms": a power of attorney given for an act that must be made by notarial deed must take the same form. A real estate sale contract is exactly such an act.
A power of attorney with an ordinary signature, or even with just a certified signature, will not be accepted by a Romanian notary for signing a sale contract.
Two ways to sign a power of attorney outside Romania
| Route | Suited to | What is needed afterwards |
|---|---|---|
| A notary in the country where you are (e.g. Israel) | Anyone | An apostille and a certified translation into Romanian |
| The Romanian consulate | Holders of Romanian citizenship | The document is already Romanian; usually no apostille needed |
The most common route for Israeli buyers is an Israeli notary. Romania and Israel are both parties to the 1961 Hague Convention, so instead of cumbersome consular legalisation, an apostille from the competent Israeli authority is enough. Consulate appointments are booked through Romania's consular services website.
How to get a power of attorney from Israel: 5 steps
- Drafting. Your Romanian lawyer drafts the text, in Romanian and in a language you understand. Do not start from a generic template off the internet.
- Signing before a notary in Israel. You sign in the notary's presence, with your passport.
- Apostille. An apostille is added to the notarial document.
- Certified translation in Romania. An authorised translator translates it into Romanian, and a Romanian notary certifies the translation.
- Advance check. Send a scan to the notary who will sign the deal and ask them to confirm the wording works, before the original is sent.
The fifth step is the one that prevents most problems. A notary who has seen the text in advance does not surprise you on signing day.
What to put in the power of attorney
A general power of attorney usually covers only acts of administration. To buy, sell or mortgage you need a special, express power of attorney. A good text includes:
- Details of the principal and the representative, exactly as they appear in the passport and ID.
- Identification of the property: address, land register number and cadastral number.
- A price or price range, and the payment terms.
- The permitted acts: signing the preliminary contract and the final contract, paying, receiving documents and applying for registration.
- Related acts: obtaining a NIF tax number and, if there is a mortgage, signing the mortgage contract too.
- Validity: an explicit end date.
4 mistakes that stop a signing on the morning itself
- A name spelled differently from the passport. One letter's difference in transliteration is enough for the notary to stop.
- A property not fully identified. An address without a land register number is not enough.
- Missing authority. Power to sign the contract, but no power to pay or apply for registration.
- A translation not certified in Romania. A translation made abroad without certification by a Romanian authorised translator may not be accepted.
Each of these mistakes usually surfaces only in front of the notary. An advance check of the wording prevents all of them.
How long it lasts and how to revoke it
Under the Civil Code, if no term is set, the mandate ends three years after it was given. It is better to set an explicit, shorter date that fits the deal.
Revocation is made by notarial deed and recorded in the national register of powers of attorney and revocations (RNNEPR), administered by the notaries' union. A notary checks this register before relying on a power of attorney. That is how a third party knows whether it is still valid.
The right power of attorney turns flying in to sign into an option, not an obligation.
Whom to appoint
- Someone who works for you: your lawyer, or a person you trust.
- Not the other side: not the seller, not their agent and not the developer. That is a built-in conflict of interest.
- Someone available: able to attend the notary on the agreed date, and the registration if needed.
The power of attorney replaces your presence at the signing. It does not replace the legal check that comes before it, which we covered in our guide to the check before signing. And the full picture of the deal is in our guide to buying property in Romania as a foreigner.
From the field: the plot that was sold without the owner knowing
Attorney Ilan Leibovitch recalls:
A client asked me, puzzled, how his company’s plot could no longer be registered in its name. The current land register extract showed another company as the owner. I ordered a historical extract, and it turned out the plot had been sold in an enforcement procedure.
Our local office copied the files at the court and at the bailiff’s office. A company claiming it had provided management services and had not been paid had sued the client’s company. The claim was duly served at the company’s registered office, nobody defended it, judgment was given, and the plot was sold at auction. Nothing was left for the client’s company.
Years earlier the company had given a power of attorney to an Israeli accountant to run its affairs. The accountant had died some years ago, and his son-in-law carried on managing things. We found that the company that sued was wholly owned by that son-in-law. The client had not visited Romania in 15 years and had never signed any management agreement. The appeal deadlines had long passed, and what remained was to consider a police complaint and a personal claim.
A power of attorney is an excellent tool for a defined transaction. It is not a substitute for oversight: draft it for specific acts, limit it in time, and pull a fresh land register extract from time to time, even when everything seems quiet.
Frequently asked questions
Is a power of attorney from an Israeli notary valid in Romania?
Yes, provided it is notarial, bears an apostille and has a certified translation into Romanian. Romania and Israel are parties to the 1961 Hague Convention, so the apostille replaces consular legalisation.
Can I give a power of attorney with an ordinary signature?
Not for signing a sale contract. Because the contract is a notarial deed, the power of attorney must be notarial too.
How long is a power of attorney valid in Romania?
Until the date set in it. If no date is set, under the Civil Code it ends three years after it was given. Setting an explicit date is recommended.
How do I revoke a power of attorney?
With a notarial revocation, recorded in the national RNNEPR register. Notaries check the register before relying on a power of attorney, so a recorded revocation protects you.
Do I need a separate power of attorney for a mortgage?
Not necessarily separate, but the mortgage must be named in it explicitly. The mortgage contract is a separate notarial contract, and a power of attorney that only covers buying will not be enough for it. We wrote about the mortgage and what happens at the notary in our article on Romanian mortgages.
The bottom line
The right power of attorney turns flying in to sign into an option, not an obligation.
The formula is simple: notarial, special, with an apostille and a certified translation, and checked in advance by the notary who will sign the deal.
If you are planning a deal in Romania and are not sure you can attend, with us or anywhere else, book a half-hour call with me. We will go through what should go into the power of attorney and in what order to get it done.
Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania
Sources and data: Romanian legislation portal: Civil Code, mandate chapter · Hague Conference on Private International Law: Apostille Convention, 1961 · National Union of Romanian Notaries (UNNPR) and the RNNEPR register · Romanian consular services.
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. The power of attorney should be drafted with a lawyer and confirmed in advance with the Romanian notary.
Now you know more.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult local professionals before any transaction.
