How do you read a Romanian land register extract, preliminary contract, building permit and acceptance report?

Romanian property documents: the short answer

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When you buy a new home in Romania, four documents decide almost everything: the land register extract (Extras de carte funciară), which shows who owns the property and what is registered against it; the preliminary contract (Promisiune de vânzare-cumpărare), which sets the price, the payments and the handover date; the building permit (Autorizație de construire), which allows exactly what is in the approved plans to be built; and the acceptance report at completion of works (Proces-verbal de recepție la terminarea lucrărilor), which records that the building was built according to the permit.

All four come in Romanian only. So we built an illustrative specimen of each, with numbered notes: what each field means, what to check in it, and what should make you stop.

Put simply: you do not need to read Romanian to ask the right questions. You need to know where in the document to look.

Before you start: how to use this gallery

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• The specimens are not real. Every name, number and date is a placeholder, such as "Nr. cadastral 00000" or "[nume proprietar]". No client's document was used.
• The headings and fields are real. The structure comes from official sources: an extract generated by ANCPI's system, the official building permit form in use since 26 August 2026, and the acceptance report form in the official regulation. There is no official form for a preliminary contract, so it is shown by the clauses the law requires and the usual structure.
• The Romanian text is kept as printed, so you can put the specimen next to the document you received and find the same field.
• This is not a substitute for a lawyer. It is a list of questions. The real document should be read by an independent lawyer who represents only you.

Document 1: the land register extract (Extras de carte funciară pentru informare)

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The extract for information is the first document to ask for, and the cheapest. Anyone can order it with the property number, as we explain in our guide to the land register extract.

Illustrative specimen — not a real document. All data is fictional. Headings follow an extract generated by ANCPI's system ("Formular versiunea 1.1").

#	As printed on the extract	Fictional example
1	Oficiul de Cadastru și Publicitate Imobiliară · Nr. cerere · Cod verificare	OCPI [județ] · Nr. cerere 00000 · Cod verificare [cod]
2	EXTRAS DE CARTE FUNCIARĂ PENTRU INFORMARE · Carte Funciară Nr.	Carte Funciară Nr. 00000 [localitatea]
3	A. Partea I. Descrierea imobilului	TEREN Intravilan · A1 · Nr. cadastral 00000 · Suprafața 000 mp
4	Construcții	A1.1 · 00000-C1 · [adresa]
5	B. Partea II. Proprietari și acte	Act notarial nr. 000/[data] · Intabulare, drept de PROPRIETATE, dobândit prin [mod], cota actuală 1/1 · 1) [NUME PROPRIETAR]
6	C. Partea III. SARCINI	Înscrieri privind dezmembrămintele dreptului de proprietate, drepturi reale de garanție și sarcini · NU SUNT
7	Anexa Nr. 1 La Partea I	Categorie folosință · Intravilan DA · Tarla · Parcelă · Situație juridică
8	Data și ora generării	[zz/ll/aaaa, oo:mm]

The notes:

1. The registry office, request number and verification code. This shows which office produced the extract, when, and the code to verify it. What to check: that the code works on ANCPI's verification page. According to the wording on the extract itself, the code is valid for 30 days from generation. Red flag: an extract with no code, a screenshot, or a file someone has "tidied up" in Word.
2. The land register number (Carte Funciară Nr.). Each property has its own page in the register. Under the Civil Code (Art. 878), one page holds only one property. What to check: that it is the same number as in the contract. For a home not yet built, the law requires a separate extract for the future unit before a preliminary contract (Law 169/2026, Art. 422(7)). Red flag: you are given only the extract for the whole plot, with no extract for your unit.
3. Part A: the property description. Land type, address, cadastral number and area. "Intravilan" means inside the built-up area of the locality. What to check: that the area and cadastral number match the contract and what you see on the ground. Red flag: "Extravilan" (outside the built-up area) on a plot presented to you as a building plot, or a gap in the area.
4. Buildings (Construcții). Each registered building gets a number such as "00000-C1". What to check: for an existing home, that the home is registered. For a new home, the building is registered only at the end of construction, so at the preliminary contract stage this list can be empty. Red flag: a house that has stood on the plot for years and is not on the extract.
5. Part B: owners and documents. Who the owner is, in what share ("cota actuală 1/1" = the whole property), and on the basis of which document. Under the Civil Code (Art. 881) there are three kinds of entry: intabulare (final registration), înscriere provizorie (provisional registration) and notare (a note). What to check: that the registered owner is exactly the person selling to you, and that all owners sign. Red flag: a provisional instead of a final registration, an owner who is not the seller, or notes about legal proceedings. In real extracts such notes sometimes also appear in Part B, so read it to the end.
6. Part C: encumbrances (SARCINI). Mortgages, seizures, bans on sale, rights of use. "NU SUNT" means there are none. What to check: that this part is empty, or that every entry has a written plan for its removal before you pay. Red flag: a bank mortgage with no release letter, a seizure, or "interdicție de înstrăinare și grevare" (a ban on sale and encumbrance). Another buyer's preliminary contract noted on the property is also a stop sign: under the Civil Code (Art. 902(2), point 12), a preliminary contract is entered in the register as a note.
7. Annex 1 to Part A. The technical detail: land use, "Intravilan DA/NU", parcel, and for buildings also "Situație juridică" (legal status). On the official extract we checked, it reads "Cu acte" (with documents). What to check: that the land use suits housing. Red flag: a building without "Cu acte", or agricultural use on a plot that is supposed to be for building. Ask your lawyer what it says.
8. Date and time of generation. The extract is a snapshot of one moment. What to check: that it is recent, and order a new one before every significant payment. Good to know: on signing day the notary does not use this extract. The notary orders an "extract for authentication" (extras pentru autentificare), valid for 10 working days, during which the registry enters nothing else against the property (Law 7/1996, Art. 35).

Document 2: the preliminary contract (Promisiune bilaterală de vânzare-cumpărare)

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A preliminary contract has no official form. What the law does fix: it must contain every clause without which the final contract could not be carried out (Civil Code, Art. 1279). When you buy a home not yet built from a developer, it is signed only before a notary, and only after the building permit has been noted in the register (Law 169/2026, Art. 422(7)). We set out the content in our guide to the preliminary contract. Here is what it looks like.

Illustrative specimen — not a real document. All data is fictional. The clause order follows the usual structure; in your contract the order and titles may differ.

#	The clause	Fictional example
1	PROMISIUNE BILATERALĂ DE VÂNZARE-CUMPĂRARE	[titlul actului]
2	Părțile: promitent-vânzător / promitent-cumpărător	[DEZVOLTATOR SRL], CUI 00000000, prin [nume] · [nume cumpărător], pașaport nr. [000]
3	Obiectul promisiunii	Locuința individuală viitoare nr. [0] · CF nr. 00000 · Nr. cadastral 00000 · [000] mp
4	Autorizația de construire	nr. [000]/[data], notată în cartea funciară
5	Prețul și modalitatea de plată	[000.000] EUR, TVA [inclusă/neinclusă] · tranșe pe stadii
6	Contul de plată	IBAN RO00 XXXX 0000 0000 0000 0000 · cont dedicat proiectului
7	Arvună / avans	[suma], cu titlu de [arvună confirmatorie / avans]
8	Termenul de încheiere a contractului de vânzare	până la [data]
9	Predarea, termenul și penalitățile	[data] · [suma]/zi de întârziere
10	Declarațiile promitentului-vânzător	sarcini, litigii, datorii
11	Notarea în cartea funciară	notarul solicită notarea promisiunii
12	Anexe	specificații tehnice, planuri
13	Încheiere de autentificare	nr. [000]/[data], notar public [nume]

The notes:

1. The title. A "Promisiune bilaterală" is a commitment by both sides: the seller to sell and the buyer to buy. What to check: that it is not a "convenție de rezervare" (reservation agreement), which is a different stage with different rules. Red flag: a document called a "letter of intent" that takes a significant sum from you.
2. The parties. The company name, its registration number (CUI) and who signs for it. What to check: that the signing company is the same one registered as owner in Part B of the extract, and that whoever signs for it has authority. If you sign through a representative, that the power of attorney is complete and notarised. Red flag: a different company from the one on the extract, with no written explanation.
3. The property. "Locuința individuală viitoare" = the future home. What to check: the land register and cadastral numbers of your unit, and that they match the extract. Red flag: a general description like "a villa in the project" with no numbers.
4. The building permit. For a home not yet built, the law allows signing only after the permit has been noted in the register (Art. 422(6)–(7)). What to check: the permit number and date, and that they appear on the extract. Red flag: "the permit is on its way".
5. Price and payment schedule. What to check: the currency, whether VAT is included, and payments tied to construction stages rather than dates. Red flag: most of the price up front, before the structure stands.
6. The account. Under Art. 422(10), advances under a preliminary contract go into a separate bank account of the developer, dedicated to the project. The developer may spend them only with a "bun de plată" (approved for payment) stamp from the site supervisor: up to 25% of the price on the structure and, once the structure is finished, up to 20% on the installations. What to check: that the account in the contract is in the developer's name and defined as the project account. Red flag: a private individual's account, another company's account, or "just send it to this account for now".
7. Deposit (arvună) or advance (avans). The difference is worth money. With a confirmatory deposit (arvună confirmatorie), if the buyer defaults, the seller keeps the amount; if the seller defaults, the buyer can claim double (Civil Code, Art. 1544). And if the contract says nothing, a sum paid under a preliminary contract counts as an advance on the price (Art. 1670). What to check: that the contract states exactly what kind of payment it is and what happens to it if the deal falls through. Red flag: vague wording, or a clause that lets only the developer walk away.
8. The deadline for the final contract. If one party refuses without justification to sign, the other can ask the court for a judgment that takes the place of the contract, within 6 months of the date it should have been signed (Art. 1669). What to check: a clear date, or a clear event such as acceptance of the works. Red flag: "the final contract will be signed on a date set by the developer".
9. Handover and delay compensation. What to check: a handover date, a compensation amount per day of delay, and what happens after a long delay. Red flag: no date, or no compensation. We covered your rights on delays in our guide to developer delays.
10. The seller's statements. That there are no encumbrances, claims or debts, and what happens if any appear. What to check: that the statement matches Part C of the extract. Red flag: a mortgage on the extract with no clause explaining when and how it will be removed.
11. Noting the preliminary contract in the register. For a home not yet built, the notary requests the notation on the day of signing or by the next working day (Art. 422(8)). The notation makes the contract visible to anyone who checks the property. What to check: a fresh extract a few days after signing that shows the note. Red flag: a request "not to register it for now".
12. Annexes. Technical specification, finish level and plans. What to check: that the annexes are signed and attached. Red flag: a specification "as per the catalogue" with no signed document.
13. The notary's certificate. At the end of a notarial contract there is a certificate with a number, a date and the notary's name. What to check: that the number and date are there, and that you keep a copy. Red flag: a privately signed contract for a home not yet built, bought from a developer. Under Art. 422(7) that is not possible.

Document 3: the building permit (Autorizație de construire)

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Since 25 August 2026, Romania's new Planning and Construction Code, Law 169/2026, applies, and since 26 August 2026 new permits are issued on a new official form, "F_A_04", under Order 975/2026 of the Ministry of Development. A permit issued before that will look different, because it was written on the old form. The specimen here is the new form. We wrote about checking the permit and the zoning plan in our guide to the permit and the PUZ.

Illustrative specimen — not a real document. All data is fictional. Headings follow form F_A_04, version 1.0.

#	As printed on the permit	Fictional example
1	AUTORIZAȚIE DE CONSTRUIRE/DESFIINȚARE · Numărul actului · Data emiterii	nr. [000] din [data] · Primăria [comuna]
2	1. REFERINȚE · Certificatul de urbanism nr.	Cerere nr. [000]/[data] · Certificat de urbanism nr. [000]/[data]
3	2. SOLICITANTUL · SE AUTORIZEAZĂ executarea lucrărilor de construire	[DEZVOLTATOR SRL] · [n] locuințe individuale [P+1]
4	3. PE IMOBILUL · Cartea funciară · Nr. cadastral	CF nr. 00000 · Nr. cadastral 00000
5	4. LUCRĂRILE SUPUSE AUTORIZĂRII în valoare de (lei)	[0.000.000] lei, fără TVA
6	5. ÎN BAZA PROIECTULUI · P.A.C. nr. · Elaboratorul proiectului	P.A.C. nr. [000] · arh. [nume], TNA nr. [0000]
7	Termenul de valabilitate · Durata de execuție	3 ani · [00] luni
8	6. PROIECTUL - PARTE INTEGRANTĂ A AUTORIZAȚIEI	P.A.C. vizat spre neschimbare + avize
9	7. TITULARUL AUTORIZAȚIEI ARE URMĂTOARELE OBLIGAȚII	14 obligații
10	8. SEMNĂTURILE · 9. PRELUNGIRE ACORDATĂ	Conducătorul autorității emitente · Secretar general · Arhitect-șef

The notes:

1. Permit number, date and authority. What to check: that the authority is the town hall or council where the plot is, and that the same number appears in the contract and on the extract. Red flag: a number that appears nowhere else.
2. The references. The permit refers to the application and to the "planning certificate" (certificat de urbanism). Good to know: the planning certificate is an information document and does not allow building. Red flag: you are shown a planning certificate presented as an "approval".
3. The applicant and what may be built. This shows who applied and what the project is. What to check: that the company is the same as the owner on the extract and the seller in the contract, and that the number of units and storeys matches what you are being sold. Red flag: the sales brochure shows more storeys or more units than the permit.
4. The property. Land register and cadastral numbers. What to check: that they match the extract. Red flag: a permit for a different plot, or for a plot before it was split, with no explanation.
5. Value of the works. The estimated value from the budget, without VAT. It is used to calculate fees and is not the price of your home. What to check: only that it is there.
6. The project the permit is based on. "P.A.C." is the permit project, signed by a registered architect (TNA). What to check: the architect's name and registration number. Red flag: no architect details.
7. Validity and construction period. Under the form and Art. 309 of Law 169/2026, the permit gives 3 years from issue to start building. Once start of works is notified, validity extends over the whole construction period set in the permit. The form also allows one suspension of validity, of up to 12 months. What to check: the issue date, and that the start of works was notified. Ask to see the notice. Red flag: a permit more than 3 years old with no notice of start of works.
8. The project is part of the permit. The plans stamped "vizat spre neschimbare" ("approved, not to be changed"), with all the approvals, are part of the permit. According to the form, building otherwise is an offence or a contravention (Arts. 356 and 357 of the law). What to check: ask for the stamped plans and compare storeys and areas. Red flag: "we can't show you the plans".
9. The permit holder's obligations. Fourteen obligations, including notifying the start and the end of works, keeping the permit and plans on site, and putting up a project identification board. If the works cannot be finished on time, an extension can be requested at least 15 days before validity runs out, for up to 12 months. What to check: that there is a board on site and that the permit has not lapsed. Red flag: a site with no board.
10. Signatures and extensions. The permit is signed by the head of the issuing authority, the secretary general and the chief architect, and ends with a space for an extension granted. What to check: that all signatures are there and, if there is an extension, until when. Red flag: a missing signature, or an extension that has already ended.

Document 4: the acceptance report (Proces-verbal de recepție la terminarea lucrărilor)

This is the document that records that construction is finished. Under Law 169/2026 (Art. 280), construction counts as finished only after acceptance of the works, and construction that does not follow the permit cannot be accepted. The form itself has not changed: the regulation on acceptance of constructions (Government Decision 273/1994) stays in force under the new code (Art. 577(6)). We covered handover day itself in our guide to new home handover.

Tell two reports apart. The acceptance report is made between the developer (the "investor" in the regulation) and the contractor, by a committee that includes a representative of the authority that issued the permit. The handover report (proces-verbal de predare-primire) is made between you and the developer, and it has no official form. Under Art. 422(5)(k), the developer hands the home over to you only after acceptance has been admitted and permanent utility connections are working.

Illustrative specimen — not a real document. All data is fictional. Headings follow Annex 2 to the regulation on acceptance of constructions.

#	As printed on the report	Fictional example
1	APROB ADMITEREA/RESPINGEREA · INVESTITOR	[DEZVOLTATOR SRL], [semnătura]
2	PROCES-VERBAL DE RECEPȚIE la terminarea lucrărilor Nr. · Contractului nr.	nr. [00] din [data] · contract nr. [000] între [investitor] și [executant]
3	1. Imobilul: adresa · număr cadastral · număr carte funciară	[adresa] · 00000 · CF 00000
4	2. Autorizației de construire nr. · cu valabilitate până la data	nr. [000]/[data] · până la [data]
5	3. Comisia de recepție: Președinte · Membri	[nume] · [nume], desemnat de Primăria [comuna]
6	5. Secretariatul: diriginte de șantier autorizat	[nume], autorizație nr. [000]
7	6. Constatările comisiei: 6.1 – 6.4	Capacități fizice realizate · anexele nr. 1–3
8	6.5 Valoarea finală · 6.6 Perioada de garanție	[000.000] lei · [00] luni
9	7. comisia de recepție decide	admiterea / respingerea recepției
10	8. motivează · 9. recomandă · semnături	Președinte · Membri · Proiectant · Executant

The notes:

1. The developer's approval. At the top, the developer approves "ADMITEREA" (admission) or "RESPINGEREA" (rejection), within 3 days of the committee's decision (Rule 19). What to check: that "ADMITEREA" is marked and signed. Red flag: a report without the developer's approval.
2. Number, date and contract. What to check: the date. Under the regulation, the acceptance date is the day the developer signs, and the contractor's warranty period starts from it (Rule 20). Red flag: "PROCES-VERBAL DE RECEPȚIE PARȚIALĂ" (partial acceptance). That is a different form: it records a stage of construction and is used to register the building in the land register, not the end of construction.
3. The property. Address, cadastral number and land register number. What to check: that they match your extract and contract.
4. The permit. The permit number and until when it is valid. What to check: that it is the same permit you saw, and that acceptance took place while it was valid. Red flag: a different permit, or one that had lapsed.
5. The committee. Under the regulation, the committee must include a representative of the developer (the chair), a representative of the authority that issued the permit, and 1 to 3 specialists not involved in the design or construction (Rule 11). If members disagree, the view of the authority's representative decides (Rule 16). What to check: the name and signature of the authority's representative. Red flag: no representative of the town hall or council.
6. The secretariat. An authorised site supervisor (diriginte de șantier) prepares the acceptance documents. The supervisor is not a committee member. What to check: a name and an authorisation number.
7. The committee's findings. Points 6.2 to 6.4 refer to three lists: defects not remedied in time, fire safety measures not carried out, and defects that cannot be remedied. What to check: that the lists are empty. Red flag: a filled-in list, especially list 3.
8. Value and warranty period. What to check: that the warranty period is stated. Separately from that period, the law sets liability of 10 years for hidden defects and for the life of the building for structural defects (Law 169/2026, Art. 451). We wrote about this in our guide to construction defects.
9. The decision. The committee decides to admit or reject. Where there are defects that can be fixed, it suspends the process in a separate report and gives up to 90 days to fix them (Rule 17). What to check: "admiterea". Red flag: "respingerea", or a suspension report with no acceptance report after it. A building whose acceptance was rejected may not be used until the defects are fixed (Rule 22(3)).
10. Reasons, recommendations and signatures. What to check: signatures of all committee members, and of the designer and contractor as participants. Red flag: missing signatures with no explanation under "Alte mențiuni" (other remarks).

And what do you receive? Under Law 169/2026 (Art. 528), at acceptance the site supervisor hands the owner the building's "technical book" (cartea tehnică) and the maintenance manual. The regulation requires the developer to send the acceptance report to the owner within 5 days of acceptance (Rule 23). Ask for both.

From the field: the storey that was not in the permit

Attorney Ilan Leibovitch recalls a client who bought an apartment under construction abroad:

The client paid the contractor according to the milestones, and the construction moved forward until handover. Because it was a foreign country, I always send a professional on our behalf to inspect the apartment before handover.

When the report came in, I was shocked. The developer had added a storey to the building, and changes had also been made inside the apartment, some of them significant. We advised the client not to accept the apartment in that state, because the building might not get an occupancy permit and he would struggle to sell it later. I offered to help him get all his money back.

He said he was in love with the area and the apartment, and took it at his own risk.

In Romania, this question is asked on paper: what the permit says, what the stamped plans show, and what the acceptance report records. Construction that does not follow the permit cannot be accepted (Law 169/2026, Art. 280(8)). That is why comparing the permit with what was built is not a technical detail. It is the difference between a home you can register and sell and one you cannot.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between an extract for information and an extract for authentication?

Anyone can order an extract for information (extras pentru informare), and it is used to check a property. Only the notary orders an extract for authentication (extras pentru autentificare) ahead of signing. It is valid for 10 working days, during which the registry enters nothing else against the property (Law 7/1996, Art. 35).

Does a preliminary contract for a home not yet built have to be signed before a notary?

Yes. Under Art. 422(7) of Law 169/2026, a preliminary contract for a developer's future unit is signed only before a notary, after the building permit has been noted in the land register and an extract for the future unit has been obtained. The notary requests its notation on the day of signing or by the next working day.

How do I know the building permit is still valid?

Check the issue date and whether the start of works was notified. Under Law 169/2026, the permit gives 3 years to start building, and once the start of works is notified, validity extends over the construction period set in the permit. At the end of the permit form there is a space for an extension, if one was granted.

What is the difference between the acceptance report and the handover report?

The acceptance report (proces-verbal de recepție) records that the building was built according to the permit, and it is signed by a committee that includes a representative of the authority. The handover report (proces-verbal de predare-primire) is signed between you and the developer on the day you get the keys. Under Art. 422(5)(k), handover comes only after acceptance has been admitted.

Are the documents in this gallery real?

No. All the specimens are fictional and marked "Illustrative specimen — not a real document". The headings and fields come from the official forms, so you can find them in the document you receive.

The bottom line

Four documents, four questions: who owns the property and what is registered against it (the extract), what you committed to (the preliminary contract), what may be built (the permit), and whether that is what was built (the acceptance report). When the numbers match across all four, that is a good sign. When one number does not match, stop and ask.

Ask every developer for all four, including us. The company's lawyer represents the company only, so we recommend that every buyer hires an independent lawyer to read the documents for them. And if you want to check a developer yourself, we wrote a guide to checking a Romanian developer in 15 minutes.

If you have one of these documents in hand, from us or from any other developer, book a half-hour call with me. We will go through it together, field by field, and build a list of questions for your lawyer.

Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania

Sources: Law 169/2026, the Planning and Construction Code (Monitorul Oficial no. 661, 10.08.2026), Arts. 280, 309, 422, 451, 528 and 577 · Order 975/2026 of the Ministry of Development, permit forms (text of the forms, Monitorul Oficial no. 711 bis, 26.08.2026) · Government Decision 273/1994, regulation on acceptance of constructions, consolidated text, Rules 11, 16, 17, 19, 20, 22, 23 and Annex 2 · Civil Code, consolidated text (legislatie.just.ro), Arts. 878, 881, 902, 1279, 1544, 1669 and 1670 · Cadastre and Land Registration Law 7/1996 (legislatie.just.ro), Art. 35 · National Agency for Cadastre and Land Registration (ANCPI)

This article is for general information only and is not legal, tax or financial advice. All documents in this article are fictional specimens for illustration only. The rules are correct as of 17 October 2026. Forms and wording can change, and a document issued before 26 August 2026 may look different. The real documents should be read by an independent lawyer.