How to Verify a Reliable Supplier in Romania: A Buyer's Checklist

In short. You can check most of what matters about a Romanian supplier for free, using public tools. Start with the Trade Register (ONRC/RECOM) and the ANAF taxpayer lookup to confirm the company exists, is active and is VAT-registered. Then use VIES and the EU EORI validator to check its trade identifiers. Public balance-sheet data shows its size and profitability. IAF CertSearch tells you whether an ISO certificate is accredited and current. After that, ask for documents, references, a video call, samples and, for larger orders, a third-party inspection.

Why does supplier verification matter when sourcing from Romania?

Verification means confirming that a supplier is a real, active, solvent legal entity that can make what it claims, to the standard it claims. Romania is an EU member state with public company registers, so a buyer can confirm most of the basics in under an hour, before investing time in quotes, samples or travel.

Most problems in cross-border sourcing start with assumptions, not fraud: that the company on the website is the one that will invoice, or that an "ISO 9001" logo means a valid, accredited certificate. Each assumption is cheap to check and costly to get wrong.

In Romania, every company is registered with the National Trade Register Office (ONRC). Tax status is published by the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF). Summary figures from annual financial statements are publicly available. And because Romania is in the EU, its companies appear in EU-wide systems such as VIES (VAT) and EORI (customs). This guide uses those tools in order, then covers what to do after the free checks.

If you are still at the stage of building a long list, start with our guide on how to source manufacturers in Romania. Then come back here to check your short list.

What do you need from the supplier before you start?

Ask for four identifiers. With them you can run every public check in this guide without depending on what the supplier tells you. They are the company's full legal name, its CUI (fiscal code), its Trade Register number, and the address of the actual production site.

These details appear on every Romanian invoice, so reluctance to share the CUI is a first red flag.

How do I check that a Romanian company legally exists?

Search the company in the ONRC Trade Register. The free RECOM component confirms the legal name, registration number, fiscal code, county and status. ONRC is Romania's official business register under the Ministry of Justice, so this is the authoritative answer to "does this entity exist?"

According to the EU e-Justice Portal's page on Romania's business register, the National Trade Register Office (ONRC) runs the register through local offices in Bucharest and in each county. Its RECOM online service has two layers:

• Free component: general company information, searchable by name, registration number, fiscal code or county.
• Paid subscription or per-document fees: detailed data such as share capital, registered activities (CAEN codes) and directors, plus official certificates ("certificat constatator") and certified copies.

What to check on the free search:

1. The legal name matches exactly what the supplier gave you, including the legal form (SRL, SA).
2. The status is active. It should not be "in dissolution", "in liquidation", "suspended" or "struck off".
3. The fiscal code matches the CUI on the supplier's quotation and email signature.

When to pay for more: for a first order above a few thousand euros, or for any long-term contract, order a certificat constatator. It is an official ONRC extract listing directors, shareholders, registered activities and authorised premises. It costs a small fee and is available online via the ONRC e-services portal. The registered activities (CAEN codes) matter. A company invoicing you for metal fabrication should have a manufacturing CAEN code, not only trading or consultancy codes.

How do I check tax status and VAT registration with ANAF?

Use ANAF's free public taxpayer lookup with the supplier's CUI. It shows whether the company is VAT-registered, whether it is listed as fiscally inactive, its registered address and its e-Invoice (RO e-Factura) registration. An inactive or deregistered company is a stop signal for any purchase.

The National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) publishes taxpayer information for every Romanian company. You can search the web form by CUI. If you screen suppliers in volume, ANAF also offers a public web service. Its documented VAT-status endpoint returns, in one call, VAT registration, VAT-on-collection status, inactive status, split-VAT status and registration in the RO e-Factura register. It accepts up to 100 fiscal codes per request and needs no registration.

What each field tells you:

ANAF also publishes lists of taxpayers with significant tax arrears, a signal to look closely at cash position and payment terms.

How do I validate the VAT number and EORI number at EU level?

Check the VAT number in VIES and the EORI number in the European Commission's EORI validator. Both are free. VIES confirms that the VAT number is active for cross-border EU trade. EORI confirms that the company is registered with customs, which matters if goods leave the EU or come in from outside it.

VIES (VAT Information Exchange System). The European Commission's VIES tool queries national VAT databases in real time. As Your Europe explains, an "invalid" result can mean the number does not exist. It can also mean the number has not been activated for intra-EU transactions, or the registration is incomplete. For a Romanian supplier, enter "RO" and the CUI. An EU buyer who receives a zero-rated (reverse-charge) invoice from a Romanian supplier should keep a dated VIES confirmation on file. Many accounting teams save the VIES consultation number with the purchase order.

EORI (Economic Operators Registration and Identification). Any company that exports outside the EU or imports into it needs an EORI number. For a Romanian company it is normally "RO" followed by its CUI, as Romanian tax guidance describes. You can confirm it in the European Commission EORI validation service. This check matters most for buyers in the UK, US, Switzerland, Norway or other non-EU markets. If the supplier claims export experience and has no valid EORI number, its export experience probably runs through intermediaries.

For more on the paperwork an exporting supplier should be able to produce, see our guide to export documents and certifications in Romania.

How can I read a Romanian supplier's financial health from public data?

Look up the company's summary balance-sheet indicators by CUI on the Ministry of Public Finance website (mfinante.gov.ro) or through ANAF's public balance-sheet service. You get turnover, net profit or loss, average number of employees, total debts and equity for each financial year filed.

Romanian companies file annual financial statements every year. For financial year 2025, the filing deadline for most companies fell on 2 June 2026, because 31 May was a Sunday and 1 June a public holiday. Summary indicators from those filings are published and searchable by fiscal code. ANAF also exposes them through a public "bilant" web service, one company and one year per query.

What to look at, and what it tells you:

Two practical notes. First, the figures are the latest filed year, so in October 2026 you are looking at 2025 data at the latest. Second, if no statements were filed for the last year, ask why. Newly founded companies have a short history. Missing filings at an established company is a warning sign.

Finally, check the Insolvency Proceedings Bulletin (BPI), which ONRC operates. The basic search is free and shows whether the company is in insolvency, judicial reorganisation or bankruptcy. Romania's court portal (portal.just.ro) lets you search court files by party name. Recurring disputes with suppliers or customers are worth asking about.

How do I verify ISO certificates and other quality claims?

Ask for a copy of the certificate. Note the certification body, certificate number, scope, site address and expiry date. Then confirm it with the issuing body or in IAF CertSearch. A genuine accredited certificate can be traced to a certification body accredited by a national accreditation body that is a member of the IAF.

IAF CertSearch is the International Accreditation Forum's global database of accredited management-system certificates (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and others). According to its own FAQ, a free registered account allows a limited number of verifications per day and per month. Searches require the company name, an identifier or the certificate number. The database contains only accredited certificates and does not cover product certification or certification of persons.

How to read the result:

1. Certificate found and valid. Check that the scope covers the product you are buying ("design and manufacture of steel structures" is not the same as "trading of steel products"). Check that the site listed is the one that will produce your order.
2. Certificate not found. That does not automatically mean it is fake. Not every certification body uploads data, and some certificates are issued by bodies outside IAF accreditation. Contact the certification body directly. Most publish a certificate validation page or email address.
3. Certification body unknown. Check whether it is accredited. In Romania the national accreditation body is RENAR. Certificates from unaccredited "certification mills" carry little weight with EU customers or auditors.

Product claims (CE marking and Declaration of Conformity). For products covered by EU harmonisation legislation (machinery, electrical equipment, toys, construction products, medical devices and others), ask for the EU Declaration of Conformity (DoC). The Your Europe guidance sets out what it must contain: the manufacturer's name and address, product identification, the legislation and harmonised standards applied, notified body details where applicable, and the date and signature. The manufacturer must keep technical documentation for 10 years after the product is placed on the market. If a notified body is named, look up its four-digit number in the European Commission's NANDO database to confirm it is designated for that legislation.

Organic, food-safety and sustainability claims (for example FSC or PEFC) have their own registers. The principle is the same: get the certificate number and check it at the source.

What should I ask for beyond public registers?

Public data proves the company exists and is solvent. It doesn't prove the company can make your product to your specification. To close that gap, use direct evidence: customer references, a live video call or factory tour, paid samples and, for larger orders, an independent inspection.

1. References from comparable customers. Ask for two or three references in your country or industry, ideally customers buying a similar product at a similar volume. Contact them yourself. Useful questions: How long have you bought from them? What happens when there is a quality issue? Do they ship on time? Would you increase your volume with them? If the supplier is under NDA, ask for anonymised examples, such as a redacted export shipping document.

2. Live video call and virtual factory tour. Schedule a 30–45 minute video call with the person who will manage your account and, if possible, the production or quality manager. Ask them to walk the camera through the production floor, the quality-control area and the warehouse. Look for machinery that matches the claimed processes, work in progress, labelled inspection equipment and the company name on signs or vehicles. A pre-recorded showroom video is not the same thing.

3. Samples. Pay for samples. A paid sample creates a clear commitment on both sides. Specify exactly what you want tested (dimensions, material, finish, packaging, labelling) and document the result. Keep a "golden sample" signed off by both parties as the reference for production. Remember that a sample shows what the supplier can make. It doesn't show what mass production will deliver.

4. Site visit. For a strategic supplier, a visit is still the strongest evidence. Industrial clusters around Timișoara, Cluj-Napoca, Brașov, Pitești, Iași and Bucharest can often be combined in one trip.

5. Third-party inspection. If you cannot travel, or the order value justifies it, hire an independent inspection company. International groups such as SGS, Bureau Veritas and Intertek operate in Romania, as do local inspection and testing laboratories. Typical services include factory or supplier audits, pre-production checks, during-production inspection, pre-shipment inspection (random sampling against your specification) and loading supervision. Get quotes from more than one provider and agree the inspection checklist and acceptance criteria (AQL) with the supplier before production starts.

What are the red flags when verifying a Romanian supplier?

The red flags below are cases where public data and the supplier's own claims don't match. None of them proves fraud by itself. Each one should trigger a direct question and, if the answer is not convincing, a pause before you pay.

Any email announcing changed bank details should be confirmed by a call to a number you already hold, wherever the supplier is based.

An illustrative example: checking a metal-parts supplier in two afternoons

The following scenario is illustrative. The companies are fictional and do not refer to any real business.

A procurement manager at a mid-sized Dutch machinery builder needs a second source for laser-cut and welded steel brackets, about 40,000 euros a year. She finds three Romanian candidates in a supplier directory and asks each for its legal name, CUI, Trade Register number and production address.

Afternoon one: public checks. The first candidate, "Exemplu Metal SRL", is active in the Trade Register, VAT-registered and not inactive in ANAF. It is valid in VIES and has an EORI number. Its filings show turnover of a few million euros over three years, a stable headcount of about 60 and positive equity. Its ISO 9001 certificate appears in IAF CertSearch with a scope covering "cutting, welding and painting of metal components" at the same address as the factory.

The second candidate checks out legally but files only four employees and holds trading CAEN codes only. When asked, it confirms it subcontracts to workshops in the region. Its offer may still be useful, but it is now a trader, not a manufacturer, in her evaluation.

The third candidate's VAT number is invalid in VIES and the company declines to send its CUI by email. She drops it.

Afternoon two: direct evidence. With Exemplu Metal, she runs a video call with the quality manager, who walks her through the laser cutting line, the welding cells and the measurement room. She orders 20 paid samples against her drawing, and they pass dimensional inspection. Before the first production order, she books a pre-shipment inspection with an independent inspection company and agrees staged payment terms.

Total cost of verification: a few hours of work, the samples and one inspection.

What does Romanian Supplier check, and what doesn't it check?

Romanian Supplier reviews each company profile before publication and lists only registered Romanian legal entities. Data declared by companies, such as certifications, export markets and employee numbers, is labelled as declared. The platform does not audit factories or certify suppliers, so buyers should run their own checks.

The directory currently lists 11,113 Romanian companies (September 2026), classified in 18 industries. Our team reviews every profile before it goes live. The review covers whether the company appears in the Romanian Trade Register and whether the profile is consistent and relevant. Claims that companies make about themselves are shown as declared information, not as facts confirmed by us.

What we do not do:

• We do not audit factories, production capacity or quality systems.
• We do not certify, rate or guarantee suppliers.
• We do not intermediate payments, contracts or deliveries.

The full methodology is explained in how Romanian Supplier verifies company data. In practice, the platform gives you a reviewed starting point: real, registered companies with structured profiles and direct contact details. The checks in this guide are the steps you take next. You can read more about what separates export-ready Romanian suppliers from companies that have only sold domestically.

The buyer's verification checklist

Use this table as a working checklist for each supplier on your short list. Copy it into a spreadsheet, add a column per supplier and save screenshots or PDFs of each check, with the date.

When a supplier passes these checks, the next stage is contractual: payment terms, quality agreements, intellectual property, liability and Incoterms. We cover that in supplier due diligence before signing a contract.

Frequently asked questions

Is it free to check a Romanian company?

Mostly, yes. The ONRC free search, the ANAF taxpayer lookup, VIES, the EU EORI validator and the summary balance-sheet data can all be consulted at no cost. Official extracts from the Trade Register (certificat constatator), detailed RECOM data and independent inspections are paid.

What is a CUI and where do I find it?

The CUI (cod unic de înregistrare), also called CIF, is the Romanian company's fiscal identification number. It appears on invoices, quotations, contracts and usually in the website footer. VAT-registered companies use it with the "RO" prefix as their EU VAT number.

Can I check a supplier's financial statements in English?

The public sources are mostly in Romanian. The indicators are standard, though: cifra de afaceri (turnover), profit net (net profit), număr mediu de salariați (average employees), capitaluri proprii (equity), datorii (debts). A browser translation tool is enough to read them.

Does a valid VIES result mean the supplier is reliable?

No. VIES only confirms that the VAT number is active for intra-EU transactions. It says nothing about financial health, production capacity or quality. Treat it as one item on the checklist, not a verdict.

How do I know if an ISO 9001 certificate is real?

Check the certificate number and company name in IAF CertSearch or directly with the certification body. Confirm that the scope and site match your product and the factory that will produce it, and that the certificate has not expired.

Should I always use a third-party inspection company?

Not for every order. For first production orders, high-value shipments, safety-critical parts or suppliers you cannot visit, a pre-shipment inspection or factory audit by an independent firm is a proportionate safeguard. Agree the inspection criteria with the supplier before production.

Does Romanian Supplier verify the companies it lists?

Romanian Supplier reviews every profile before publication and lists registered Romanian companies. Declared data is labelled as declared. The platform does not audit factories or certify suppliers, so buyers should complete their own checks.

Find Romanian suppliers to put on your short list

Verification is most useful on a short list of real, registered companies. Browse Romanian companies by industry, contact suppliers directly and request their CUI, certificates and samples. Then run the checklist above before your first order.

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