Romania introduces a new requirement for travel agencies and hotels
Tourist agencies and accommodation providers in Romania must, from 25 September, make available to guests and clients information on how to report suspected human trafficking. The new obligation is part of Law 35/2026, and failure to comply is subject to financial penalties.
The regulation was adopted back in March but only came into force six months later. It amended the Romanian law on combating human trafficking, as well as the regulation governing the tourism industry.
Agencies can use a poster or a digital screen.
For travel agencies, the rule is fairly simple. Information on how to report suspected cases of human trafficking must be made available to the public at their premises.
The agency may use a conventional printed poster or a digital display. If a screen is used, the information must be displayed in a location accessible to clients. The prescribed content is prepared according to the model that is an integral part of the law.
The law does not cover only travel agencies. A similar obligation applies to bus operators, certain transport terminals, employment services, airports and border crossings.
Hotels have a stricter obligation.
When it comes to accommodation, the rule goes a step further.
Hotels and other registered tourist accommodation establishments should place the information in a visible and accessible location. in each accommodation unit. The statutory appendix for this form of notice prescribes a minimum format of 10 by 10 centimetres.
In areas where members of a national minority make up more than 20 per cent of the population, information must also be provided in the language of that minority.
The penalty for non-compliance is 200 to 1,000 Romanian lei, and supervision in the tourism sector may be carried out by the bodies responsible for tourism control.
Why is tourism included in the new system?
The linking of tourism to this regulation is no accident. In the first six months of 2026, Romania's National Agency for Combating Human Trafficking identified 430 victims, around 32 per cent more than in the same period the previous year. Among them were 153 minors, and 84 per cent of the identified victims were women.
Tourist facilities, transport operators and agencies are among the venues through which a large number of domestic and international travellers pass. The idea of the law is therefore not to turn tourism staff into investigators, but to increase the visibility of contacts and reporting methods when someone recognises a suspicious situation.
For agencies operating in Romania, this is a minor administrative change, but a very concrete one: it is not enough to have the information on the website or in internal documentation. It must also be available where the client actually comes into contact with the agency.
