What rules apply to civil-protection shelters in Romania?

Short answer. In Romania, civil-protection shelters must be designed, built, equipped and authorised under technical norms drafted by the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (IGSU) and approved by the Minister of Internal Affairs ². Law 481/2004 obliges public authorities, companies and property owners to include shelters in their investment plans and build them ¹. A Government decision lists the building categories where a shelter is mandatory, and the county emergency inspectorate (ISU) must technically approve the shelter before the building permit is issued ¹².

Which buildings must have a shelter?

The categories are set by Government decision, on a proposal from the Ministry of Internal Affairs ¹. IGSU lists them as follows ²:

• New buildings with a basement and a total floor area of 600 m² or more used as local public authority offices; retail, production or storage; offices, banks, insurance or exchanges; schools and care or lodging facilities for children, students, older, disabled or homeless people; culture; hotels, motels and tourist villas; electronic communications; railway, bus or air stations; collective housing (apartment blocks); or places of worship with their lodgings (parish houses excepted).
• New buildings with a basement used as hospitals with in-patient beds, whatever their size, or as dispensaries and clinics of 600 m² or more.
• New indoor sports venues with a basement and 400 or more seats, whatever their floor area.
• Metro stations.
• Extensions with a basement over 150 m² that bring a building into one of these categories, except extensions of listed historic cultural buildings.

Who checks the shelter at each stage?

The professional emergency services approve public civil-protection shelters before the building permit ("avizare") ¹. This technical approval covers the shelters shown in the technical documents of an investment and follows a methodology drafted by IGSU and approved by the minister ¹. Public shelters are then inspected periodically by specialist staff of these services ¹². Shelter holders and users must keep the shelter and its utility installations in working order ¹².

Leaving required shelters out of an investment's technical documents, or failing to build them on time, is a contravention under the law, as is failing to keep public shelters usable during exceptional situations ¹.

Can a shelter be used for something else in peacetime?

Yes, for public shelters other than command posts, provided the technical norms are respected. They must be cleared within 24 hours in an emergency, and the emergency services' operational centres must be informed in advance ¹².

Who pays?

For shelters required in housing, offices, shopping centres or buildings for public events, the owner pays ¹. The law allows one-time subsidies to citizens for shelters in housing, on terms set by Government decision ¹.

How can I check a shelter near me?

IGSU publishes the national list of civil-protection shelters, last updated for June 2026, with each shelter's address, public or private type, capacity and working condition ³. Phaenyx does not give construction instructions: designing a shelter is a matter for a qualified engineer working with the ISU. See building a shelter and public shelters.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a shelter in a new family house?

A house is not among the categories IGSU lists ². We found no rule specific to a voluntary shelter in a private house.

Does a small apartment block need one?

A new block needs one only if it has a basement and a total floor area of at least 600 m² ².

Where is the technical norm itself?

The law and IGSU say the norms are drafted by IGSU and approved by the minister ¹². We could not read the current norm text on an official site.