Tourist Visa for Romania Cost from the UAE: Who You Pay

Start with the payment map, not a package price

For UAE residents who need a tourist visa for Romania, the core official budget is the Romanian/Schengen short-stay Type C visa processing fee: EUR 90 for most adults and EUR 45 for children aged 6 to 12, unless a reduced-fee nationality or exemption applies. Romania’s MFA lists these fees for the uniform Type C visa on its e-VIZA fee page (Romania MFA e-VIZA visa fees).

The bigger budgeting mistake is to treat every payment as a government fee. Some costs go to the Romanian authority, some may be paid to private providers you choose, and some are variable document-preparation costs such as insurance, photos or reservations. If you want hands-on document support, see Oki-Doki’s Romania Schengen Visa service, but keep the distinction clear: agency assistance is separate from the official visa fee and does not guarantee approval.

Official Romania and Schengen short-stay visa fees

Romania now issues short-stay applications as a uniform Schengen Visa Type C where applicable. For cost planning from the UAE, start with the applicant’s passport nationality and age, not with UAE residence alone. The Romanian MFA’s current fee schedule states the following amounts (Romania MFA e-VIZA visa fees).

Romania also lists short-stay fee exemptions for specific categories, including certain officials of international organisations, diplomatic or consular staff and official delegations on reciprocity, pupils or students and accompanying teachers travelling for academic, scientific or professional training, third-country researchers travelling for scientific research, and specified Organisation internationale de la Francophonie-related categories. These exemptions are category-specific and must be supported with documents; tourists should not assume they apply without checking the Romanian fee page and the appointment instructions.

The MFA says visa processing fees may be charged in EUR, USD or the currency of the state of residence, using the average exchange rate from the previous month; in countries with a free currency market, fees are usually charged in EUR or USD (Romania MFA e-VIZA visa fees). A UAE applicant should therefore confirm the exact payment currency and method in the Romanian mission or e-VIZA appointment instructions before attending. Current evidence does not establish whether UAE applicants pay online, at the counter, in cash, by card or in AED.

Cost types by payer, payee and mandatory status

This table separates official, service-related and optional spending. Amounts are shown only where supported by official evidence; variable private costs should be quoted before you commit.

Do UAE applicants pay a VFS-style service fee for Romania?

Do not assume so. An official EU/EEAS Schengen information brochure for the UAE region states that Romania and Portugal do not work with any external service provider, and says each Romania applicant should upload their own application file on Romania’s national visa website, evisa.mae.ro (EU/EEAS Schengen information brochure).

That matters because many UAE residents are used to paying a Visa Application Center (VFS / TLScontact / BLS) fee for other Schengen countries. For Romania applications, the current official EU/EEAS source found for this research does not support adding a mandatory VFS, TLScontact or BLS service fee. If a later Romanian Embassy, Consulate or e-VIZA instruction names an authorised provider, follow that updated official instruction.

The same EU/EEAS brochure warns that travel agencies and intermediaries are not official external service providers, are not associated with embassies or consulates, and that using them does not increase the chances of obtaining a Schengen visa (EU/EEAS Schengen information brochure). A private fee can pay for convenience, document review or administrative help; it is not an approval-enhancing payment.

Variable supporting-document costs that change the final budget

The Romanian e-VIZA supporting-documents page lists several items that affect the practical cost of a visitor file: purpose documentation, accommodation, medical insurance, a valid travel document, photos and, where applicable, further supporting documents requested by consular staff (Romania MFA e-VIZA supporting documents).

Insurance

Budget for Travel Medical Insurance (Schengen). Romania requires insurance covering the full intended stay, valid throughout the Member States, covering repatriation on medical grounds, emergency medical treatment, emergency hospitalisation or death, with minimum coverage of EUR 30,000 (Romania MFA e-VIZA supporting documents). The premium depends on age, trip length, insurer and policy terms, so it should be quoted rather than assumed.

Photos, printing and scans

Romania lists two recent 3 x 4 cm colour photographs (Romania MFA e-VIZA supporting documents). Applicants may also spend on printing, scanning and file organisation, especially if documents are generated across UAE employer, bank, hotel and airline systems. These are preparation costs, not consular fees.

Accommodation and trip evidence

For tourist accommodation, Romania lists a voucher or firm reservation with a tourist accommodation unit (Romania MFA e-VIZA supporting documents). Keep the cancellation rules visible in your budget: a cheap non-refundable booking can become expensive if the appointment changes, if the file is not accepted, or if the itinerary must be corrected.

Translations, notarisation and legalisation

Not every UAE resident will need translations or notarised documents, but some personal circumstances can create extra preparation costs: documents in a language not accepted by the mission, family documents, sponsor evidence, name differences or documents requested after review. Do not pay for attestation or translation only because a generic checklist says so; verify what the Romania/UAE instructions or consular staff require for your file.

Invitation-related costs for some nationalities

Romania’s e-VIZA information says nationals of countries listed in Romanian MFA Order no. 422/2024 may need an invitation approved by the Romanian Inspectorate General for Immigration before applying for a short-stay visa; invitation approval requests are processed within 45 days and may be extended by 15 days in justified cases (Romania MFA e-VIZA information on supporting documents). This is nationality-specific and can affect timing and document costs, so it should be checked before flights or hotels are locked in.

How to build a realistic UAE budget

Use three columns in your own worksheet: official payments, optional private services and trip-document extras. For an adult applicant who is not reduced-fee or exempt, enter EUR 90 as the official government fee. For a child aged 6 to 12, enter EUR 45. For a child under 6, enter no visa processing fee. Then add only the private or supporting-document costs you actually need.

Before paying, check these items:

• Whether the applicant’s passport nationality qualifies for a reduced fee or an exemption.
• The payment currency and method shown in the Romanian mission or e-VIZA appointment instructions.
• Whether any newer official Romania/UAE notice has introduced an authorised service channel; do not assume a visa-centre fee.
• Insurance terms: EUR 30,000 minimum cover, full intended stay and validity throughout Member States.
• Photo size and recency: two colour photos, 3 x 4 cm.
• Accommodation cancellation rules and whether the reservation matches the itinerary.
• Whether translations, notarisation, legalisation, courier or document handling are truly required or only sold as optional services.
• Booking-change risk for flights and hotels if the appointment, passport return or decision takes longer than expected.

For wider Schengen file discipline, the same consistency principles used in Oki-Doki’s Greece Schengen application form checks from the UAE and Poland passport-return planner for UAE residents apply here too: dates, accommodation, insurance, employment evidence and funding should tell one coherent story.

Refund risk and what not to prepay

Romania’s MFA states that the visa processing fee is not refundable, except where the fee was paid at a diplomatic mission or consular post not competent to receive and process the application, or where the application is not admissible under the applicable legal provisions (Romania MFA e-VIZA visa fees). Paying the official fee also does not mean the visa will be issued.

For that reason, avoid building the budget around irreversible purchases unless an official checklist or your risk tolerance justifies it. Flexible accommodation, refundable flight options where possible, and clean document preparation are usually safer than paying extra to make a weak file look urgent. If the budget includes private assistance, ask for a written breakdown separating the government fee, any third-party document costs and the agency’s own service fee.

If you need help mapping the official fee, optional support and document costs for your specific passport and UAE residence situation, Oki-Doki can assist through the Romania Schengen Visa service.