I Compared 6 Law Firms for Romanian Citizenship – Here’s What I Found

Summary

Kristin Wilson compares six anonymized providers she contacted for help pursuing Romanian citizenship by descent. Although she has extensive experience helping people relocate internationally, she has not handled a Romanian citizenship case before and is weighing whether to proceed independently or hire legal support. The firms gave sharply different assessments of eligibility, costs, timelines, and required steps.

Provider assessments

• Company A: Had reviewed her documents but had not yet provided a timeline or fee estimate. It requested her grandfather’s naturalization certificate to assess eligibility, saying it would provide next steps and a quote after reviewing it.
• Company B: Said she appeared eligible to apply, potentially alongside her mother. It considered her grandfather’s Romanian birth certificate sufficient Romanian documentation and requested her mother’s long-form U.S. birth certificate. The provider estimated a total budget of about €1,000 for Kristin, or €300 more if her mother also applies, with a likely wait of two to three years after submission. It said the documents would need apostilles, Romanian translations, and copies.
• Company C: A multi-country citizenship service said it needed to conduct its own ancestry-document review before assessing eligibility. It quoted €2,000 for that assessment, applicable toward an estimated €6,500 full-service cost. Kristin was hesitant to pay for research she had already done herself. The company said her mother would not necessarily need to apply first, differing from advice Kristin had received years earlier.
• Company D: Quoted a minimum of $10,000 for one year of support, describing a comprehensive service that could handle documents and applications. It estimated one to two years through a U.S. consulate, with possible faster processing through lawyers in Romania. It also mentioned possible Romanian-language requirements and an oath, details Kristin had not heard from the other providers.
• Company E: Offered a $350 consultation and case assessment, after which it would review her documents, advise on the process, and estimate further legal fees. Kristin had sent questions about the assessment and next steps but had not received a reply.
• Company F: Quoted €800 for transcribing a descendant’s foreign birth record into Romanian, with the aim of obtaining Romanian records and an identification number. The provider said authorities would check whether her grandfather’s citizenship records existed and whether his citizenship had been lost; a restoration process might be needed if so. The quoted process was estimated at 70–80 working days, with translation, shipping, and bank fees potentially additional. Kristin asked for clarification about later steps and costs.

Other considerations

Kristin also considered checking her grandfather’s citizenship status through the Romanian consulate in Miami, but its website was unavailable, calls went unanswered, and she was unsure whether she could visit without an appointment. She had not chosen a provider and planned to gather more information before deciding.

Note: The video’s closing recap appears to reverse some details assigned to Companies A and B earlier. The descriptions above follow the detailed sections of the video.

Presenter and contributors: Kristin Wilson; unnamed representatives of Companies A–F.