Romanians working abroad transferred approximately 60 billion euros to Romania between 2013 and the first half of 2025, an amount more than twice the initial value of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), claims Cristian Popa, member of the BNR Board of Directors, in an analysis published on the LinkedIn network.
"In total, from 2013 to mid-2025, Romanians abroad sent home approximately 60 billion euros, a remarkable amount, more than twice the initially agreed value of the PNRR. (...) In 2024 alone, the amount sent home by the Romanians in the diaspora accounted for 6.7 billion euros (almost 2% of the GDP). Basically, the amount is two and a half times higher than a decade ago, amid the increase in the number of emigrants and their incomes," Cristian Popa underscored.
In terms of out payments, approximately 1.7 billion euros left Romania in 2024, about 60% above the level of the previous year, the BNR official specified.
"Overall, the net result is approximately 5 billion euros (receipts minus payments). But after the first half of 2025, receipts slow down and payments accelerate. Based on historical data and those from the first two quarters of this year, taking into account the trend and seasonality, a conservative estimate indicates a decrease in net remittances this year. On the receipts side, this decrease is probably explained by global economic uncertainties, the increase in the cost of living, which leaves many Romanians abroad with less money to send, but also by family reunification/relocation abroad, which reduces maintenance obligations in the country," writes Cristian Popa.
By country, almost half of total personal remittances come from the United Kingdom and Germany.
"Although the UK diaspora is numerically only a quarter of that in Italy, Spain and France, in 2024 its financial contribution exceeds that of the much larger diaspora in these countries, and compared to a decade ago, the level in the United Kingdom is approximately ten times higher. The explanation lies partly both in the rapid growth of the Romanian community in the United Kingdom after 2014 (when the British labour market opened up to Romanians), and in the higher average incomes obtained there. It is not only income differences that are the cause, it is likely that many Romanians who left earlier for Italy and Spain have since settled there, with their families, having higher local expenses and fewer relatives back home, which leads them to send less money. The occupational structure also matters: the diaspora in the United Kingdom/Germany includes a higher share of specialists and skilled workers, while in Italy/Spain a relevant part of the work is carried out in labour-intensive sectors", more the analysis shows.
Remittances, together with a part of European funds, reduce the current account deficit, and foreign investments finance the remaining one, argues Cristian Popa.
After Romania's accession to the EU (2007), millions of Romanians went to work abroad, generating one of the largest migration waves in the Union.
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