Access to the civil service is made through a two-stage process:
a)    the recruitment stage, which consists of assessing the general knowledge and general competencies required for occupying a civil service position, through a national competition;
b)    the selection stage, which consists of assessing the specialized knowledge and specific competencies required for occupying a vacant civil service position, through a position-specific competition.
Candidates who pass the national competition do not acquire a civil servant status. Passing the national competition entitles candidates to participate in a position-specific competition for a period of up to three years from the date on which they passed the national competition.

The national competition is organized by the National Agency of Civil Servants based on the basis of the Civil Servants Recruitment Plan.
The position-specific competition for vacant senior civil service positions is organized and conducted by the competition committee and, where applicable, the appeals committee.
The position-specific competition for vacant management and executive civil service positions is organized and conducted by the public authorities and institutions whose heads have the authority to appoint civil servants to the positions for which the competition is held.
Public authorities and institutions notify the National Agency of Civil Servants of the organization of a position-specific competition at least 10 working days before the date on which the competition announcement is published.

The announcement regarding the recruitment stage is published by the National Agency of Civil Servants in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part III, as well as on its website at least 30 calendar days before the date scheduled for the preliminary test.
The announcement regarding the selection stage for management and executive civil service positions is published on the website of the organizing public authority or institution and on the website of the National Agency of Civil Servants at least 30 calendar days before the date of the written examination.
The announcement regarding the selection stage for senior civil service positions is published on the website of the National Agency of Civil Servants at least 30 calendar days before the date of the written examination.

Screening of application files (for both the national competition and the position-specific competition): the competition committee reviews the application files to verify that candidates meet the eligibility requirements for participation.
The recruitment stage, conducted through the national competition, consists of a preliminary test and an advanced test, both in the form of multiple-choice tests.
Only candidates who successfully pass the recruitment stage are eligible to participate in the selection stage.
The selection stage, conducted through the position-specific competition, consists of three assessment stages. Only candidates who pass the preceding stage may proceed to the next, in the following order:
a)    assessment of specific competencies, carried out by means of document verification/ additional examination/ written examination, as applicable;
b)    written examination, which assesses the candidate's specialized theoretical knowledge and specific practical competencies. The examination may consist of an essay-type paper, multiple-choice questions, open-ended questions, and/or practical exercises requiring the resolution of work-related scenarios, as determined by the competition committee;
c)    interview, which assesses the candidate's analytical and synthesis competencies, oral communication competencies relevant to the field of specialization, motivation, behavior in crisis situations relevant to the field of specialization, and any other attitudes, aptitudes, and competencies demonstrating the specific competence required for the civil service position.

•    Candidates pass the preliminary test by obtaining an overall score of at least 60%, provided that they achieve a minimum score of 50% on each multiple-choice test. The results are communicated as "Passed" or "Failed", together with the score obtained for each multiple-choice test and the overall score.
•    Candidates pass the advanced test by achieving a score of at least 50%, assessed by comparing the results against the minimum required behavioral indicators and by calculating the weighted average of the scores awarded for each behavioral indicator corresponding to the required competency level.
•    For the selection stage, the scoring is as follows:
o    the results of the specific competencies assessment are communicated as "Passed" or "Failed";
o    the maximum score for the written examination is 100 points;
o    the maximum score for the interview is 100 points.
•    Candidates are declared successful in the written examination and, respectively, the interview if they obtain:
o    at least 60 points in competitions for executive civil service positions;
o    at least 70 points in competitions for management civil service positions and senior civil service positions.
•    The final score is calculated by adding the scores obtained in the written examination and the interview.
•    The candidate who obtains the highest final score among those competing for the same vacant civil service position is declared successful, provided that the minimum required score has been achieved.
•    Where two or more candidates obtain the same final score, priority is given to the candidate with the higher score in the written examination. If the tie persists, the candidate with the higher score in the recruitment stage is declared successful.

•    Following the publication of the results of the application files screening, written examination, or interview, candidates who are dissatisfied with the outcome may submit an appeal.
•    The appeals committee upholds the appeal and, as applicable, amends the result of the application screening or the score awarded by the competition committee, where:
o    the candidate meets the eligibility requirements for participation in the competition, in the case of appeals against the results of the application file screening;
o    it determines that the score awarded by the appeals committee for the written examination or the interview is higher than the score awarded by the competition committee.
•    The appeals committee rejects the appeal where:
o    the candidate does not meet the eligibility requirements for participation in the competition, in the case of appeals against the results of the application file screening;
o    it determines that the score awarded by the appeals committee for the written examination or the interview is equal to or lower than the score awarded by the competition committee.