Brazilian model Eloisa Birleanu has spent three days in the transit area of the Henri Coanda International Airport because the Romanian Border Police didn’t allow her to enter the country.

The model was stopped at the airport on Friday, February 19, as she was returning from the London Fashion Week. Although she is married to a Romanian and they live in Bucharest together with their child, she has Brazilian citizenship and doesn’t have all the papers necessary to live in Romania.

“She has been staying in Romania as a tourists and the law says that you can only stay 90 consecutive days without a visa within 180 days. She has exceeded this deadline by a week and then she tried to return to Romania. My colleagues couldn’t let her enter the country,” said Fabian Bădilă a spokesperson for the Border Police, quoted by Mediafax.

He said that Eloisa Birleanu could have taken another flight and leave the country, but that she preferred to spend three days in the airport. Eventually, the woman flew to Milan on Tuesday, February 23. She was also fined RON 600 (EUR 134) for exceeding the legal stay in Romania without a visa.

The law allows her to apply for family reunification long-term residence visa. However, according to Eloisa’s husband, Romanian model Andrei Birleanu, they had difficulties in submitting the paperwork for such an application. He said they had to wait 4 months for the tax agency ANAF to authenticate the leasing contract for their home in Bucharest, which is required in the application file, according to stirileprotv.ro.

If you are a non-EU citizen, you can find useful information about formalities for staying in Romania here.

editor@romania-insider.com