About 60,000 foreigners are officially registered in Romania, and about 10,000 of them benefit from a form of social protection, according to data from the Immigration office, quoted by Mediafax newswire.

Around of third of the officially registered foreigners are in Romanian capital Bucharest, and 5,000 are registered in Ilfov, near Bucharest. Other cities popular among foreigners are Constanţa, Timiş, Cluj and Iaşi, which are also university centers, sought after by students who come from abroad.

The data was presented within an International Migration Association project and conference which provided services and counseling for a better integration into Romania for 2,000 foreigners.

The project started in July 2012 and will be implemented by June 2015 in 15 Romanian cities: Bucharest – including Ilfov, Bacău, Braşov, Cluj-Napoca, Constanţa, Craiova, Galaţi, Iaşi, Oradea, Piteşti, Ploieşti, Sibiu, Suceava, Târgu Mureş and Timişoara.

It will be implemented with the Association Serviciul Apel and will support social, economic and cultural integration of foreigners in Romania, by providing information, services and assistance, as well as support in accessing the education and medical systems. So far, beneficiaries of the pilot project have come from 58 states, mostly the Republic of Moldova, Turkey, Syria, China and India.

Out of those receiving counseling, 68 percent came to study, seven to work, and six percent as family members of Romanian citizens.

Most of those who ask for support want to know how to get a job, with a high interest in commercial work, but only 10 percent actually found jobs.

editor@romania-insider.com