Problems with the Electronic Bulletin: Wave of complaints posted by Romanians on the “Paperless” platform launched by the Government / What problems do Romanians have at the counter

Over 1,000 complaints were filed on “Paperless” online platforma day after the Government asked citizens to indicate which administrative procedures are unnecessary or cumbersome. Some report, for example, that when they needed to change their address stored on the chip on their new electronic ID cards, the clerks at the counter told them they couldn't and that they had to make new chip slips to pay for.

The government announced on Tuesday that it will transparently publish all complaints that meet the criteria of this platform, developed by the Special Telecommunications Service (STS).

The data consulted by HotNews.ro show that more than 300 complaints were displayed until the publication of this article.

Problems with new chip slips if you want to change your address

Many complaints concern the procedures for issuing passports and electronic identity cards, the so-called chip bulletins.

The home address, which from now on is no longer displayed on the card, but is stored on the chip, is also at the center of most complaints made by Romanians.

“I want to change my home address, on a new type of bulletin, CEI, obtained in June 2025. But the Romanian state cannot write on the chips of the new bulletins, because, quoting the employee at the counter, “it cannot be written on chips”. This means that, although you praised them as “the best”, for a change of address I have to get a new bulletin (given that I could use the current one for at least 9 years), a bulletin for which I am also obliged to pay 70 lei. Why? Because the state is not able to do a thing to the end. On the presentation site of the new bulletin it is written very clearly that the home address can be changed, without changing the bulletin”, complains a citizen.

However, the problem is reported by several users.

“I requested to be informed of the procedure by which the home address can be changed on an existing CEI. I requested this both from DEP Timiș (on 21.10.2025) and from DGEP (on 30.10.2025). The last response received says that the home address electronically registered on the CEI chip can NOT be changed and that I will be notified when this “function” will be available. The public information communicated by the MAI says that “the address registered electronically on the CEI can be changed, without the physical change of the CEI”, but they do NOT say how you can practically do this, but only that THEY ARE CONCERNED that this function will be available in the future”, reports another user.

What the Ministry of the Interior says

Indeed, on the official e-ID card promotion website when asked “why is the home address not inscribed (printed) on the CEI?”, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI) says that one reason is flexibility:

• “The address changes more often than other data; as it is not printed, it can be updated electronically, securely, without the need to issue a new document.”

HotNews.ro requested explanations regarding this situation from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and we will come with the institution's answers when we receive them.

“It's as if a citizen is born several times”

Other citizens report that the birth certificate is obsessively requested at the counter.

“For the renewal of the identity card, the birth certificate is obsessively requested… as if a citizen is born several times, even though the institution has already processed the birth certificate for the issuance of the first bulletin”, reports one user.

“When picking up a minor's passport under 10 as a parent, the birth certificate is requested… Although they were presented when the documentation was drawn up… When picking up a minor's passport + 14 years old, it asks them to come with the bulletin… Why? Do they pick it up in person? The passport photo is not visible?”, asks someone else.

“You are of age, you are on your xth passport… You want to get a passport… You already have an old passport… You have been fingerprinted… You have an identity card… However… You have to bring a birth certificate…. I honestly don't think that even the identity card would be necessary as long as you are physically present.. you have the old passport… You have fingerprints… You appear with absolutely any details in the national system..”, complains someone else.

Similar problems are reported with regard to other procedures regarding: car registration (34), tax declarations (34), car licenses (18), company registration (12).

However, most of them, over 120, are in the “Other” section (procedures not listed), a sign that the bureaucracy is hiding in places that even the authorities did not initially think of.

Oana Gheorghiu: No notification disappears in any drawer

More than 1,000 notifications were submitted in the first 24 hours of the fara-hartie.gov.ro platform, Deputy Prime Minister Oana Gheorghiu announced on Wednesday.

“This number says more than any speech about how great the need for debureaucratization and digitization is in Romania. Unfortunately, each of us has at least one story about the interaction with the Romanian state that cost us time, nerves and energy:

A useless road, a form requested in three copies, an institution that actually sends us to another institution, moments when we felt powerless in front of a system built as if against us, not for us”, said Oana Gheorghiu on Facebook.

She explained that on fara-hartie.gov.ro, the process is simple: a bureaucratic problem is reported; the notification is analyzed and published transparently; work on the solution begins together with the responsible institutions; progress can be tracked in real time.

“We will analyze each reported situation with the utmost diligence. We will obviously prioritize the situations that impact as many people as possible, and for the others we will hold the responsible ministries and institutions responsible for coming up with quick solutions. No report disappears in any drawer (or, in our case, any folder). Each one has a clear route and transparent tracking. This platform does not belong to the government. It belongs to us, to all citizens of good faith, who must be treated with respect and professionalism in every interaction with the state. This must become the rule, not the exception,' said Oana Gheorghiu.

What is the Government doing next with the complaints?

The government led by Ilie Bolojan promised on Tuesday, at the launch of the “Paperless” platform, that it would centralize 10 of the most frequent problems and forward them for analysis and resolution to the competent institutions.

“Every 30 days, the Government centralizes 10 of the most frequent problems and transmits them for analysis and solution to the competent institutions, through the Committee for e-government and red tape reduction (CERB). The selection criteria for the 10 problems are: the frequency with which a dysfunction appears in the notifications received, its impact on citizens and the nature of the necessary solution (administrative or legislative).

Problems related to administrative practices are communicated directly to the responsible institutions, which must take steps to correct them. The progress is publicly monitored, right on the platform, until it is resolved,” the Government claims.

In the case of problems that require legislative changes, the working groups of the CERB Consultative Consortium, which include representatives of the associative environment, citizens and the business environment, debate and find solutions to amend the respective laws.