PNRR in 2026: €20.11 billion, no new calls. What businesses and town halls can still do

The National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) is the programme through which Romania receives money from the European Recovery and Resilience Facility. The latest renegotiation with the European Commission, in August 2026, set it at €20.11 billion: €13.57 billion in grants and €6.54 billion in loans. Reforms and investments had to be completed by 31 August 2026, and the Commission makes its final payments by 31 December 2026. As a result, no new projects can be submitted through PNRR in 2026. However, beneficiaries who already have a contract must collect their money and get through the checks.

In brief

• Programme: National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), funded through the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility
• Legal acts: Regulation (EU) 2021/241 and, in Romania, OUG No 124/2021, which sets out the institutional and financial framework
• Authority: The Ministry of Investments and European Projects (MIPE) coordinates the plan at national level. The calls were launched and managed by 20 coordinators of reforms and investments (ministries and other central authorities)
• Total budget: €20.11 billion, of which €13.57 billion in grants and €6.54 billion in loans (after the August 2026 renegotiation)
• EU deadlines: milestones and targets had to be met by 31 August 2026, the last payment requests are submitted by 30 September 2026, and the Commission's payments are made by 31 December 2026
• Status: the plan is in its closing phase. Payment request No 6 is the last one, and MIPE estimates an absorption of over 90% for grants and over 95% for loans

What PNRR is and how it worked

The Recovery and Resilience Facility is a temporary EU instrument created after the COVID-19 crisis. It finances the reforms and investments in national plans carried out between February 2020 and 31 December 2026. The main difference from cohesion funds: the state does not receive the money on the basis of declared expenditure, but when it meets milestones and targets (for example, a law adopted or a number of businesses digitalised).

Regulation (EU) 2021/241 requires at least 37% of each plan's allocation to support climate objectives and at least 20% to go to digital spending. All measures must respect the "do no significant harm" principle (DNSH) for the environment. Romania's plan has 6 pillars and 15 components, to which component 16, REPowerEU, was added.

How businesses and local authorities were funded

The coordinators of reforms and investments launched competitive calls. Funding applications were submitted on the proiecte.pnrr.gov.ro platform. For businesses, the money came mainly through state aid or de minimis schemes. One example is investment C9-I3, with the private-sector schemes and the "Digi Mic Mare" programme, for which MIPE is still publishing payment lists in September 2026. Town halls and other public authorities received funding for public investments: buildings, mobility, health, education.

Over time, the plan shrank. At the start it was worth €28.5 billion (€13.6 billion in grants and about €14.9 billion in loans). On 13 November 2025 the ECOFIN Council approved a revised version of €21.41 billion. At the same time, milestones were reduced from 518 to 390, and investments considered high-risk were removed. In August 2026, a new renegotiation set the value at €20.11 billion.

Worked example (based on MIPE figures):

• reduction against the plan: 28.5 − 20.11 = €8.39 billion, or about 29% of the original value. Grants stayed at almost the same level (€13.6 billion at the start, €13.57 billion now), so the reduction came almost entirely from loans;
• grants account for 13.57 / 20.11 ≈ 67.5% of the final plan;
• an absorption of "over 90%" for grants means over €12.2 billion (0.90 × 13.57). An absorption of "over 95%" for loans means over €6.2 billion (0.95 × 6.54). The final amount will depend on the Commission's assessment.

What can still be accessed in 2026?

No new projects can be submitted through PNRR. The Commission's guidance of 30 April 2026 on closing the facility (C(2026) 2647) states clearly that measures taken after 31 August 2026 no longer count towards the assessment of payment requests. All payment requests, with the management declarations and audit summaries, must be sent to the Commission by 30 September 2026. The Commission's indicative timetable provides for:

1. preliminary assessments sent to the Economic and Financial Committee by 20 November 2026;
2. the committee's opinion by 8 December 2026;
3. payment decisions by 18 December 2026;
4. payments made by 31 December 2026. Amounts not paid by then are decommitted.

For beneficiaries who already have a contract, what remains is the settlement of payment or reimbursement requests, reporting to the coordinator and preparing for checks. The Commission's guidance specifies that control, audit and irregularity-reporting obligations remain in force after 2026.

What happens to unfinished projects

On 19 August 2025 the Government adopted an emergency ordinance on prioritising PNRR investments, announced by MIPE. The main rules:

• projects with no procurement procedures launched were to be terminated;
• projects in preparatory stages (studies, permits) were suspended until 31 December 2026, if works had not started;
• projects with a completion level below 30% could continue only with Government approval.

For projects left unfinished after 31 August 2026, the source of funding will be set by separate national decisions. Check the communications from the coordinator that funded your project, and do not assume that payment will be made automatically from the state budget.

Common mistakes and what the auditors check

• Double funding. The Regulation allows the same investment to receive money from other EU programmes too, but only if the support does not cover the same costs. The same equipment or the same invoice cannot be reimbursed under PNRR and under another programme.
• The DNSH principle. Auditors check whether the investment respects the environmental commitments made in the application.
• The target can no longer be reached after the deadline. If a milestone was met and then reversed, the Commission may reduce the payment to the state. The coordinator usually passes these corrections on to the beneficiary.
• Incomplete documents. Contracts, invoices, proof of procurement and reports must be kept. Audits may also come after the facility has closed.

What this means for your business

Our recommendation: if you have a PNRR project under way, check now that your last payment request is complete. Archive the entire file (procurement, acceptance records, proof of operation) and follow the payment lists published by MIPE. For town halls, what matters first is the physical progress at 31 August 2026 and the decision on the source of funding for the rest of the project.

If you did not have a PNRR project, look for money from other sources: the regional programmes, PoCIDIF, the Education and Employment Programme (PEO), the Modernisation Fund and the AFIR funds under the CAP Strategic Plan have calls with deadlines after 2026. The first step is to find out whether your company qualifies. To do this, you can use the eligibility check.

Frequently asked questions

Can new projects still be submitted through PNRR in 2026?

No. Milestones and targets had to be met by 31 August 2026, and the states' last payment requests are sent to the Commission by 30 September 2026. Any offer of "PNRR funding" for a new project should be treated with suspicion.

How much is Romania's PNRR worth now?

After the August 2026 renegotiation, the value is €20.11 billion: €13.57 billion in grants and €6.54 billion in loans. The original plan was worth €28.5 billion.

Until when does the European Commission pay the PNRR money?

All the Commission's payments to Member States must be made by 31 December 2026. The indicative timetable provides for payment decisions by 18 December 2026. Amounts not paid by the end are decommitted.

My project is finished. Can I still be audited after 2026?

Yes. The Commission's guidance on closing the facility shows that the Member States' obligations on control, audit and irregularity reporting continue after 2026. Keep all project documents for the period set out in the funding contract.

What is payment request No 6?

It is Romania's last PNRR payment request. Through it, the state reports the remaining milestones and targets to the Commission. According to MIPE, coordinators had to report their data by 15 September 2026, and the plan's final results will be known after this request is submitted.

Official sources

• MIPE – PNRR implementation and payment request No 6 (14 September 2026)
• European Commission – Guidance on the final stage and closure of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, C(2026) 2647
• Regulation (EU) 2021/241 establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility
• MIPE – National Recovery and Resilience Plan
• MIPE – Revised PNRR approved by the ECOFIN Council
• MIPE – Emergency Ordinance on managing investments financed from the PNRR (19 August 2025)
• OUG 124/2021 on the institutional and financial framework of the PNRR
• European Commission – Recovery and Resilience Facility

Information checked on 27 September 2026. Conditions may be amended by the managing authority — check the guide in force before submitting.