According to MEC Order no. 21343/23.08.2024 for new Regulation of organisation of CNECSDTI, in force since 3.10.2024, any natural or legal person may notify the CNECSCDTI in writing about deviations from good conduct in the activities of the CDI. CNECSDTI analyses the cases related to deviations from the rules of good conduct in the RDI activity, following notifications, appeals or by self-notification.
The notifications regarding the deviations from the rules of good conduct in the RDI activity are analysed in two stages:
a) the analysis at the level of the research organization within which the alleged deviations occurred, called the first stage;
b) the analysis at the level of CNECSDTI, called the second stage.

According to art. 50 of Law no. 183/2023, good conduct in the activity of the RDI regards the following:
a) the rules of good conduct in the research, development and innovation activity;
b) the rules of good conduct in the activity of communication, publication, dissemination and scientific popularization, including regarding the applications for funding submitted within the project competitions organized from public funds;
c) the rules of good conduct in the activity of institutional evaluation and monitoring of research, development and innovation, evaluation and monitoring of research, development and innovation projects and evaluation of persons in order to award degrees, titles, functions, awards, distinctions, bonuses, certificates or certificates in the activity of the CDI;
d) the norms of good conduct in the management positions in the activity of the CDI;
e) the norms of good conduct regarding the respect of the human being and dignity, the avoidance of animal suffering and the protection and restoration of the natural environment and the ecological balance;
f) the rules of good conduct in carrying out the activity of the ethics commissions of the research organizations.

According to art. 52 of Law no. 183/2023:
Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter a) include:
a) making results or data and presenting them as experimental data, as data obtained through calculations or numerical simulations on the computer or as data or results obtained through analytical calculations or deductive reasoning;
b) falsification of experimental data, data obtained through calculations or numerical simulations on the computer or data or results obtained through analytical calculations or deductive reasoning;
c) deliberately hindering, hindering or sabotaging the RDI activity of other persons, including by unjustifiably blocking access to research, development and innovation premises, by damaging, destroying or manipulating experimental equipment, equipment, documents, computer programs, data in electronic format, organic or inorganic substances or living matter necessary for other persons to carry out, carrying out or completing RDI activities;
d) obstructing the activity of an ethics commission, an analysis commission or the CNECSDTI, during an analysis of deviations from good conduct in the activity of the subordinated RDI;
e) non-compliance with the legal provisions and procedures intended to comply with the norms of good conduct in the activity of the RDI provided by this law, in Law no. 199/2023, as subsequently amended and supplemented, in the Code of Ethics, in the codes of ethics by fields, in the regulations for the organization and functioning of research organizations, respectively in university charters, as the case may be, including the non-implementation of the sanctions established by the ethics commissions or by the CNECSDTI.

Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter b) include:
a) plagiarism;
b) self-plagiarism;
c) the inclusion in the list of authors of a scientific publication of one or more co-authors who have not contributed significantly to the publication or the exclusion of co-authors who have contributed significantly to the publication;
d) the inclusion in the list of authors of a scientific publication of a person without his consent;
e) unauthorized publication or dissemination by the authors of unpublished scientific results, hypotheses, theories or methods;
f) introducing false information regarding the activity of the RDI in the grant or funding applications, in the application files for abilitation (PhD coordination) or in the registration files for the competition or exam for research, development and innovation positions.

Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter c) include:
a) failure to disclose situations of conflicts of interest or incompatibilities or violation of the legal regime of conflict of interest and incompatibilities in carrying out or participating in evaluations;
b) fraud of the evaluation;
c) non-compliance with confidentiality in the evaluation;
d) discrimination, in evaluations, on the basis of age, ethnicity, sex, social origin, political or religious orientation, sexual orientation or other types of discrimination, except for the affirmative measures provided by law.

Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter d) include:
a) abuse of authority in order to obtain the quality of author or co-author of the publications of subordinate persons;
b) abuse of authority to obtain salary, remuneration or other material benefits from research, development and innovation projects led or coordinated by subordinate persons;
c) abuse of authority in order to obtain the quality of author or co-author of the publications of subordinate persons or to obtain salary, remuneration or other material benefits for spouses, relatives or relatives up to the second degree inclusive;
d) the abuse of authority in order to unduly impose one’s own theories, concepts or results on subordinate persons;
e) obstructing the activity of an ethics commission, an analysis commission or the CNECSDTI, during an analysis of deviations from good conduct in the activity of the subordinated RDI;
f) failure to comply with the legal provisions and procedures intended to comply with the rules of good conduct in the activity of the RDI provided for in this law, in Law no. 199/2023, in the Code of Ethics, in the codes of ethics by fields, in the regulations for the organization and functioning of research organizations, respectively in university charters, as the case may be, including the non-implementation of the sanctions established by the ethics commissions or by the CNECSDTI.

Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter e) are detailed in the Code of Ethics or in the codes of ethics by domains.

Deviations from the rules of good conduct provided for in letter f) include the failure to fulfil the legal obligations by the ethics commission at the level of the research organization.

The following situations may also attract ethical liability by association for deviations from good conduct in the work of the CDI:
a) knowledge of the misconduct committed by others and failure to notify the ethics commission or the CNECSDTI;
b) co-authorship of publications containing falsified or fabricated data;
c) failure to fulfil the legal and contractual obligations, including those related to the mandate contract or financing contracts, in the exercise of the functions of management or coordination of the activities of the CDI.

The serious deviations from the good conduct in the activity of the RDI are the following:
a) plagiarism of the results or publications of other authors;
b) making results or replacing results with fictitious data;
c) introducing false information in grant or funding applications.

According to art. 59 of Law no. 183/2024, for deviations from the good conduct in the activity of the RDI staff, provided for in this law, as well as by other categories of personnel in the public or private sector, who benefit from public research and development funds, ascertained and proven, CNECSDTI proposes the application of one or more of the following sanctions, depending on the seriousness of the facts and the previous commission of similar acts:
a) written warning;
b) the definitive withdrawal and/or correction of all published works in violation of the rules of good conduct;
c) the withdrawal of the professional degree of research and development obtained as a result of the violation of the rules of good conduct, ascertained by the competent administrative court, following its notification in order to annul the administrative act by which the professional degree of research and development was granted;
d) dismissal from the management position/membership of the ethics commission of the research organization;
e) disciplinary termination of the individual employment contract, in case of committing a new disciplinary offense before the expiration of the statute of limitations of the previous sanction;
f) prohibition, for a determined period, of access to financing from public funds intended for the activity of the RDI;
g) the suspension, for a determined period of time between one year and 5 years, of the right to register for an examination for obtaining a higher professional degree or for a competition for occupying a higher position or a position of management, guidance and control, as a member of examination or competition commissions or as a member of advisory bodies of the MCID;
h) exclusion of the respective person/persons from the project implementation team;
i) stopping the financing of the project;
j) stopping the financing of the project, with the obligation to return the funds.

The authorizing officer under the subordination, coordination or authority of the research organization in which the person who committed the deviation from good conduct in the RDI activity is employed, within 30 days from the receipt of the proposal from the CNECSDTI, shall file an action in administrative litigation, in order to annul the minister’s order or the decision of the head of the research organization granting the professional degree in research and development, whether the order, respectively the decision, entered the civil circuit and gave rise to subjective rights guaranteed by law.
Within 30 days from the receipt of the proposal from CNECSDTI, the minister orders the revocation of the minister’s order granting the professional degree of research and development, respectively the head of the research organization orders, by decision, the revocation of the decision granting the professional degree of research and development, if it has not entered the civil circuit and has not given rise to subjective rights guaranteed by law.
The sanctions are implemented within 30 days from the date of issuance of the decision, as the case may be, by: the Ministry, the heads of the contracting authorities that ensure the financing from public funds intended for research and development, the heads of research organizations or other bodies or persons legally entitled to do so.
It is forbidden to register for the competition or examination for the occupation of positions corresponding to the functions and professional grades of the CDI staff by persons who have been proven to have committed one of the serious deviations from the good conduct in the activity of the CDI, provided for in art. 52 para. (8), established in the last 3 years prior to the registration in the competition for employment in the research system or for the promotion exam on a higher professional grade.
The sanctioning of deviations from good conduct in the activity of the CDI is subject to a 3 years legal extinctive limitation period.

The decisions of CNECSDTI can be contested by the sanctioned parties via administrative procedure at ANC and further in the courts of justice (the administrative section) in two steps (first court and second court of justice).

The council’s decisions are published on its website, protecting by anonymization the identity of the persons that notified the deviation: https://cnecsdti.research.gov.ro/hotarari/

CNECSDTI has the possibility to do trainings in Research Ethics and Integrity for Research Ethics Committees or research personnel of research organisations.

Until now CNECSDTI did not have the opportunity to do trainings, but plans to organize trainings in the near future.

CNECSDTI actively promotes research integrity and raises awareness about it and addresses questions on research integrity policy and practice, in order to develop Romania‘s capacities on research integrity, promote good practices and build capacity through education and advice.

 

 CNECSDTI has issued:

– National Code of Ethics and professional deontology of the research, development and innovation staff, adopted by MEC Ministry Order no. 6686/10.12.2025;

– 4 field-specific codes of research ethics and good conduct in research, development and innovation of R&D staff in research organizations, adopted by MEC Ministry Order no. 6905/16.12.2025.

The National Code of Ethics includes also a RDI ethics guide that represents a takeover by adaptation of the provisions of the following documents:

– The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity drafted by the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities (All European Academies) – ALLEA, 2023, Berlin;

– The 2005 European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers, updated by the 2023 European Charter for Researchers;

– Regulation (EU) no. 1.689/2024 establishing harmonized rules on artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Regulation). 

 

According to MEC Order no. 21343/23.08.2024 for Regulation of organisation, in order to ensure the visibility of CNECSDTI in the country and abroad, based on a mandate approved by MEC or ANC, CNECSDTI can participate in:

– actions organized by European/international associations in the field of ethics in the RDI;

– conferences in the field of ethics in RDI organized by higher education institutions/research organizations in the country or abroad;

– national/European/international projects in the field of research ethics, financed from national/European/international funds, as coordinator or partner, according to the applicant’s guide for the respective call, in order to supplement the financing of its activity;

– organization of conferences in the field of research ethics.

CNECSDTI has participated to national /international conferences dealing also with research ethics, presenting its activity and recommendations/opinions.

CNECSDTI has joined in 2026 ENRIO, in order to give Romania representation in the area of research ethics at European level, by participating to alliances in the field of research integrity.

 

Since 2026, following the call of European Commission, CNECSDTI has nominated 2 of its members (Dr. Raluca-Oana Andone – principal contact and Dr. Ștefan Eugen Szedlacsek -secondary contact) as National Contact Points for ERA Action 18. Research Ethics and Integrity within ERA Forum.

CNECSDTI can perform other duties established by Ministry MEC.