Foundling on RO territory - conditional anti-statelessness (Art 5(3))

There is no statutory processing term for the foundling presumption because it is not a grant subject to the ANC verification timeline. The presumption is effective immediately — the child "is considered a Romanian citizen, until proof to the contrary," from the moment the conditions are met (found on territory, neither parent known). The administrative steps that follow (drawing up the finding record, registering the birth with the civil-status registrar, placing the child under DGASPC protection) run on child-protection and civil-status timelines, not on the ANC processing snapshots that apply to Art 8/8^1/10/11 (which the ANC reported as Art 8 ~2.09y, Art 8^1 ~1.12y, Art 10 ~1.63y, Art 11 ~3.28y in its 27-Aug-2025 snapshot; those figures are a moving administrative snapshot, and do not apply to this route). The only "deadline" structurally relevant is the age-18 cut-off in Art 30: filiation to foreign parents established before majority can defeat the presumption; after the child turns 18 the loss mechanism of Art 30 no longer operates to strip the acquired citizenship.

The controlling provision is Legea 21/1991 (R) Art 5(3). Critically, Art 5 was NOT amended by Legea 14/2025 — the consolidated text at legislatie.just.ro/121439 carries no L14/2025 provenance marker on Art 5; the jus sanguinis core Art 5(1)-(2) and the foundling presumption Art 5(3) are unamended by L14/2025 ( anchor A-4.5-foundling-nojussoli CONFIRMED). Legea 14/2025 (the 41-point overhaul, MO 218/12-Mar-2025, in force 15-Mar-2025) instead touched the surrounding apparatus — Art 4 (modes of acquisition list), Art 7 (adoption nullity), Art 8 (naturalisation), Art 9 (minors) — but left the birthright/foundling rule of Art 5 intact. The companion loss rule, Art 5(3) Art 30(1)-(3), governs the situation where the foundling's filiation is later established to foreign parents; Art 30 is likewise unamended by L14/2025. The newer cross-cutting loss ground Art 30^1 (introduced by L14/2025 pct 30) concerns annulment of established filiation to a Romanian-citizen parent and is documented separately at RO-XCT-01 — it does not govern the foundling acquisition itself. The whole structure must be read on the operative chain MO 576/2010 → Legea 14/2025 (MO 218/2025) → OUG 16/2026 (MO 196/2026).

Because the foundling presumption is not a discretionary ANC grant, the citizenship-order appeal venues do not directly apply to the acquisition itself. For completeness and to anchor the loss-side: any administrative act disputing the child's citizenship status (e.g., a recorded Art 30 cessation on establishment of foreign filiation) would be challenged through Romanian administrative-contentious channels. The citizenship-specific appeal architecture is: rejection of a grant/reacquisition application (Art 19(4)) and rejection of a renunciation (Art 31(6)) are challenged at first instance before the Tribunalul Bucuresti (Sectia contencios administrativ si fiscal), with recurs to the Curtea de Apel Bucuresti; a withdrawal order (Art 32(7)) goes directly to the Curtea de Apel Bucuresti and is FINAL with no recurs. There is NO ICCJ recurs layer in any citizenship-order appeal. Residual administrative acts under the law go to the tribunal contencios with recurs to the curte de apel (Art 37^1). A Art 30 foundling-loss determination, as an act constated administratively, would be contested via the general contencios-administrativ route rather than the specialised withdrawal channel (which is reserved for Art 25 retragere).

Primary statute and evidence pins (Evidence Table.json; Master Sources.json):

• — Legea 21/1991 (R) Art 5(1)-(3): three-paragraph structure; Art 5(3) foundling presumption; no L14/2025 marker on Art 5. Consolidated text legislatie.just.ro/Public/DetaliiDocument/121439. T1.
• — verbatim Art 5(3): "Copilul gasit pe teritoriul statului roman este considerat cetatean roman, pana la proba contrarie, daca niciunul dintre parinti nu este cunoscut"; no general jus soli; jus sanguinis primary. T1.
• — Art 30(1)-(3) foundling loss on establishment of foreign filiation before age 18; unamended by L14/2025. T1.
• — Romania party to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness by accession 27-Jan-2006, no reservations (Legea 361/2005); UN Treaty Collection Ch. V.4. T1.
• — Romania party to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, accession 27-Jan-2006 (Legea 362/2005). T1.
• — stateless-person naturalisation gap (Art 8 + Art 19^1 priority) bounding RO-STL-01. T1.
• — Art 25(2) birth-citizenship non-withdrawal. T1.
• — card de cetatenie 91.50 lei eff. 01.08.2025 (context for fees §). T1.
• — appeal venues Art 19(4)/31(6)→Tribunalul Bucuresti→Curtea de Apel Bucuresti; Art 32(7) withdrawal→Curtea de Apel Bucuresti FINAL; no ICCJ. T1.
• Master legal source: Legea 21/1991 (R) consolidated, legislatie.just.ro/Public/DetaliiDocument/121439; Legea 14/2025 (MO 218/2025); OUG 16/2026 (MO 196/2026).