Citeste articolul in romana → Poti muta baia sau bucataria intr-un apartament de bloc?
Usually you can move a bathroom or kitchen a little, and rarely a lot. Four things set the limit: how far the drains have to run to the shared riser, how much floor height you can give up, what's under you in the flat below, and the approval route. Shifting fixtures within the same room needs no formality. Extending into another room needs a notification. And a bathroom can never go over a neighbour's bedroom, living room or kitchen: the hygiene norms forbid it.
In short
Moving fixtures within the same room: no formality.
Extending the bathroom or kitchen into the next room: a notification, with a project signed by an architect and engineers (Law 169/2026, art. 294).
The riser decides most of it. The further the new position is from it, the higher the floor has to go for the drain to fall.
The WC is the hardest to move; the washing machine and the basin are the easiest.
Never put a bathroom over a neighbour's living room, bedroom or kitchen (Ministry of Health Order 119/2014, art. 18).
Moving the kitchen? Go electric. Moving a gas hob means a gas project and the supplier's approval; induction avoids both.
Can you move the bathroom or kitchen at all?
Yes, within four limits. Every bloc flat has them; what changes is how much room each one leaves you.
The riser (coloana). Every bathroom and kitchen drain ends in the building's shared vertical pipe. You can't move the riser. It's common property (Law 196/2018, art. 35 alin. (1) lit. e)), and touching it needs a notification and the association.
The fall. Drains work by gravity, so the pipe has to slope down all the way to the riser. The further you go, the higher the start of the pipe has to be, and the higher the floor above it.
The ceiling height. In a bloc, the ceiling is already low. Every centimetre of raised floor comes off the room's height, and a step into a bathroom is something you'll live with every day.
What's below you. A bathroom or WC can't sit above a neighbour's living room, bedroom or kitchen. The hygiene norms say so explicitly (Order 119/2014, art. 18).
What's realistic, and what does it need?
Three levels of move. The further from where it is now, the harder it gets.
1. Shifting fixtures within the same room
What it means: the shower where the bath was, the basin on another wall, the washing machine moved, all within the existing bathroom or kitchen.
Feasibility: almost always.
Method: new pipes on new routes to the same riser connection.
Approval: none, as long as the riser isn't touched (Law 169/2026, art. 299).
2. Extending into the next room or the hallway
What it means: a bigger bathroom taking in a storage cupboard or part of the hallway, or a kitchen extended into the next room.
Feasibility: often, if the new area is close to the riser and isn't over a neighbour's living room, bedroom or kitchen.
Method: a slightly raised floor for the drains; waterproofing over the whole new wet area; a partition moved, if the engineer confirms it's non-structural.
Approval: a notification (art. 294 alin. (2) lit. b) pct. (iv)), plus the wall, if one moves.
3. Moving across the flat
What it means: the bathroom or kitchen in a different room, far from the riser.
Feasibility: rarely for a bathroom, sometimes for a kitchen.
Why: the floor would have to rise a lot for the drain to fall, and the new room is often above the neighbour's bedroom or living room.
Approval: a notification, plus whatever the walls need. If a structural wall is involved, an expert assessment, a building permit and the association's vote.
Which fixtures are easiest to move?
The smaller the drain, the easier the move. The WC is the hardest.
Washing machine: the easiest. A small drain, and it can sit in the kitchen, the bathroom or a hallway cupboard near the riser.
Basin: easy within the room.
Shower: possible within the room. A walk-in shower with a floor drain needs the most floor depth.
WC: the hardest. It has the largest pipe and has to connect close to the riser. In most bloc flats, the WC stays near where it is.
Whether your bathroom can move depends on where your riser is. Book a free 45-minute Office Hours session, send us your floor plan and photos of the bathroom and kitchen, and we'll help you see what's realistic in your flat: what can move, how far, and what it needs.
What about moving the kitchen?
A kitchen moves more easily than a bathroom, because its drain is smaller. Water, drain and extraction still decide where it can go. Go electric if you're moving it.
Water and drain: the sink drain needs a fall to the riser, like any drain. A sink further away is easier than a WC, but not unlimited.
Extraction: a hood works best ducted to the outside or into the kitchen's existing duct. A kitchen moved away from the duct often ends up with a recirculating hood, which only filters the air.
Gas: moving a gas hob means a gas project by an authorised designer, an authorised installer and the supplier's approval. An induction hob avoids all of it, so if you're moving the kitchen, go electric. Check that your approved power (puterea aprobata) on the electricity contract covers the new load.
Into the living room: a common wish. It works best when the new kitchen wall is close to the riser and the old kitchen becomes a room you'd actually use, like a bedroom, office or dining room.
What do you owe the neighbour below?
A floor that doesn't leak, and a layout the law allows. If water goes through, you pay.
The layout rule: no bathroom or WC above a neighbour's living room, bedroom or kitchen (Order 119/2014, art. 18). In most blocs the flats are stacked identically, so the room under yours is usually the same room. Check, especially above a shop or a different layout.
Waterproofing: over the whole new wet area, turned up the walls, before any tiles go down.
Liability: an owner pays for damage they cause to other flats (Law 196/2018, art. 30 alin. (5)). The mandatory home policy (PAD) doesn't cover leaks. An optional home policy with liability to neighbours does.
Noise: drains in a new position can be heard below. Wrap them and keep them out of the neighbour's bedroom ceiling.
What do you need before you start?
Five things. Without them, nobody can say whether your bathroom can move.
A floor plan of the flat. The cadastral plan is enough to start.
Where the riser is. Usually behind the WC or in a duct by the bathroom. Photograph it.
What's below you. Ask the neighbour, look at the cadastral plan of the flat below, or ask the administrator.
The ceiling height, measured. It tells you how much floor you can give up.
A signed project for the notification, if you're extending: an architect and the engineers, filed at the city hall before the works. After the works, update the cadastral plan so it shows the new layout.
Find out what can move in your flat
In a free, 45-minute Office Hours call, an architect looks at your plan with you: where the riser is, what's below you, how far the bathroom or kitchen can realistically move, and whether you need a notification.
Bring: the cadastral plan or any floor plan, photos of the bathroom, the kitchen and the riser, the ceiling height, and what you know about the flat below.
No pitch, no obligation. Pick a time below; it shows in your local time.
Renovating in Romania: all articles
Start here
Before you buy
Rules and approvals
Planning the renovation
Room by room
Houses and land
