Consequence classes CC1-CC4 replace the importance categories A/B/C/D

Of the changes brought by Law no. 169/2026 (the Code of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and Construction, published in Official Gazette no. 661/10.08.2026), this is the one with a direct technical impact on every structural design: the system of importance categories (A, B, C, D) is replaced by the system of consequence classes CC1-CC4, an approach based on the risks associated with damage to the building, aligned with SR EN 1990.

Equivalence with the old system

The Code sets out the correspondence explicitly (art. 370):

How the class is determined

The classification is no longer just an administrative formality. It is based on the most severe possible consequences of total or partial failure, assessed against five criteria:

• loss of human life or harm to health/physical integrity
• direct or indirect economic losses
• cultural consequences (loss of heritage)
• social consequences
• environmental consequences

The Code gives estimated thresholds for each class:

• CC1 — low importance. Risks: insignificant loss of life, negligible impact on the local community, repair possible in 2-4 weeks.
• CC2 — normal importance. Under 50 estimated lives, considerable economic losses for owners/users, repair in 1-2 months.
• CC3 — special importance. Under 500 estimated lives, very large economic losses extending to third parties, significant impact on utility networks at national level, partial repair possible in up to 12 months.
• CC4 — exceptional, vital importance. Over 500 estimated lives, extraordinary economic losses with national and cross-border impact, possibly irreversible cultural and social consequences.

Obligations for the designer

• Determining the consequence class is the designer's obligation.
• Classifying a building in a lower class than the one the Code provides for that type of building is expressly prohibited.
• Until the classification methodology comes into force, only annex no. 6 of the Code applies.
• If a building is not listed in annex no. 6, it is assimilated to the type of building in the closest consequence class, based on the number of lives, injuries, economic consequences or cultural losses.
• For work on existing buildings (change of use, conversion, adding storeys, extension), the initial consequence class can be changed with justification.

The consequence class determines, among other things, the design methods for performance and safety, the level of design checking (checkers licensed for the essential requirements) and, for classes CC2-CC4, whether a technical expert report is mandatory — unlike CC1, where technical checking is not mandatory.

What it means in practice

For any technical expert report on an existing building in Negrești or the area — strengthening, extension, adding storeys, change of use — the consequence class is now determined explicitly, with justification, in the expert report, and not by automatic reference to an importance category already in the building's technical file. For new buildings, the design brief must state the consequence class from the outset, because the level of design checking depends on it.