National minimum wage

The national minimum wage in 2026

From 1 January 2026 the national minimum wage (salariul minim pe țară) in the Republic of Moldova is 6 300 lei a month for a full working programme, set by government decision (HG 771/2025). Expressed by the hour, that is 37,28 lei for a reference month of 169 hours. It is a single nationwide floor: the same figure applies across all sectors and regions, and no employment contract may set a lower monthly wage for full-time work.

This is a substantial step up. The previous minimum wage — in force through 2024 and 2025 — was 5 500 lei a month, so the 2026 figure raises the statutory floor considerably in a single move. The amounts shown here are the ones in force, and the structure — one monthly figure, with an hourly equivalent derived from a reference month of hours — is how the minimum wage is actually expressed.

Monthly figure, hourly equivalent

The minimum wage is defined as a monthly amount for a full programme; the hourly rate is derived from it, not the other way around. Two employees on the minimum wage doing the same full-time hours therefore earn the same monthly gross, and the hourly figure is mostly useful for part-time work or for pro-rating a partial month.

• Monthly minimum — 6 300 lei for a full working programme.
• Hourly equivalent — 37,28 lei, on a 169-hour reference month.
• Previous minimum — 5 500 lei a month, superseded on 1 January 2026.

Gross, not net

The minimum wage is a gross figure. An employee paid the minimum still has the same two deductions as anyone else — the 9 % AOAM premium and 12 % income tax on the base after AOAM and the personal allowance — so the take-home net is below the 6 300 lei headline. At this level the personal allowance matters most, because it is a fixed amount and so shields a larger share of a small salary. The income-tax and tax-allowances pages explain that chain; the home-page calculator shows the net for any gross, including the minimum.

Where it sits against the average

For context, the minimum wage is well below typical earnings. The national average monthly gross reported by the statistics bureau (BNS) was 15 987 lei in the first quarter of 2026, and 15 472 lei as a full-year 2025 average; the government’s forecast average for 2026 is 17 400 lei. These averages are context only — they are never used in the net-pay calculation, and a newer quarter may supersede them.