Carmen is the descendant of a Romanian Greek-Catholic family from Sântu, a village near Reghin, in the neighbouring Mureș County.

During the prohibition of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church by the communist authorities, Carmen attended surreptitious services officiated by Archpriest Pompeiu Onofreiu at his home in Șelarilor Street, services which were also attended by Klaus Iohannis.

She was the reason Iohannis chose to stay in Romania when the rest of his family emigrated to Germany in the early 1990's.

[6][7] Carmen is an English teacher at the Gheorghe Lazăr National College in Sibiu.

[8][9][10] [11][12] In a ranking conducted by perfecte.ro, Carmen Iohannis was listed among the most stylish wives of world leaders, alongside Queen Letizia of Spain, Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Queen Rania of Jordan.