"Vermilacinia rosei" was described by Richard Spjut in 1996 from study of herbarium specimens at the United States National Herbarium, Smithsonian Institution.Peter Bowler and Janet Marsh in 2004 included "V. rosei" under their "Niebla laevigata" (= "Vermilacinia laevigata"), among five other species of "Vermilacinia" without explanation.