Permanent Residence in Bulgaria

Bulgaria (officially the Republic of Bulgaria) is a country in Southern Europe. Bulgaria borders five other countries: Romania to the north, Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south. The Black Sea defines the extent of the country to the east. Bulgaria’s capital city and largest settlement is Sofia, with a permanent population of 1,378,000 people. In 1945, after World War II, Bulgaria became a communist state and was a part of the Eastern Bloc until the political changes in Eastern Europe in 1989/1990, when the Communist Party allowed multi-party elections and Bulgaria undertook a transition to parliamentary democracy and free-market capitalism with mixed results. Bulgaria functions as a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic. A member of the European Union, NATO, the United Nations, the World Trade Organization and a founding state of the OSCE, it has a high Human Development Index of 0.743, ranking 58th in the world in 2010.

Permanent Residence for Investment Program

1. Full Cash Option. The investor deposits BGN 1,000,000 (approximately EUR 512,000) in the Guaranteed Governmental Bond Portfolio for a period of 5 years. No further payment is required. At the end of the five-year period, the amount BGN 1,000,000 is returned to the investor with no accrued interest. The Investment fully guaranteed by the government bonds.
2. Loan Option. The investor pays a reduced amount of EUR 180,000. The reduced amount is used to finance a 1,000,000 BGN loan from a Bulgarian chartered bank. This loan is initiated and repaid at no further cost to the Investor. So, the amount of EUR 180,000 is not returned to the investor at the end of the five year period as it is so called walk-away route of investment.

Benefits and Advantages on the Permanent Residence Scheme:

1. Investor and all his family members (wife and minor children) get Permanent Residence in Bulgaria. Permanent residence gives the same rights as BG citizens, except voting. We would like to remind our readers that normally (without investment of BGN 1,000,000) foreigner must obtain temporary residence permit in Bulgaria, renew it annually, and only after 5 years or residence is entitled to apply for permanent residency.
2. Government guaranteed investment. Loan options of investment are available.
3. Five years after maintaining the residency entitled you to apply for citizenship of Bulgaria.
4. No physical residence required for Main Applicant and dependents. Physical residency is waived for qualified investors.
5. Relatively fast (from two to three months) application process.
6. Opportunity to become resident of the European Union. Easy access to EU countries – no visa requirement.
7. Holding a residence visa also enable the applicants to enter and leave the country as many times as they wish without visas.
8. Free education and medical system throughout EU.
9. Lowest taxation in EU and special exemption for immigration through investment applicants.

Special Note: Permanent Residence is issued within a few months of application submission. In order to maintain permanent residence, the Investor must be present 180 days per year over 5 years. Once status is obtained, however, the Investor can request a special exemption for physical residency requirement. After the 5 years, everyone is eligible to apply for citizenship. Moreover, for serious investors and philanthropists it is possible to obtain Bulgarian citizenship for special services rendered to Bulgaria or for special contribution, and without preliminary acquiring Permanent Residence.

If you have any questions or wish to use our legal assistance in obtaining permanent residence or citizenship of Bulgaria, contact us today