ЗЧРБ reform: Changes affecting foreigners in the residence rules and the grounds for loss of status

The bill substantially reworks the requirements for the physical presence of foreigners on the territory of Bulgaria and the European Union, clarifies the rules for extending permits and sets strict criteria for the annulment of statuses.

1. Residence periods and grounds for annulment of statuses

The bill clearly distinguishes the requirements for three types of migration status: long-term residence permit (продължително), EU long-term resident status (дългосрочно) and permanent residence permit (постоянно).

Temporary residence (long-term residence permit / Продължително пребиваване)

• The “half of the period” rule: Art. 26, para. 14 of the ЗЧРБ introduces a direct ground for refusing to extend a long-term residence permit if the foreigner has stayed in Bulgaria for less than half of the permitted period (less than 183 days for an annual status).
• Exempt categories: The requirement to reside for at least half of the period does not apply to a number of categories (Art. 24, para. 1, items 7, 10, 13, 17–21):
  • Trade representatives of foreign companies (item 7);
  • Investors and large businesses (items 10, 17);
  • Family members of foreigners holding a status (item 13);
  • Persons of Bulgarian origin and parents of Bulgarian/EU citizens.

• A gift for senior school students: For children whose status was arranged through family reunification

  (item 13), an option is introduced to extend the long-term residence permit after they turn 18, up to the completion of school (full-time form) and until the end of the calendar year in which the school-leaving certificate is obtained.

Long-term residence in the EU (EU long-term resident status / Дългосрочно пребиваване)

• Annulment of the status: Under the amendments to Art. 40, para. 1, item 6, the EU long-term resident status is revoked if the foreigner has been absent from the territory of all European Union member states for a total of 12 consecutive months.
• Official force majeure: The bill lays down a direct exception: periods of an officially declared state of emergency (извънредно положение) are not counted towards the 12-month period of absence.

Permanent residence (permanent residence permit / Постоянно пребиваване)

• Revocation of status: The bill supplements Art. 40 with new items (in particular, item 24), under which permanent residence permit status is revoked if the foreigner has not been present on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria for at least 6 months and 1 day during the previous calendar year.
• The main difference from EU long-term resident status: To retain a permanent residence permit, what counts is physical presence in Bulgaria specifically, not within the European Union as a whole.

2. Distinguishing the statuses: Temporary protection and the Single Work and Residence Permit

The bill supplements Article 24i (Single Work and Residence Permit) with a new list of exceptions (para. 21). It expressly states that the standard procedures for obtaining a work-based long-term residence permit under Art. 24i do not apply to persons enjoying temporary or international protection (items 5 and 6).

This separates the legal regimes: beneficiaries of temporary protection retain direct access to the labour market under the Asylum and Refugees Act, but this bill does not create for them a simplified mechanism for “converting” protection into a standard work-based long-term residence permit inside the country without leaving to obtain a type D visa.

3. Stage of the bill and the likelihood of its passage

Current status

• Stage: Bill No. 52-602-01-29 has been officially introduced in the National Assembly by the Council of Ministers (the Government of Bulgaria).
• Procedure: The document has been assigned to the relevant parliamentary committees (the Committee on Internal Security and Public Order, the Committee on European Affairs and others) to prepare reports for the first reading. After discussion in the committees, the bill must pass two readings in the plenary hall and be signed by Presidential Decree, followed by publication in the Държавен вестник.

Likelihood of adoption (Estimate: above 90%)

The likelihood that the key provisions of this bill will be approved is assessed as extremely high for the following reasons:

1. The body exercising legislative initiative: The bill is introduced by the executive branch — the Council of Ministers. Government bills in the field of national security and migration are given priority and are backed by the ruling majority.
2. Obligations to the EU: A significant part of the provisions (including digital integration, screening, the rules governing the Single Work and Residence Permit and the EU Blue Card) is being introduced as part of the implementation of updated European Union directives and Schengen area standards.
3. Countering “fictitious residence permits”: The introduction of clear presence criteria (183 days for long-term and permanent residence permits) responds to the standing demands of the Bulgarian Ministry of the Interior to put an end to the practice of using migration statuses by persons who do not in fact live in the country.

During the parliamentary hearings, isolated technical amendments to the wording are possible (including on exceptions for businesses and representative offices), but the basic framework of the changes will be adopted by the members of parliament.