Long-term residence permit in Bulgaria for real estate investment from €306,776

Under the Law on Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria (ЗЧРБ) — Art. 24, para. 1, item 19, foreign nationals are entitled to obtain a long-term residence permit by investing a certain amount in the purchase of real estate in the country.

💶 The switch to the euro and the investment amount: following Bulgaria's official accession to the eurozone, the statutory investment threshold has been recalculated at the official rate and now stands at €306,776 (equivalent to the previous 600,000 leva).

Key conditions of the investment:

Payment in full: you can apply for a type D visa and a long-term residence permit only after the entire investment amount has been transferred to the seller in full.

Mortgage/credit: if the property was purchased using borrowed funds (a loan), the foreign national must have repaid at least 75% of the total value of the property by the time the documents are filed.

Type of property: the property may be either residential or commercial. It may be purchased either by an individual (directly in the investor's name) or by a Bulgarian legal entity. In the latter case, the foreign national must own more than 50% of that company's capital.

General procedure and costs

The process consists of two standard stages: obtaining a long-term type D visa in the country of citizenship/residence and then obtaining long-term residence permit status in Bulgaria.

Type D visa: issued by a Bulgarian consulate abroad. Valid for 180 days.

Visa fee: €100.

Processing time: from 30 working days.

Long-term residence permit: filed in person with the «Миграция» Directorate at the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior (МВР) for the location of the property.

Important deadline: the documents must be filed no later than 14 days before the type D visa expires.

State fees in Bulgaria (in euros):

Fee for reviewing the application at «Миграция» — €5 (instead of the previous 10 leva).

Annual state fee for authorised residence (after approval) — €255 (instead of the previous 500 leva).

Issuance of the plastic ID card (depending on the tariff chosen):

Standard tariff (30 days) — €23 (instead of 45 leva).

Fast tariff (15 days) — €46 (instead of 90 leva).

Express tariff (2 working days) — €128 (instead of 250 leva).

The long-term residence permit is issued for up to 1 year and can be renewed annually (provided the investment conditions are maintained). At the renewal stage there is no need to submit a criminal record certificate or bank statements for the investment again if the details have not changed.

List of documents for the type D visa and the long-term residence permit

All documents not in Bulgarian must be legalised/apostilled and accompanied by a certified translation.

Standard personal package:

Visa application form with a colour photograph (for the consulate). For «Миграция», an application for a long-term residence permit is completed and the photograph is taken by a member of staff on the spot.

International passport (original and copies of the first page, the entry stamp and the type D visa when applying for the long-term residence permit). The passport must be valid for at least 18 months as at the date of filing.

Proof of accommodation: title deed to the property purchased (if the investor is already the owner). If the property is registered in a company's name or the purchase is still at the stage of finalising the paperwork, a notarised lease agreement and an address declaration from the owner are submitted.

Criminal record certificate: for all adults (except stateless persons). Valid for no more than 5 months from the date of issue. Not required when renewing the long-term residence permit in Bulgaria.

Medical insurance: for foreign nationals, with coverage of at least €30,000 for the entire period of stay.

Proof of financial means: a statement from a Bulgarian bank confirming that personal funds are available for living expenses. The amount is calculated on the basis of the current minimum wage (MRP) in euros:

For the type D visa: at least 6 MRP.

For the long-term residence permit and its renewal: at least 12 MRP (for the whole year ahead).

Special (investment-specific) documents:

A certificate from a licensed Bulgarian credit institution (bank) confirming receipt and transfer of an amount of at least €306,776 for the purchase of real estate into the foreign national's ownership (or for a contribution to the capital of a Bulgarian company). If a loan was used, the bank must confirm in writing that at least 75% of it has been repaid.

Document of title (title deed) to the Bulgarian property, issued in the name of the foreign national or their company.

If the purchase is made by a legal entity: a certificate of current status of the company from the Commercial Register confirming that the foreign national's share in the capital exceeds 50%.

If the purchase is made by a legal entity: a statement of the company's expenditure on the acquisition of the property, together with copies of the inventory book or depreciation schedule proving that the property was entered on the company's balance sheet as new real estate after the funds were contributed to the capital.

ℹ️ Note: documents relating to company registration, the balance sheet and the capital structure (items 3 and 4) may not be requested in paper form by the migration authorities if they are officially published in the electronic database of the Bulgarian Commercial Register.