Citizenship by investment

bulgarian citizenship by investment

OVERVIEW - Clear, favorable & safe conditions for Citizenship by investment or how to obtain Bulgarian citizenship by investment in 2024

Bulgaria is one of the few EU member countries that offers the possibility of obtaining a citizenship by investment and a residency be investment. The new 2021 Bulgarian investment citizenship program provides even wider choice of investment opportunities, compared to the old program. The options are clear and safe, ranging from stock-exchange traded financial products to true investments in the Bulgarian economy.

  • Obtain pre-approval by the Bulgarian Investment Agency
  • Make the investment
  • Apply for long-term visa D
  • Apply for Permanent Residence Status and Permanent Residence ID card
  • Make the second investment after holding Permanent Residence Status for at least 1 year
  • Apply for citizenship

The investment is done by you (with our support of course, if required), in a variety of investment choices. The required investment ranges from 1 000 000 EUR to 2 000 000 EUR, which gives more opportunities to select from, than was the case previously. The investment remains yours at all times, unless of course you opt to appoint a trustee.

The new 2021 investment regulation gives you a much wider choice of investment options than with the previous program;

 

On 15th March 2021, changes in both the Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria Act (“Foreigners Act”) and the Bulgarian Citizenship Act (“Citizenship Act”) came into effect. The former provides grounds for permanent residence, the latter regulates qualifications for citizenship. You can contact us directly to learn more via our contact form. One of the newly adopted classes allows investment in mutual funds, regulated in accordance with the Collective Investment Schemes and Other Collective Investment Undertakings Organisation Act (“CIS Act”).

What's new about the “Bulgarian Citizenship by Investment” program of 2024

  • Bond investment cancelled
  • Fast-track option cancelled - the fast-track citizenship option by way of doubling the investment amount was cancelled
  • No donation required;
  • Required investment starts at only 512 000 EUR;
  • Children qualify for citizenship immediately after the main applicant, no matter of their age;
  • No physical residency is required, although a residential address must be maintained
  • Spouse qualifies for citizenship much faster than under the old conditions, without the need of additional investment;
  • Bulgarian language exam may be intruduced;
  • No Bulgarian history exam;
  • No need to relinquish existing citizenship(s);
  • assistance by the diplomatic or consular authorities of any EU Member State while abroad;
  • Faster Processing - the legislators have also mandated expedited timelines for processing.
  • The new 2021 fast-track citizenship program is sustainable on both national and EU level;
  • Political consensus in Bulgaria about the new program and better support by the relevant authorities.
  • New investment options in ETFs and AIFs - Exchange Traded Funds and Alternative Investment Funds are new options to invest towards Bulgarian Citizenship by investment

Our services

Steps to take..

  • Talk to our immigration advisers, who will evaluate your personal circumstances and help you to select the most suitable investment option.
  • Obtain pre-approval by the Bulgarian Investment Agency with our help.
  • Make the investment. You can choose from a variety of investment options, regulated by the Bulgarian citizenship law, as it was amended in 2021
  • Apply for long-term visa D. The application for VISA Type D is submitted to the Bulgarian Consulate in your country. The necessary documents are prepared by our team. This includes filling in the visa application, translation into Bulgarian, etc.
  • Apply for Permanent Residence Status and Permanent Residence ID card. This is happening in the Migration Directorate of the Bulgarian police. We will provide you with the necessary documents, such as medical insurance, rental agreement, etc.
  • Make the second investment after holding Permanent Residence Status for at least 1 year.
  • Apply for citizenship with our help before the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Bulgaria.
  • Receive a citizenship approval. Once approval of the application has been acquired by the Bulgarian Minister of Justice and President of the Republic of Bulgaria, the naturalisation certificate will be issued. The review process takes anywhere between 6 to 12 months.

INVESTMENT OPTIONS

From €512,000 to €3,000,000

1

INVESTMENT IN A BULGARIAN COMPANY


Investment in a Bulgarian company if the investor holds shares of the company and owns 50% or more of its capital with minimum investment from BGN 500,000 or EUR 255,000 + 10 new jobs

2

investment funds - cancelled


Purchase of units and shares in collective or alternative investment funds with minimum investment from BGN 1 milllion or EUR 511,00

3

concession agreements


Acquisition of rights under concession agreements with minimum investment from BGN 1 million or EUR 511,000

4

COMPany SHARES


Buying shares of Bulgarian commercial companies from BGN 2 million or EUR 1 million

5

INVESTMENT PROJECT


Increase the capital of a Bulgarian company to implement a priority investment project with a minimum investment from BGN 2 million or EUR 1 million

6

INCREASE OF THE CAPITAL  IN A COMPANY


Increase the capital of a Bulgarian company whose shares are NOT traded on the securities market with minimum investment from BGN 6 million or EUR 3 million

BULGARIAN CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT

PRE-APPROVAL

The pre-approval or pre-clearance process carried out by the Bulgarian Investment Agency (“BIA”) was newly introduced by legislation in March 2021 and is currently subject to refinement by means of secondary legislation and internal rules by the BIA.

Its purpose is to give assurance about the legitimacy of you as an investor, including your compliance with anti-money laundering (“AML”) regulations.

For the pre-approval stage this information is required.

  • Proof of identity and address.
  • Sufficient funds for making the minimum investment
  • Clear source of funds information
  • Information on your business/professional background.
  • A Criminal Record Check from the country of origin or country of permanent residence.

WHY BULGARIA?

Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007. Its citizens can live, work, study and travel freely in all of the EU’s 28 member states. Bulgarian passport holders can travel visafree to over 140 countries and territories. Within the EU, Bulgarian citizens cross borders through priority EU citizen channels and are not subject to immigration control. Bulgaria has E2 reciprocity with the US, and its citizens can therefore qualify for US permanent residence. Bulgaria is a mid-sized European country with a beautiful nature, an interesting history and good food, Its economy offers continuing opportunities as it expands faster than the rest of Europe. Local universities are attractive to international students in a number of areas of study and Bulgarian qualifications are automatically recognised across Europe and beyond. Bulgarian citizens studying elsewhere in the EU benefit from being treated as domestic students (with free tuition and other privileges).

THE INVESTMENT MUST BE COMPLIAT WITH THE LAW

Probably the most important condition is that the investment is fully compliant with the conditions of the Foreigners Law of Bulgaria. This means that the investment has to be such, that it would be (pre) approved by the Investment Agency. Bearing in mind that the conditions in the Foreigners Law are quite clear as to which investments are acceptable, this condition isn’t hard to cope with. Also, the applicant should invest in the investment products effectively by purchasing them. 

ADVANTAGES

Applicants are not expected to spend any time in Bulgaria: it is enough to show available accommodation. Citizen investors are not required to speak the Bulgarian language. Obtaining Bulgarian citizenship does not result in additional obligations (such as national service in the army, jury service or others). By acquiring citizenship, an investor does not automatically become a Bulgarian tax resident. There is therefore no need for tax structuring in advance of becoming a citizen, as there may be when acquiring U.S. citizenship. Citizenship does enable investors to become resident for tax in Bulgaria, however. This may be attractive: Bulgaria has personal and corporate income tax of 10% – the lowest in the European Union. Bulgarian law allows for dual citizenship. Clients can thus retain their existing nationality when they acquire a Bulgarian one, and can acquire further ones at a later time. Bulgarian citizens studying elsewhere in the EU benefit from being treated as domestic students (with free tuition and other privileges). The investment can be made in secure investment classes (such as government bonds). The investor therefore receives the principal funds invested back in full at the end of the holding period.

SHORT TIME-FRAME (cancelled)

Short time-frame meant that the citizenship can be obtained in only 12 months from start to end. Of course, this is not achievable as the administrative part of the process takes additional time, such as translations and legalization of documents, concluding a representation agreement, preliminary consultations, etc.In summary, the time can be doubled if we consider all the additional actions to acquire citizenship. The process enters its final stage after the second investment condition is fulfilled (fast-track conditio sine non qua). Our team are lodging formal citizenship application with the Ministry of Justice. Consequently, a citizenship decree is being issued by the vice president through the office of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria. It is worth stating that the fast-track citizenship program doesn’t require the candidate to surrender his existent citizenship(s). It also doesn’t require actual stay  in Bulgaria.

FOR HOW LONG SHOULD YOU KEEP THE INVESTMENT

The citizenship law of Bulgaria dictates that the investment should be held at least 6 years after the citizenship is obtained, however the investment is never blocked or restricted in any way. Nevertheless, we strongly recommend that you keep your investment within the legal deadline after obtaining citizenship, and not liquidate it as soon as you receive your passport.

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   Tel: 00359 882 43 66 56

   Email: lawgpetkov@gmail.com

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