 If you want to go a step further and move to Bulgaria on as permanent basis below is some information you will need to know. We are ready to help all our customers who would like to settle permanently in Bulgaria and enjoy their new properties all year round. To obtain a permanent residence one must spend 5 years in Bulgaria according to the long-term stay conditions. Getting Bulgarian residence will give you all rights of a Bulgarian citizen except the right to vote. You will also be able to enter and leave the country as many times as you wish without visas.
The first step to obtaining a permanent residence is to get a long term stay permit, which is valid for 1 year and is renewed each year. For the period of the long term stay (1 year) you are issued a Bulgarian Identity Card (the same ID document that each Bulgarian citizen holds.) After spending 5 years with long-term permits one can apply for permanent residence.
To get the first year long-term permit one needs to present the following:
- A valid D-type Visa
- A proof of national insurance or social security in the country of residence (such document can be issued from your local national insurance office).
- Minimum 3000 Bulgarian Levs (approx. 1550 EUROS or 1020 £ GBP) deposit in a personal bank account in Bulgaria.
Please, note that in order your application to be successful you must have Type D Visa, for which you can apply at any Bulgarian embassy. More information about D Type visa for British citizens can be obtained at www.bulgarianembassy.org.uk.
Please, also note that all applicants for long-term permit are subject to thorough checks by Interpol and Europol and other organisations having data for persons with criminal activities. All applicants must have clean crime records and must not be subject of criminal proceedings, otherwise applications will be rejected.
Since each application is strictly individual the process time can vary from 10 days to 3 months.
Cost of living
It's not possible to compare living costs in Bulgaria and Western Europe. Living costs in Bulgaria are extremely low! For example the food is generally twice as cheap as in the UK. House insurance: around 100-200 € EURO per year depending on the type of house, together with the belongings and furniture inside. For a property priced at around 30,000 € EURO insurance against theft, flood and fire costs about 125 € EURO per year with a decent insurance company like Allianz. Gas: the gas system network is not developed in Bulgaria yet. People here mostly use electricity to cook. For heating: there are central heating systems in the big cities: monthly costs for a 2-bedroom apartment around 120 € EURO. In the small villages people use charcoal and wood, which is a very cheap way of heating a house. For electricity, when used for cooking, light or hot water one pays about 30 € EURO monthly. Local and national taxes for owning a property: depending on the place where the property is located, the most expensive area is the capital of Sofia, where the annual taxes of 2 bedroom apartment are around 150 € EURO per year, but the rest of the country is around 80 € EURO per year.
To employ a gardener or maintenance man or builder you will not pay much. The average salary in Bulgaria is 200 € EURO per month.
Driving a car in Bulgaria: There are few annual fees that must be paid every year to drive a car in our country:
- Driver responsibility insurance: 30 € EURO per year
- Road tax (depending on the engine power): around 50 €EURO per year for a car of 2000 ccm. engine.
- MOT: 12 € EURO per year
Fuel prices: petrol: 0.80 € EURO/L, diesel: € EURO/L, LPG: only 0.40 euro/l. Most of the cars in Bulgaria are equipped with LPG systems, so cars are mostly fuelled with the non-pollutant and very cheap propane gas. There are many petrol stations everywhere, many garages to service the cars (very cheap though), many good companies (eg. Allianz). Annual theft and accident insurance for a brand new car is around 800-1000 € EURO.
Bulgaria has the cheapest brand new cars in Europe. For example the new Renault Clio costs only 6,500 € EURO. Second hand vehicles of any type and brand are available too. |
