Bulgaria digital nomad visa: requirements (2026)

Bulgaria began accepting Type D long-stay visa applications for the new digital nomad residence permit at embassies and consulates abroad. After entry on the visa, applicants proceed to local migration authorities for the residence card; the full process typically takes 2-4 months.

Bulgaria's cabinet adopted secondary legislation setting out detailed procedures, document requirements, income-verification rules, and processing timelines, needed to operationalise the June 2025 Foreigners Act amendments and allow applications to open.

Parliament adopted (18 June, with 73%+ support) and the State Gazette published amendments introducing a new long-term residence permit for non-EU digital nomads across three categories: remote employees of non-EU employers, foreign-company owners/managers with >25% stake, and independent remote-service providers with ≥1 year of verifiable history. All must show €31,000 annual income; the permit is valid 1 year, renewable once. Law entered into force 1 July 2025.

Following an EU Council decision on 12 December 2024, internal land-border checks between Bulgaria and Schengen Area states were removed, completing full Schengen accession (air and sea borders had been lifted since 31 March 2024). Full membership materially enhances Bulgaria's attractiveness to digital nomads by enabling passport-free travel across 27 European states.

Passport controls at Bulgarian airports and seaports with other Schengen countries were removed, the first stage of Bulgaria's long-awaited Schengen integration. This milestone, combined with the January 2025 land-border lifting, positioned Bulgaria as a seamless base within the EU travel area for remote workers.

Bulgaria amended the Labour Migration and Labour Mobility Act to partially transpose the EU's 2021 Blue Card Directive (2021/1883): minimum contract duration cut from 12 to 6 months, maximum card validity extended from 3 to 5 years, and professional experience accepted in lieu of a university degree. The reforms lowered barriers for non-EU tech and knowledge-economy workers to obtain Bulgarian work-and-residence authorisation.

The EU issued Directive 2021/1883 replacing the 2009 Blue Card Directive, requiring all member states including Bulgaria to update highly-skilled worker admission rules. This EU-level mandate directly drove Bulgaria's January 2023 legislative amendments and set the conditions under which non-EU high-earners could legally reside and work in Bulgaria before the digital nomad permit existed.

Bulgaria enacted a new consolidated work-immigration statute (effective 21 May 2016) that incorporated EU Blue Card provisions, abolished the labour-market test for non-EU hires in the ICT sector, and streamlined single-permit procedures. This Act became the principal framework governing non-EU nationals working in Bulgaria, upon which the 2023 and 2025 amendments were layered.

On EU accession Bulgaria transposed Directive 2004/38/EC, granting EU/EEA/Swiss citizens the unconditional right to reside and work in Bulgaria without a visa or separate work permit. This created the dual-track framework that still governs Bulgarian residency today: automatic free movement for EU nationals, permit-and-visa pathways for third-country nationals.

Bulgaria enacted the Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria Act, establishing the statutory basis for the entry, stay, and all categories of residence permits for non-Bulgarian nationals. Amended approximately 70 times since enactment, it remains the primary law governing residency for third-country nationals, including the 2025 digital nomad permit category.