Bulgaria Permanent Residency By Investment Program | A Complete Guide
Overview:
In 2022, Bulgaria ended its fast-track citizenship-by-investment program and introduced a new permanent residency by investment program as an alternative. This program grants permanent residence to foreign nationals who make significant investments and contributions to the local economy. Generally, if you wish to apply for Bulgarian permanent residence through investment, you have three economic options to choose from:
1. Invest 1 million BGN (approximately 570,000 USD) in the Bulgarian stock market, government bonds, treasury bills, other derivatives, companies with over 50% government ownership, government shares in Bulgarian companies, intellectual property, franchise contracts, or local licensed financial institutions.
2. Invest 6 million BGN (approximately 3.41 million USD) in a Bulgarian company that is not listed on the stock market.
3. Invest 500,000 BGN (approximately 290,000 USD) through a venture capital fund to become a partner or shareholder in a Bulgarian company and create employment for at least 10 Bulgarian citizens.
Application Process:
The application process for the Bulgarian permanent residency by investment program can be roughly divided into the following three steps:
1. Complete the Investment: As an investment program, applicants must first choose an investment plan and complete the investment.
Your investment will be reviewed by the Bulgarian Investment Agency (BIA). The BIA’s review will focus on three aspects: whether the investment has been completed, the legality of the investment funds, and the applicant’s past criminal record.
Once the BIA review is approved, an investment completion certificate will be issued, which is a prerequisite for the entire permanent residency by investment program.
2. Apply for a Type D Visa: After completing the investment, you can prepare all the required documents and schedule an appointment with the nearest Bulgarian consulate or embassy to apply in person for a Type D investment entry visa.
Required documents for this program include:
- Applicant Identification Documents: These include valid passports for all primary and secondary applicants, two passport-sized photos, birth certificates, marriage certificates, and other documents proving the relationship between the primary and secondary applicants.
- Completed Application Form.
- Investment Completion Certificate.
All documents from outside Bulgaria must be notarized, and non-Bulgarian language documents must be translated into Bulgarian.
The processing time for the Type D investment visa generally does not exceed 30 working days.
3. Apply for a Permanent Residency Card: A Type D visa is valid for six months. Before the visa expires, you need to enter Bulgaria and go to the local immigration office to apply for the conversion of the Type D visa into a permanent residency card.
The Migration Directorate of the Bulgarian Ministry of Interior is responsible for issuing the permanent residency cards.
Main applicant needs to obtain the permanent residency card first, and then apply for permanent residency cards for their family members at the Migration Directorate. Generally, your family members will receive their respective permanent residency cards within three months after you obtain yours.
Dependents:
For the Bulgarian permanent residency by investment program, the main applicant’s spouse and children under 21 can apply for a family member visa as dependents.
Citizenship:
The Bulgarian green card has no minimum residency requirements, but it must be renewed every five years.
Bulgarian permanent residents who have legally resided in the country for five years, are at least 18 years old, have no criminal record, have sufficient financial means to support themselves, are proficient in the Bulgarian language, and are willing to renounce their original citizenship are eligible to apply for Bulgarian citizenship.