Workforce Mobility & Immigration in Bulgaria
EU Blue Card and work permit coordination for non-EU hires, including salary-threshold checks against Bulgaria's average-wage-linked minimum.
BulgariaCurrency
EUR (adopted 1 January 2026, replacing BGN at the fixed rate €1 = BGN 1.95583)
EU/EEA/Swiss nationals
No visa or work permit required
Main non-EU route
EU Blue Card threshold is €23
Registration deadline
Typically within 1–2 weeks of arrival
Housing — single employee
~€500–750/month (1-bed, central districts up to €900)
Housing — family of four
~€900–1,300/month (3-bed)
Moving workforce into Bulgaria
Bulgaria applies a flat 10% corporate income tax rate, unchanged since 2007 and the lowest headline rate in the European Union, alongside a 20% standard VAT rate and employer social security contributions of 18.92% to 19.62% of gross salary depending on activity-based work-injury risk. Dividends distributed from 2026 profit are subject to 5% withholding tax, though this rate held only because a proposed increase to 10% lapsed when early parliamentary elections forced the 2025 budget to be extended into 2026. An EOOD or OOD can be formed with nominal share capital of €1 (redenominated from BGN 2); an AD requires €25,000, of which at least 25% must be paid up at formation.
Discuss your Bulgaria relocation planFreedom of movement, and the route for everyone else
Nationals of EU and EEA member states, and Switzerland, have full freedom of movement into Bulgaria: no visa and no work permit are required, though address and tax registration is still expected shortly after arrival.
For third-country nationals, EU Blue Card threshold is €23,500/year (2026, 1.5x the national average gross annual salary); the Single Permit route requires a 15-day labour market test that the Blue Card and other specialist permits do not
Confirm the right route for a hireWhat sits with the company
Once the right to work is confirmed, payroll registration follows — see our Payroll & Workforce Management in Bulgaria guide for the employer registration steps that come next.
Set up a relocation processWhat it costs to house a relocating employee
Figures below are indicative for Sofia, Bulgaria's primary market for relocating employees — a company relocating multiple staff should budget by destination city, not a single national number.
| Item | Single employee | Family of four |
|---|---|---|
| Typical apartment | 1-bedroom | 3-bedroom |
| Rent (Sofia) | ~€500–750/month (1-bed, central districts up to €900) | ~€900–1,300/month (3-bed) |
| Security deposit | Typically 1 month's rent by convention (no statutory cap); 2 months common for furnished or premium units | Typically 1 month's rent by convention (no statutory cap); 2 months common for furnished or premium units |
Frequently asked questions
Talk to a Bulgaria mobility expert
Companies operating in Bulgaria through 2026 should treat the euro changeover as an active compliance project, not a completed formality — dual pricing remains mandatory into August, and every payroll, contract and ledger conversion should be independently verified against the fixed BGN 1.95583 rate rather than assumed correct.