How to start a business in Bulgaria as a foreigner (2026)
Starting a business in Bulgaria as a foreigner: easy.
Bulgaria imposes no foreign-ownership limits: non-residents may own 100% of an OOD/EOOD (LLC) or AD (JSC), act as sole director, and register entirely online via the EPZEU portal with a power of attorney. The statutory minimum capital for an OOD/EOOD is €1 (previously BGN 2, converted upon Bulgaria's eurozone accession on 1 January 2026), and routine registrations are completed within 1-3 business days. Corporate income tax is a flat 10%, among the lowest in the EU.
Legal framework
Commerce Act (Търговски закон); Registry Agency / EPZEU Commercial Register; Ministry of Economy and Industry; Point of Single Contact (PSC) portal, psc.egov.bg
Key points: starting a business in Bulgaria
Foreign ownership
There are no nationality or residency restrictions on shareholders or directors. A non-EU foreigner may own 100% of shares and serve as sole director of an OOD, EOOD, or AD without any local-partner requirement.
Minimum capital
OOD/EOOD (LLC equivalent): €1 minimum share capital. AD (joint-stock company): €25,000 minimum, with at least 25% paid-in at registration. Bulgaria joined the eurozone on 1 January 2026, so all capital is now denominated in EUR.
Registration steps
Key steps: (1) reserve company name via the EPZEU portal; (2) draft and sign articles of association/incorporation; (3) open a capital account and deposit share capital; (4) file application form D1 with the Registry Agency, online via EPZEU or in person; (5) BULSTAT number issued automatically upon Commercial Register entry; (6) tax registration with the National Revenue Agency (NRA).
Timeline and fees
Registration is typically completed in 1-3 business days. State fee for OOD registration: ~€28.24 online (reduced rate) or ~€56.47 in person. Remote registration by a foreign founder is possible via notarised power of attorney and apostilled identity documents.
Online / remote formation
The EPZEU portal (portal.registryagency.bg) allows fully electronic filing 24/7. Foreigners without a Bulgarian qualified electronic signature may appoint a local proxy (lawyer or agent) with an apostilled power of attorney to complete registration remotely.
Tax and VAT framework
Corporate income tax is a flat 10% (one of the lowest in the EU). Dividend withholding tax is 5%. VAT registration is mandatory once annual turnover exceeds €51,130; the standard VAT rate is 20%. Bulgaria applies all relevant EU directives (PSD2/3, GDPR, NIS2) as an EU member state.
Timeline of decisions
- Decision · officialWorld Bank B-READY 2024: Bulgaria Ranked Among Top Countries for Business Entry
The World Bank's inaugural Business Ready (B-READY 2024) report ranked Bulgaria among the top-performing economies globally on the Business Entry topic, citing minimal restrictions for domestic and foreign firms and transparent regulatory information. Bulgaria scored 76.33 points in the Regulatory Framework pillar, placing 6th among 50 assessed economies.
World Bank — Business Ready Economy Profile: Bulgaria
- LawVariable Capital Company (VCC) Enacted, State Gazette No. 66/2023
Amendments to the Bulgarian Commercial Act (promulgated in State Gazette No. 66, 1 August 2023) added the Variable Capital Company as a sixth commercial entity type, with no fixed minimum capital and flexible partner entry/exit rules without amending articles of association. Designed specifically for startups and innovative businesses seeking equity investment.
CMS Law (citing State Gazette No. 66/01.08.2023)
- Law · officialInvestment Promotion Act Amended, Startup Visa and Employment-Linked Incentives
Amendments effective 18 March 2022 introduced a Startup Visa Programme streamlining immigration for non-EU innovative founders, made investment-to-job creation criteria inversely proportional (lowering capital thresholds for state incentives), and added partial reimbursement of employer social-insurance contributions for qualifying new jobs.
UNCTAD Investment Policy Monitor
- GuidanceEPZEU Unified Registry Portal Fully Launched, Single Digital Window for Registration
The Registry Agency launched EPZEU (portal.registryagency.bg) combining the Commercial Register, Register of Non-Profit Legal Entities, and Property Register into one online platform; all prior separate portals were shut down simultaneously. Entrepreneurs can now search, submit, and track company registration applications end-to-end online.
Kambourov & Partners (citing Registry Agency announcement)
- Law · officialRegistry Agency Assumes Non-Profit Legal Entities Register, Unified Registration Body Complete
As of 1 January 2018 the Registry Agency (under the Ministry of Justice) took over the Register of Non-Profit Legal Entities from the courts, consolidating all legal-entity registration under a single administrative authority for the first time and paving the way for the unified EPZEU portal.
Registry Agency (EPZEU) — Bulgarian Ministry of Justice
- LawMandatory Re-Registration Deadline: All Companies Transferred to Electronic Commercial Register
The three-year transitional period granted by the 2008 Commercial Register Act expired on 31 December 2011; all Bulgarian commercial entities were required by law to re-register in the centralised electronic register or lose their legal standing. Completion of this migration fully phased out the legacy court-based registry.
CMS Law (citing Commercial Register Act transitional provisions)
- Law · officialService Activities Act Enters Force, Point of Single Contact (PSC) Established
Bulgaria transposed EU Services Directive 2006/123/EC into national law via the Service Activities Act (in force 23 February 2010), establishing the online Point of Single Contact (psc.egov.bg) where businesses can complete all administrative procedures required to provide services in Bulgaria through one electronic portal.
Point of Single Contact — Republic of Bulgaria (official government portal)
- Law · officialOOD/EOOD Minimum Share Capital Cut from BGN 5,000 to BGN 2 (~€1)
An amendment to the Commerce Act slashed the minimum founding capital for a limited-liability company (OOD) and single-member LLC (EOOD) from BGN 5,000 to just BGN 2, effectively eliminating capital as a practical barrier to incorporation and making Bulgaria one of the cheapest EU jurisdictions in which to form a company.
Ministry of Economy, Investments and Industry — Bulgaria
- Law · officialCommercial Register Act Enters Force, Registration Transferred from Courts to Registry Agency
The Business Register Act (Zakon za targovskiya registar) took effect, creating a single centralised electronic Commercial Register managed by the Registry Agency under the Ministry of Justice and replacing the fragmented court-based system. All traders received a Universal Identification Code (UIC); the reform was directly linked to Bulgaria's EU accession in January 2007.
European e-Justice Portal (EU official)
- Law · officialCommerce Act (Targovski Zakon) Enacted, Foundational Commercial Law
Bulgaria's Grand National Assembly promulgated the Commerce Act (State Gazette No. 48/1991), establishing the first post-communist legal framework for commercial entities, sole traders, partnerships, OOD, and joint-stock companies (AD). It remains the primary statute governing company formation today, although substantially amended over three decades.
WIPO Lex (State Gazette No. 48/1991)
Sources
- psc.egov.bg/en/psc-starting-a-business-commercial-registration
- portal.registryagency.bg/en/home-cr
- mi.government.bg/en/business-handbook-for-sme/choice-of-legal-form-registration-docume
- psc.egov.bg/en/psc-starting-a-business-bulstat
- e-justice.europa.eu/topics/registers-business-insolvency-land/business-registers-eu-count
- psc.egov.bg/en/psc-starting-a-business-tax-registration
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