Bulgaria uses three types of national visas: A (transit), C (short-term) and D (long-term).
For those who want to move to live in Bulgaria or get the opportunity to cross the border without restrictions for a long period of time, a D visa is required.
What does visa D give?
This is a document that allows you to stay in the country for up to six months without restrictions, and later obtain a residence permit, permanent residence and citizenship of the Republic of Bulgaria. After obtaining a Bulgarian D visa, you can also freely enter the territory of Romania, Croatia and Cyprus.
Grounds for obtaining a visa D
- a representative of a foreign company (not yet registered in the republic) that wants to open its trade representative office in Bulgaria (the format of the company is LLC, PP, PE, not IP, FOP);
- a well-off pensioner;
- the owner of a Bulgarian company (analogous to LLC);
- the state of kinship with a foreigner who already has a temporary, long-term or permanent residence permit (family reunification);
- registered marriage with a citizen of the Republic of Belarus (or the EU);
- studying at a Bulgarian university;
- origin (Bulgarian roots);
- diplomatic or journalistic mission, etc.
What documents do I need to prepare?
- visa application form (the fields of which should be filled out in full and submitted to the embassy in 2 copies);
- passport and a copy of the main page (the period of use of which must be at least 1.5 and no more than 10 years before the application is submitted, as well as contain at least two blank pages);
- two photos (size 3.5 mm X 4.5 mm, color, on a white or gray background, without unnecessary accessories; the exception is hats, the wearing of which can be justified by traditions or religious views);
- a document that indicates the availability of a place to live in the territory of the Republic of Belarus (rented apartment or own real estate);
- a bank statement that confirms the existence of a minimum amount for your maintenance for six months (only Bulgarian banks are suitable);
- medical insurance (the validity period of which must cover the entire period of stay in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria);
- certificate of no criminal record (provided at the department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs at the address of registration).
If the child is under 18 years old, then both parents need to fill out the required documents and confirm with their signature. If one of the parents wants to accompany their child, then the second one must give their consent in a notarized form.
But there are exceptions. In the following cases, the presence of a parent is not required:
- the father or mother is deprived of parental rights (to confirm, you need to provide a copy of the court decision);
- death (one of the parents must present a death certificate);
- the parent is not officially specified (a dash in the child's birth certificate).
All of the above is mandatory for obtaining a D visa, but depending on the reason, additional points may appear that need to be clarified at the embassy.
What is important for pensioners to consider for applying for a D visa?
In addition to the basic set of documents. pensioners also need to provide the following documents:
- a bank statement containing data on the availability of an amount in the amount of six minimum pensions (about 700 €);
- pension certificate; a certificate from the Pension Fund of Russia on regular payments for the last 3 months before submitting the application.
When filling out the questionnaire, pay attention to the following points about the job:
- p. 19 "Current profession" - specify the previous specialty;
- p. 20 "Employer" - do not specify anything;
- p. 21 "The basis for obtaining a visa" - put "other".
If the retired candidate is disabled, he and his accompanying person are exempt from consular fees.
Translation and legalization of documents
- Elena Angelova — +7 (962) 947-23-80; [email protected] )
- Emil Petkov — +7 (903) 770-8011; [email protected]
- Maya Petrova — +7 (925) 599-6684; [email protected] )
- Natsi Vasilev — +7 (903) 570-6979; [email protected] )
Subsequent legalization is performed at the consular service right on the day of application, at the place where the entire package of documents is accepted and ready-made visas are issued. The service is paid, its price depends on the exchange rate of the Russian ruble to the euro.
The approximate cost of translation and legalization of all required documents is 30€.
The registration process
The application for a visa is submitted only in person. Bulgarian legislation does not make exceptions for both adults and children. But first, you need to make an appointment.
In Moscow, you can apply for a D visa by e-mail. You need to send scans of the full package of documents in PDF format to e-mail [email protected] (links to documents are not suitable, only scans attached to the letter).
In other cities, for example, in St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg, an appointment is made by phone. Below we attach the data of consulates (for communication or additional information) located in these cities.
Moscow: Mosfilmovskaya str., 66, p. 2; +7 499 143-62-30 (09:00-12:00; Mon-Fri)
Saint Petersburg: Saperny Lane, 11; +7 812 272-57-18, +7 812 401-01-52; (09:30-12:00; Mon-Fri).
Yekaterinburg: Karl Liebknecht str. 22, 4th floor.; +7 343 272-69-08,+7-982-632-64-42; (09:30-17:30; Mon-Fri).
In case of force majeure, which does not allow you to arrive at the appointed time, you need to write about it to the embassy's email address or call to change the reception time. The cost of processing a visa application is 100 euros.
How to check readiness inis it D?
There are 3 ways to check:
- Online. It is the simplest, and in the conditions of a pandemic, it is in demand. To check, you need to enter the passport number and the application. Verification is carried out on the website the Bulgarian Visa Application Center in Moscow.
- By phone. In this way, you can get more detailed information about the progress of the application for a long-term visa.
- Personal appeal to the consulate. It is not recommended during a pandemic and is the most expensive in terms of time and money spent.
Terms of consideration
The duration of consideration of documents for a D visa is thirty working days (it is possible to increase the waiting time, as well as the appointment of additional meetings with the candidate, calls from the consulate). In cases where family reunification is the basis for obtaining a Bulgarian visa, the period is reduced to 15 working days.
What should I do if you are refused a D visa?
In cases where the consulate sends an official notice of refusal, the candidate has the right to appeal. In case of final refusal, the monetary fees will not be refunded. Every citizen has the opportunity to reapply for a D visa. At the next registration of documents, the reason for the refusal should be taken into account and completely corrected.
Result:
The Bulgarian Consulate is making every effort to simplify the process of obtaining a D visa to the limit. This is evidenced by many of the facts listed in the article. We hope this material will help you achieve your goal in the shortest possible time!
"We took the information from the official website of the Bulgarian Consulate and tried to present it in simple language, taking into account the experience of our experts."