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Bulgaria is located in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula and occupies one of the leading positions among European countries in terms of attracting foreign investment. Russia, Germany, and Finland are the main trade partners of the state.

Benefits of registering companies in Bulgaria:

  • The republic has signed more than 72 agreements on the avoidance of double taxation.
  • Opening your own business allows you to obtain a Bulgarian multi visa.
  • Minimum financial risk: Bulgarian lev (BGN) is pegged to the euro (1 EUR = 1.9558 BGN).
  • Legal entities pay corporate income tax at a rate of 10%.
  • Income from dividends paid by Bulgarian companies to non-residents of Bulgaria is taxed at the rate of 5% at the source of payment.
  • Residents of Bulgaria pay tax on income from dividends received domestically and abroad at a rate of 10%, reflecting the income in the tax return.
  • It takes only 3 weeks to register a ready-to-operate company.
  • The minimum start-up capital is only 1 EUR.
  • 100% foreign ownership of capital.
  • The directors and shareholders of the company can be non-residents of Bulgaria.
  • An audit is mandatory only if there are special requirements related to the type of activity of the company (banking, insurance, etc.).

How to open a company in Bulgaria?

To open a company in Bulgaria, you need to decide on the form of doing business. The most preferred forms are a company with one founder of EOOD, or with several OOD.

The financial costs of registering or purchasing a ready-made company in Bulgaria are from 1 600 Euro (depending on the organizational and legal form of the legal entity, the composition, and number of founders, etc.).

Step-by-step actions for starting a company:

1. suggest the name of the future company (the name will be checked later for identity, therefore we recommend choosing several names);

2. choose the organizational and legal form of doing business, decide who will be the founder/founders;

3. provide copies of foreign and internal passports of the founders/directors. If the founder is a legal entity, the constituent documents of this firm (company) will be required, a power of attorney by which you can act on its behalf;

4. open a temporary bank account (for depositing funds into the statutory fund of the company). The authorized capital of a company can consist of 2 (two) Bulgarian levs;

5. to issue a power of attorney in the name of the appropriate lawyer to perform actions to register the company (his actions are limited only by the registration process);

6. sign the required package of documents;

7. Further, all the necessary work on the registration of a company in Bulgaria is carried out by our professional lawyers.

What is included in the cost of registering a company?

  • payment of state fees
  • provision of a legal address and an agent on the territory of Bulgaria for one year
  • preparation and registration of constituent documents
  • payment for notary services and fee for obtaining an apostille for company documents
  • payment for nominee services for one year
  • preparation of one general power of attorney
  • issue of share certificates of a company
  • issuance of a trust declaration for one beneficiary
  • making a seal
  • courier delivery of documents and stamps

Taxes for business in Bulgaria

  • the basic corporate tax rate is 10%. This rate is compulsory for all companies registered in Bulgaria
  • dividend tax is 5%. Income from dividends paid is not included in the taxable base of the legal entity
  • at a rate equal to 10% are subject to income from receiving interest on securities, income from financial leasing, fees for technical support of transactions, interest for servicing leasing operations, income from franchising and factoring, income from the sale of financial assets, royalties from licenses for the sale of intellectual property right
  • there are two VAT rates: 20% for the main category of taxable transactions, and 0% for export transactions or transactions in which VAT is not paid according to an international agreement

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