All you need to know to safely drive in Bulgaria All info that you will need for your life in Bulgaria https://www.foreigner.bg/

2. Driving In Bulgaria
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Introduction
Welcome to Foreigner BG’s guide to driving
in Bulgaria. We hope that this guide will
assist you in getting set up to drive in
Bulgaria and save you time and heartache
trying to locate important information.
Whilst this guide o ers detailed information,
it is important to note that rules and
regulations are subject to change and that
you should always double-check the
information provided before you attend any
meetings or government o ces.
to have all
documents translated into Bulgarian and if
you do not speak Bulgarian uently then
please consider attending any meetings or
government o ces with a Bulgarian friend
or translator to prevent delays and
confusion. Whilst many people in Bulgaria
can speak English to some degree it is always
helpful to have a native speaker present.
It is also highly recommended
Getting a driver’s
licence in Bulgaria
In Bulgaria like in most countries to be able
to drive a vehicle, you will need to have a
driver's licence. Any valid driver’s licence
issued in a European country is also
recognised and valid in Bulgaria. This means
if you are 18 years or older and your licence
was issued by an EU member state/EEA or
Switzerland, or by a country that has rati ed
the Vienna Convention on Road Tra c you
are able to use your licence in Bulgaria.
Something important to mention though is
that foreign driver's licences must be
accompanied by a legalized translation in
Bulgarian or you must hold an international
driver’s licence/permit (IDL/IDP). An IDP is
available from your issuing country’s road
tra c authority or motoring organization
such as the AA and you should arrange to
get this before you leave your country of
origin should you choose to use this option.
The other key point to mention is that you
can have only one EU driver's licence at any
one time. So if you move to another EU
country and your driver's licence is lost,
stolen, damaged, or expired, you should
renew, replace or exchange it in the country
where you are currently living.

3. Driving In Bulgaria
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1. Register as a resident in Bulgaria,
please see our eBook on this process.
2. Legalize your high school diploma in
your home country and as mentioned
in the beginning to save yourself some
time and any potential issues have it
translated into Bulgarian by a certi ed
translator as well.
3. Get your high school diploma certi ed
by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education.
4. Complete a medical exam to prove you
are medically t to drive, this can be
done by any general practitioner in
Bulgaria.
5. Enrol in the required driving course,
you must register with an approved
driving school which can be found
online. This process takes at least 40
hours of theoretical knowledge and 31
sessions of 50 minute practical driving
training.
6. Pass both the internal theoretical and
practical exams
7. Pass the required written exam. (Try
this link for the theoretical test
).
Theory
Practice online in English
8. Pass the required driving exam.
9. Hold a valid rst-aid certi cate or
complete a course to get one, Red
Cross is one provider that you can use
for this step.
10. Pay the required taxes for a Bulgarian
driver’s licence, the current taxes, and
locations of where you can make your
application can be found on the
Ministry of Interior’s website.
If you are moving to Bulgaria from a country
that isn’t a part of the Vienna Convention on
Road Tra c, unfortunately, your driver’s
licence won’t be valid in Bulgaria. You can
however drive as a tourist in Bulgaria for a
maximum of 3 months if you have a valid
international driver´s permit, after that, you
will be required to go through the process of
obtaining a Bulgarian driver's licence.
The 10 steps to
obtaining a Bulgarian
Driver’s licence
For non-EU citizens

4. Driving In Bulgaria
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Again we recommend having a native
speaker present to assist with the process.
When a foreign driver's licence is exchanged
for a Bulgarian one, its validity is veri ed and
the foreign licence is returned to the country
of origin with an explanation of the reason
for the exchange.
UK Citizens who need to
Exchange their licence after
Brexit
If the UK leaves the EU with an agreement,
within the transition period driver’s licences
issued by the UK, will be treated as driver’s
licences issued by an EU Member State and
UK nationals will be able to use their UK
driver’s licences until their expiry date or
until the end of the transition period on 31
December 2020, whichever comes rst.
If there is no agreement, from the day after
the date of withdrawal, driver’s licences
issued by the UK, will be treated by the
Republic of Bulgaria as driver’s licences,
issued by a State – Party to the Road Tra c
Convention of 1968 meeting the
requirements under Annex 6 to the
Convention.
This process can be used when your licence
expires or is lost or stolen. A driver's licence
can only be exchanged in Bulgaria if the
person is a legal resident in the country.
Drivers licences are exchanged at your local
Tra c Police o ce in Bulgaria, take your
original driver’s licence and your residency
permit with you for this process.
It is recommended to have someone assist
you with completing any paperwork that is
written in Bulgarian only to ensure that there
are no mistakes.
Bulgaria driver’s
licence exchange

5. Driving In Bulgaria
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You can complete your lodgement at the
Tra c Police O ce in your local area. Below
is the
Therefore, UK nationals, who have
established their habitual residence in
Bulgaria, can drive motor vehicles in the
territory of the country with their UK driver’s
licences up to one year from the date of
issuance of their Bulgarian residence
document. Within this one year, the UK
driver’s licence can be substituted for a
Bulgarian one without passing an exam. To
that end, they need to present the following
documents
1. The application provided by the Tra c
Police Unit.
2. Physical tness assessment card of the
driver/candidate for obtaining a driver’s
licence, issued by a general practitioner
or by Transport Central or Regional
Medical Expert Committee.
3. For categories C1, C, D1, or D, a copy of
a certi cate for psychological tness.
4. A declaration, stating that habitual
residence is not in another EU Member
State and the person does not own a
valid driver’s licence issued by another
Member State.
5. Copy of a certi cate for completed at
least the rst level of secondary
education. If the education was
completed in a foreign country,
certi cate under Article 110, Para 3 of
Ordinance No. 11, dated 1st September
2016 on assessing students’ education
results (State Gazette, issue 74/2016).
Deadline for issuing of a driver’s licence after
you have submitted your application.
Up to 30 days after submission of the
application for normal service;
Up to 10 days after submission of the
application for express service.
The replacement of your licence with a
Bulgarian driver’s licence will take place after
presenting the UK driver’s licence. The
replaced driver’s licence will be returned to
the UK. This replacement process cannot be
done when the driver’s licence issued by the
UK has been lost or stolen.

6. Driving In Bulgaria
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There are many places within Bulgaria where
you can get this done depending on your
location, a quick online search or enquiry
with your Bulgarian friends should help you
to locate a suitable provider. Please keep in
mind that this is also part of the standard set
of documents that the police may require
from you if they stop you for an inspection,
so it may be worthwhile keeping it in your
car.
The Technical Inspection your car will have to
pass depends on which kind of vehicle you
have:
One of the main problems that people
encounter with buying a used car in Bulgaria
is that the seller does not have any
obligation to provide the consumer with a
technical report. They only have to provide a
valid technical inspection document (this
document is not enough to prove that the
car is in good condition). In Bulgaria, all
vehicles must have a valid Technical
Inspection to be sold. The technical
inspection cost around BGN 40 (this is about
EUR 20) and is completed at a certi ed place
where you will be issued a document called
an Annual Technical Inspection.
There are no restrictions on used cars for
sale in Bulgaria, second-hand cars can be
purchased both in car showrooms and from
companies dealing in resale. You also have
the option to buy a used car directly from
the car’s owner.
Before you start thinking about buying a car
in Bulgaria, it is important to double-check if
your home country driver’s is valid in
Bulgaria, if not you can follow the process
above to resolve the matter.
licence
Buying a car in
Bulgaria

7. Driving In Bulgaria
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Cars owners must undergo a TI annually.
Taxis are required to undergo a TI every 6
months.
Trucks over 10 years of age are also
required to undergo a TI every 6 months.
New cars do not have to complete a TI until
their third year, with a second review 2
years after the rst (they occur annually
after the fth year).
As mentioned above when you decide to buy
a second-hand car in Bulgaria you have a few
options to choose from. You can buy a used
vehicle from one of the licenced car dealers,
or you buy it directly from a private seller. If
you are buying a second-hand car in Bulgaria
it is always recommended to be
accompanied by a trusted mechanic, or if
you can’t get a mechanic to attend with you
then at least go with someone who knows a
lot about cars.
Unfortunately in Bulgaria, the car dealers
can hide relevant information about the
condition of the car, not to mention that
many vehicles have their mileage lowered to
look newer than they really are, an action
that is a felony in Bulgaria but is still a
common practice in some car dealers.
How to buy or sell a
used car in Bulgaria
1. Vehicle registration document.
2. The roadworthiness stamp and
certi cate.
3. A receipt proving payment of the
annual vehicle tax, the owner of a car
receives this after paying the yearly
vehicle tax at the Local Taxes and Fees
O ce.
4. Proof of identity.
5. Proof of third-party insurance.
The contract must be signed by both parties
or their legal representative(s) before it can
be declared valid by the Notary. If the car is
owned by a company it is not necessary to
sign with a Notary. The signed contract is
required for the new owner to register the
car in their name at the local Tra c Police
O ce.
The seller is responsible for
the following:

8. Driving In Bulgaria
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As mentioned at the beginning of this eBook
we suggest you have all documents that are
not in Bulgarian translated and to arrange to
have someone attend the Tra c Police
O ce with you to help you with the
paperwork and to assist with the vehicle
registration process, it is quite a challenging
process even for Bulgarians. It is ideal to
arrive as early as possible in the morning as
it can take some time to complete the
process and there may be other people
waiting to do the same thing.
1. Registration application form (provided
by the local Tra c Police O ce in
Bulgarian).
2. The original vehicle purchase contract
and a copy.
3. Proof of payment of the vehicle tax.
4. A valid third-party insurance policy,
compulsory for all vehicles.
5. Proof of identity.
6. Proof of address registration obtained
from the local Address Registration
O ce, usually in the corresponding City
Hall.
7. The vehicle’s previous registration
document.
For the sale of a used car between two
private individuals to be considered legal,
both the seller and the buyer must sign a
vehicle purchase contract in front of a
Notary. You can pay for the car in cash if the
amount is up to BGN 9 999 (approximately
EUR 5 111), anything above this limit should
be paid via a bank transfer.
Local Tra c Police require
the following documents
for the registration
1. Proof of identity.
2. Payment.
3. Registering the Vehicle. Within 14 days
the new owner must go to the local
Tra c Police O ce to register the
vehicle. The vehicle must be registered
in the town of the new owner’s
permanent address in Bulgaria.
The buyer is responsible
for the following:

9. Driving In Bulgaria
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You can import private vehicles (cars, trucks,
etc.) into Bulgaria, the vehicle can be brought
from an EU member state or any other
country. If you move to Bulgaria, you can
bring your vehicle with you even if it is
registered in another country and it is
possible to temporarily drive it within
Bulgarian for up to six months without
changing the plates, as long as the car has a
valid Third Party liability insurance.
Before the six month period ends, you will
need to register the car in Bulgaria. If the
vehicle has been previously registered in a
member state of the European Union or EEA,
you are not required to pay import duty or
VAT. But if you import your vehicle from a
country outside the European Union or EEA,
you will need to pay the corresponding
import duties and VAT.
If you buy a vehicle from a car dealer, you will
be required to pay the amount of VAT
applicable in the country where you rst buy
the car which means you will not have to pay
VAT in Bulgaria. Be aware that new cars are
considered a “used vehicle” when it’s six
months old or has been driven more than 6
000 km.
Registering a vehicle
as a company asset
You will have to choose between registering
the vehicle for personal use or as a company
asset. If you decide to register your car as a
company asset, you rst need to be a
Bulgarian resident, have your ID card, and be
ready to present the following documents at
the Bulgarian Tra c Police to obtain
Bulgarian licence plates:
The import duty for cars in Bulgaria is 10%,
and the VAT in Bulgaria is 20%.
After you have completed the registration
process with the Tra c Police O ce you
have 2 months from the date of registering
the vehicle to inform the municipality of your
address if the vehicle has been registered in
the name of a person. Or where the
company is located if the car has been
registered with the name of a company or a
representative's o ce. When submitting the
declaration, you will be given a reference
number, please ensure that you keep this
number as you can use it to track your
liabilities and pay the annual tax for your
vehicle.
Importing a vehicle to
Bulgaria

10. Driving In Bulgaria
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Your Bulgarian third party car insurance is
valid in all EU member states and outside of
Europe as well. It covers all damages and
liabilities caused to a third party. You have to
ensure that the insurance is purchased in
the name of the person who brought the car,
not in the name of the driver. By doing this
the person who drives the vehicle is also
covered for the damages caused to the third
party due to a car accident.
1. Bulgarian Certi cate of Good Standing.
2. Third-party liability insurance
(purchased on the same day).
3. Proof of paid Eco Tax (purchased on
the same day).
4. Current Countries registration
documents.
5. Current licence plates or export plates.
Please note that vehicles imported from
countries outside the EU/EEA will need to
undergo a technical test in Bulgaria. Also,
Right-hand drive (RHD) vehicles must have
the headlights adjusted before registration.
Third-party car
insurance
Third-party car insurance is mandatory in
Bulgaria and the price depends primarily on
the engine power of the vehicle adjusted by a
factor depending on the year of
manufacture.
Alternatively, the vehicle can be registered as
a company asset when bought by a
Bulgarian limited company. Company
formation is simple and can be done in a
short period, it takes a few working days for
a new Bulgarian company to be o cially
registered and incorporated, please see our
eBook on how to set up a company in
Bulgaria if you need more information on
this process. If you set up a limited company
you will need to provide the following
1. Valid Bulgarian ID card.
2. Ownership documents.
3. Third-Party Liability Insurance
(purchased the same day).
4. Proof of paid Eco Tax (purchased the
same day).
5. Current Countries registration
documents.
6. Current licence plates or export plates.
7. Bulgarian car plates from the So a
region.

11. Driving In Bulgaria
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Foreigner BG would like to wish you all the
best with your life in Bulgaria and we hope
that this eBook has been useful to your
transition into this amazing country.
A nal note to consider if you want to drive
your vehicle on public roads outside your
local town or city in Bulgarian. You will need
to buy an electronic vignette which can be
bought online or in any gas station. The
vignette is how you will pay for road tolls in
Bulgaria so you will need one if you plan to
drive on public highways and roads outside
of where the car is registered. Duration of
these electronic vignettes range from one
year, six months, one month, one week, or a
weekend. Pricing varies depending on the
option you choose but detailed pricing
information is readily available online.