Entity Formation in Bulgaria

Ready for a permanent Bulgarian presence? We help you incorporate the right way, and stay alongside you for the accounting, payroll, and compliance that follow. Independent advice, including telling you when it is too early.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners
  • Honest timing

What incorporating in Bulgaria means

An OOD (Дружество с ограничена отговорност, limited liability company), or its single-member variant EOOD, is the standard vehicle for a permanent business presence, registered with the Commercial Register at the Registry Agency. Larger or listed operations sometimes use an AD (joint-stock company, minimum capital EUR 25,000) or its single-shareholder variant EAD. When you form one, you become the legal employer and operator in Bulgaria, with full control and no per-employee EOR fees, in exchange for the setup time and the ongoing obligations.

01

Your own company

Your own OOD or EOOD makes you the legal employer and operator in Bulgaria, with full control of employment terms and a local brand presence.

02

Lower cost at scale

No per-employee EOR fees. For permanent, proven headcount, owning the entity is more cost-effective than ongoing EOR arrangements.

03

Setup takes time

The Registry Agency itself decides on a clean filing within one to three business days, but end to end, incorporation commonly takes one to two weeks once documents and the registered office are in place, longer for a remote, power-of-attorney filing, and you cannot employ anyone until the Commercial Register entry completes. Timing the move matters, which is why many companies bridge with an EOR first.

How incorporating in Bulgaria works, step by step

From structuring the company to operating it compliantly.

01 — Structure & prepare

We confirm incorporation is right for you, then prepare the company agreement (or founding act for a single-member EOOD), run the company-name availability check, and arrange your registered Bulgarian office address.

02 — Capital & notarisation

Unlike some EU jurisdictions, the Bulgarian company agreement itself does not need to be notarised. What does: the manager’s consent-to-serve and specimen signature, which must be notarised (and apostilled if signed abroad). Minimum share capital for an OOD/EOOD is a nominal EUR 1, so there is little to deposit before you can incorporate; an AD/EAD needs EUR 25,000, at least 25% paid in before registration.

03 — Register the company

The company is entered in the Commercial Register at the Registry Agency, then registered with the National Revenue Agency (NRA) for corporate tax and VAT if required, so you can operate and employ compliantly.

04 — Operate & stay compliant

Business bank account, then ongoing accounting, payroll, filings, and annual reporting, all of which we can run for you.

What incorporating in Bulgaria costs

Two kinds of cost: the one-off formation, and the ongoing operating obligations. Bulgaria’s formation cost is low; the real commitment is the ongoing compliance. We give you a clear figure before you commit.

Share capital & formation

Minimum share capital for an OOD/EOOD is a nominal EUR 1 (minimum EUR 0.01 per share), so there is almost nothing to deposit before you incorporate; an AD/EAD needs EUR 25,000. The Registry Agency’s state filing fee is EUR 28, plus notary fees for the manager’s specimen signature, typically a modest fixed cost regardless of company size.

Corporate tax

Flat 10% on taxable profit, unchanged since 2007, plus a 5% withholding tax on distributed dividends (15% combined effective). Pillar Two’s 15% effective minimum may apply as a top-up for in-scope multinational groups.

VAT

Standard VAT is 20% (reduced rate 9% on hotel accommodation, books, and baby food/hygiene items). Registration is mandatory once turnover passes EUR 51,130 in a calendar year, from 1 January 2026 measured on a fixed calendar-year basis rather than a rolling 12 months, with a 7-day filing window once the threshold is crossed.

Ongoing obligations

Accounting, monthly payroll (income tax, social security, and health insurance combined into one NRA remittance), the corporate tax return (due 30 June following the tax year), VAT filings, and annual financial statements filed with the Commercial Register by 30 September, all of which we can manage for you.

Why form your Bulgarian company through Bradford Jacobs

Why companies incorporate in Bulgaria through us rather than a one-off formation agent.

We advise you on the best time to incorporate

We are independent: we assess what you actually need, place you with the right vetted partner, secure pricing you will not get going direct, and stay on your side to escalate or renegotiate. You get advice, not a product pitch.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners only
  • On your side at renewal

End-to-end, not just the paperwork

We do not disappear after registration. We stay on for the accounting, payroll, and compliance, so your company runs, not just exists.

  • Beyond registration
  • Ongoing compliance
  • One team throughout

The right specialists, in place

Notary, tax, and accounting partners we have vetted and worked with, coordinated for you, so the process moves and nothing gets missed.

  • Vetted specialists
  • Coordinated for you
  • Nothing gets missed

Two decades of formations

Two decades forming and running entities across global markets, with the local knowledge to keep you compliant and out of the common traps.

  • Incorporations
  • Legal & tax partners
  • Traps avoided

We run it after you form it

Incorporation is the start, not the finish. We stay on for accounting, payroll, tax filings, and annual accounts, so your company operates from day one without you building a local finance function.

  • Full back office
  • Accounting & payroll
  • Annual accounts

The incorporation trap nobody flags

A growing business hits a good quarter and someone says, let us just set up a proper Bulgarian company. It sounds responsible. It usually is not, yet. Here is what people expect against what happens in practice.

Employment & payroll obligations

Expectation: it takes a few weeks and is just admin. Reality: the company agreement itself does not need notarising, but a registered Bulgarian office, a notarised manager’s specimen signature, and registration with the NRA all apply, and you cannot legally employ anyone until those registrations are live.

Tax, filing & reporting obligations

Expectation: we can always reverse it. Reality: dissolving a company needs a shareholder resolution, creditor notification, and a winding-up period. And once it exists, the obligations do not stop: annual financial statements due 30 September, monthly payroll filings, corporate tax and VAT returns, and (for medium and large entities) a statutory audit. None of this is a reason not to incorporate. It is a reason to do it at the right time, with the right partners already in place.

What we handle for your company

Beyond incorporation, we can run the full back office for your company.

Compliant payroll

Compliant Bulgarian payroll and employment administration, issued and maintained for you.

Payroll & filings

Monthly payroll run, with income tax, social security, and health insurance calculated, withheld, and filed each month.

Statutory benefits

All statutory benefits administered: annual leave, sick pay, parental leave, notice and severance.

Compliance & support

Ongoing HR compliance and a single point of contact, for the life of the engagement.

Your questions answered

Straight answers on incorporating and running a company in Bulgaria.

How long does it take to incorporate in Bulgaria?

The Registry Agency itself decides within one to three business days once a clean filing is lodged. End to end, most straightforward OOD/EOOD incorporations complete in one to two weeks once the notarised specimen signature, capital, and registered address are in place, longer for a remote, power-of-attorney filing. You cannot legally employ anyone until registration completes, which is why timing matters and why many companies bridge with an EOR first.

A nominal EUR 1 in total (minimum EUR 0.01 per share), so there is almost nothing to deposit before you incorporate. An AD/EAD needs EUR 25,000, at least 25% paid in before registration. The Registry Agency’s state filing fee is EUR 28. The real cost is the ongoing accounting and compliance, which we can run for you.

Yes. There is no residency or citizenship requirement for shareholders or managers; a non-EU, non-resident individual can be sole shareholder and sole manager of an EOOD, managing remotely. You will need a registered Bulgarian office, which we arrange, and the manager’s specimen signature still has to be notarised, apostilled if signed abroad.

Incorporate when you have permanent, proven headcount and want full control, and the per-head savings justify the ongoing costs. Use EOR while you are still validating the market or need people working quickly. Most companies start with EOR and incorporate later. We advise on the crossover.

Accounting, monthly payroll (income tax, social security, and health insurance combined into one NRA remittance), the corporate tax return (due 30 June), VAT filings, and annual financial statements filed with the Commercial Register by 30 September (plus a statutory audit for medium and large entities). We can run all of it so the entity stays compliant without you building a local finance function.

Yes, and it is how most companies use us. Beyond incorporation we provide ongoing accounting, payroll, and compliance, so your Bulgarian company operates smoothly from day one without hiring locally for back office.

Ready to form your company in Bulgaria?

Tell us your plans for Bulgaria and we will tell you honestly whether now is the time to incorporate, then handle it end to end if it is, usually scoped within a day. No formation-mill upsell, just the right call.

Tax, company, and labour data verified July 2026 (NRA, NSSI, the Registry Agency’s Commercial Register, PwC). Figures change; we confirm the current position when we scope your formation.