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@SandraW

Hi Sandra

Im going through an application at the moment for D type visa for a retired person on a Company pension but i dont suppose it makes much difference what type of pension you have, im not state pension age yet.

Because you say you have a pension at the moment You will need a letter from your pension provider stateing what your pension is a month and i presume it will also be shown on the 3 months of bank statements you will need as part of your visa application documents.

Make sure they sign the letter because if they dont you will end up having to fork out money to get it notorised like iv just had to before the Apostille companies will get it apostilled.

there are only 2 documents that required to be appostilled which are the above and also the ACRO police check , after that you must get them translated to Bulgarian by a certified BG Embassy translator which you can find on the BG Embassy online site. the translations have to be then certified by the BG embassy london.  Not sure though if its before or after the interview? i did ask the question but they never gave me the answer.  so im going to presume its after.  the stage im at is awaiting my 2 nd ACRO check which takes a month to get. delays have rendered the one i have obsolete because of the time frames for getting the visa and the residency that follows.  the ACRO check is the one which will cause problems coz it only lasts for 6 months.

Anything else you need to know just ask and ill do my best.  ill be putting in for my interview about the 2nd week of december so will update the site again after my interview

Sandra, if I understand it correctly, for TRO you need to first have or know someone with a non-Bulgarian company that's registered (for the UK, that would be Companies House) and be able to show it's in good standing. Which doesn't mean it has to turn a profit but it does need to have submitted the correct documentation for tax etc in the previous two years. Then you apply to the Bulgarian Department of Trade and Industry to be that company's representative in Bulgaria. Then, with all that paperwork in hand, you apply for the D visa at the Bulgarian Embassy in your country of residence.

If you get a retirement pension, private or Government, of more than about 440 GBP, probably applying for the pensioner visa would be simpler.  I think I have that right. The pension needs to match the Bulgarian minimum wage (440 GBP at current exchange rates) if you're not yet official retirement age and match the Bulgarian OAP (210 GBP) if you're over retirement age.

@janemulberry

the new monthly minimum wage goes up to 900+leva in January

The other problem worth mentioning is if you have a partner/spouse/dependant they will not be able to be processed at the same time as the person with a pension unless they also have a pension. aswell  If they dont then you get your residence permit and then they can apply as a family member which is quite simple but can only happen after

@philip Mckay

Yes. I used the figure of 993 BGN, which I'd seen quoted as next year's minimum wage.

Good point about the pension D visa not covering both members of a couple. I'm three years older than hubby, so I'll need to apply for my D visa as soon as I can get my pension and then once I have my residency card, apply for family reunification for him. His work pension from an previous employer is more than the Bg OAP, but not as much as the minimum wage. So unless we wait till he's also old enough, family reunification is the only way.

yes this reunification can be quite a problem in the fact that as a couple its a good idea to be able to do your residence permit renewal together but you can be 6 months apart on your dates for renewal ...   we wont live in Bulgaria for the whole year because our plan is winter up in the mountains skiing for 3 months. do any repairs to the house there and then down to the Black sea for late spring and the summer, return to the Mountains for a week to get some winter prep done like fill all the Gas Bottles  and air the house ready for our return in mid January  for another ski trip    .

Then fly back to UK late September to see relatives for a couple of weeks and then fly to Philipinnes for the autumn and xmas ...  if you think xmas starts early in UK you should see it in Philipinnes way OTT! lol 

@SandraW

Registering a Trade representative office for obtaining a residence permit in Bulgaria is great option for non-EU citizens who has already a active company abroad. Of the company is dormand or without 2 active years they can use some friends '

company.

When the registration is ready a Certificate with one month validity is issues and applicant vacancies apply with all other required documents.

It is really fast and useful procedure for Brits. I've helped a lot of them registering TROs.

@philip Mckay thank you

@janemulberry thanks

(a) Family reunification is typically pretty easy, and pretty quick. If one partner can get their D visa / residence permit, then it should be no problem for the other to get it via reunification.

(b) For the TRO a requirement is a foreign company, and many here don't have an overseas business, and it can seem like a very daunting requirement. However, the UK is a very easy (and inexpensive) place to incorporate, with everything done online. And with Wise doing business accounts now, you don't even need to visit a bank. It doesn't have to be a huge business, you just need to put a few transactions through so that you don't get "dormant" accounts (i.e. when the company is completely inactive, no transactions of any kind).