º£½ÇÂÒÂ×

Welcome!

You're likely to be cold wherever you are, compared to the UK these days. How cold depends on what kind of property you live in, how it's heated, how well (if at all) it's insulated and exactly what "cold" means to you. In the winter, our main kitchen gets down as low as 6C but that doesn't really bother us and we don't bother to turn the AC on (boarding school and cold showers make you tough 😎). It's around 7C lower up here than in the centre of Sofia all year round.

An apartment is easy to keep warm but you might have something more rural/expansive in mind.

morning Jim, thanks for the reply!

inside the house im not overly worried about as i can improve this if needed, just wanted to make sure the area i picked wasnt too close to serbia etc as im guessing that has a much colder winter as to somwhere over the east side?

i will be looking for something more rurl if possible. would very much like to have my own little piece of BG to maintain and enjoy. 😀

@Martin Adams

Hi Martin,

  I live in Varna. I've lived here now for four and a half years. I'm married to a Bulgarian lady.

Happy to meet with you, for a chat and advise on anything I can.

If your income is more than the minimum Bulgarian wage, then you shouldn't have any problems, applying for a D Visa, although I would suggest that you have proof that it's paid regularly e.g. monthly.

From what I'm recently reading, you will also need to open a Bulgarian bank account and deposit 12 x the minimum monthly wage (i.e. one years minimum wages) in order to apply for residency. The rules and amounts have changed over the last few years and significantly higher deposits are now required.  This may increase still further, if the minimum wage rises.  Note too, that the deposited money will not be able to be used for anything else, for five years, as you will have to renew your residency, every year for five years and proof of that deposit is required every renewal.

Opening an account here is not the easiest thing to achieve, because banks have tightened their regulations on who can apply. I'm not saying it's impossible, but you might hit a few stumbling blocks, before you can open one.

Although these are not classed as Bulgarian accounts, do you have a Wise or Revolut account?  Either of these helps tremendously, when transferring money,or paying for things in local currency.  I'm with Wise and the fees, exchange rates and transparency are brilliant.

On the subject of why I ended up in Varna, I really hadn't planned on living in Varna when I arrived in Bulgaria in 2020. Initially I was in Veliko Tarnovo, renting a one bedroom apartment.  But life's never boring and, as they say, when you're not looking, love arrives at your fleet...  I met my wife to be in October 2020, after my arrival in August.

In December 2020, we moved to Varna, which is where she's originally from.  We initially rented a large two bedroom apartment, for 14 months, then we bought our two apartments, followed later, by two garages and a parking space.

Do I love Varna?  Yes, absolutely! Do I miss Veliko Tarnovo? No, but it is a nice place to go and visit for a weekend.  There are many reasons for liking Varna - too many to list here!  That said, Varna is not everyone's cup of tea and some prefer Burgas, others prefer smaller towns like Balchik and Nessebar.

The question of where you move to depends on so much about what you actually want from your life here.  Some want the rural life, some want the city life, some want a house, some want an apartment. Some like the summers, some like the winters. But you should also be aware of your hidden needs, such as health and affordability.  Living in a remote village might seem a dream, until winter comes, you get snowed in, the power fails, the water freezes and you suddenly need an ambulance!  Okay, that's a drastic scenario, but it could in theory happen in Bulgaria.  Living in a town or city has it's benefits, as I've found out, but it's busy busy busy and not exactly tranquil.

The winters here in Varna are much milder than inland areas - we rarely get snow and if we do, it's gone in a few days.  The winter months are really December, January and February. The trees start going green in march/April with blossoms everywhere in April/May. The sun shines a lot from May to November.

Ian

Martin, I hope you love Bulgaria and find what you want!

If you hope to avoid the cold the southern Black Sea coast region, south of Burgas, is the warmest winter area in Bg, but winters there are probably still at least as cold as UK winters, especially if you choose a village a little way inland. Our Bg house is in a village in the north-east, up near the Romanian border, about 60 km inland from the sea. Winters are colder than the UK for sure, though not as cold as central or western Bg. We love Dobrich region because I'm a country girl at heart and the wide agricultural fields remind me of rural Australia. But the wind does sweep down from the north across the Danubian Plains making it c-c-cold in winter! I would say spring reaches the village three weeks at least laster than it does in our UK house.

We started our search pre-Brexit in Veliko Tarnovo region -- wonderful historic city, cold winters, lots of expats, then looked at Varna region. Varna is a wonderful city and unlike many of the more resort-focused coastal areas doesn't shut down completely in winter. But prices there have increased more dramatically than many other areas and unfortunately we're priced out of that area now. But your budget may be different!

We didn't really choose the region we'll be living in, more ended up settling on the house here by accident. I bought the house online sight-unseen just before the Brexit deadline because it was a case of any cheap house that would let us get residency under the old rules, with no intention of actually living in it. Unfortunately getting residency didn't happen due to Covid lockdowns and hubby getting seriously ill and my mistaken belief I could get an Irish passport (turned out my "Irish" grandfather was born in Liverpool and never registered as Irish!). Just to say -- allow some space for serendipity in your search. Our place ticks none of the boxes on my house search requirements list, but we both ended up both loving the village and the house so we intend to make it our home. It was in a very run down state and still needs a lot more work to be fully livable.

As Ian says, village life requires a degree of preparedness thinking. Not full-on prepper style, but it's probably wise to plan to be able to get through at least a week of no outside services, as a minimum, just in case. That depends how remote the village is, if you choose a village house.

Getting a D visa -- you probably have already thought of this, but is your business an actual company registered at Companies House with two years worth of tax returns? That's the requirement if you want to get the D visa as a Trade Representative Overseas for your UK company. Just having an adequate income unfortunately isn't enough to get a D visa. We haven't moved yet, for this reason, and as I'm close to pension age after considering the other options we decided it was easier to wait until I qualify for a retirement visa.

@Martin Adams

As you've probably already discovered, for a Brit owning your little piece of BG involves it belonging to a BG company owned by you (unless it's an apartment).

The weather aspect is a little complicated but by and large the area around Sandanski is generally considered to be warmer in the winter than that of the Black Sea coastal areas; that's because the "feels like" temperature around the Black Sea is affected by sea breezes, while Sandanski basically sits in a protective valley and is close to the Med.  However, those sea breezes do serve to keep the Black Sea resorts cooler in the summer, while Sandanski roasts..

We are in Aheloy, near Nesebar/Sunny Beach and I can confirm that it gets damn cold and ultra windy here.

@cyberescue1

hi ian!! thanks for such a great reply!! would be so good to meet up and hear more about your story and experiences!!

Im not putting any expectations in my head for anything, i think im looking forward to just heading out and travelling until i find the place that speaks to me! i chose varna first just because from research it has a slightly better weather calendar.

as for bank account etc its great to know, i currently live extremely below my means and would be more than happy to meet the financial requirements BG request.

great to hear youve bought multiple properties there and congratulations on also finding your wife there too! if you'd be so kind to share a coffee with me between the 19th - 24th would be great to hear more about your experience! 

many thanks

martin

@JimJ

hi jim! yes ive done as much research as i can up to this point to making this an achievable feat, i think i have the foundations too be able to join you guys out there in BG and hopefully leave the UK to continue to fall to its knees!

Thanks for the heads up on other locations too! will definitely add these to places of interest!!

many thanks! 

@RexTechGuy

Hi rex thanks for the comment! looking forward to coming out and seeing how different it is to the uk. will probably plan a trip every 8-10 weeks or so to try and get an idea of the different weather conditions.

@janemulberry

Hey jane! thanks for such a great insight! im also a country lad at heart and love the idea of breaking away from the uk and the high cost of living and lack of affordable enjoyment.

Seems like VT is a popular choice for alot of people, is this mainly due to its affordability do you think ?

im super excited to visit Varna in the upcoming weeks! if i'm honest i wasn't looking to purchase in Varna, i was just visiting as a place to experience my first BG visit! im very open to anywhere in BG that budget allows. Probably not the biggest of budgets but i am looking for something that requires work so i can renovate to my tastes. Im mainy looking to own land  which will allow me to live a life i wouldn't be able to in the uk.

Oh wow what a story that is! sounds like its been a rollercoaster for you but hopefully your onto greener pastures now? i am travelling with  0 expectations just so i give every option a fighting chance haha!

My business is uk based and is registered with company house, i was lead to believe i would need a BG company setup. If im honest i haven't looked into the trade representative option, i earn a passive income that would allow me to live pretty much full time in BG so was hoping to eventually have that as my ideal setup.

thanks so much for such a great reply! hope you have a great weekend!

@Martin Adams

It's a bit complicated!  You will need to set up a Bg company if you want to buy any property other than an apartment with no share of the land it's on, as non-EU citizens can't own land. But there's no need to do that until you're ready to buy, the estate agents will generally help you set it up for a reasonable fee, and to keep things simple, most people will keep this as a non-working company.

Getting the D visa as a first step to residency is a completely separate issue. Having a Bg company and having a decent passive income unfortunately DON'T help when it comes to getting the visa!

If you haven't already, you really do need to seriously look at the various criteria for the D visa. You can find more about the options here: This is an immigration lawyer's site, not a specific recommendation for her, but she does lay things out more clearly than the Bg Embassy does!  Trade Representative Overseas is one of the easiest options for working age Brits, and you have a head start as you already have a UK registered company.

Unless you can qualify for a D visa, you can spend 90 days per 180 in the Schengen zone (including Bulgaria) but you can't legally move there to stay. So getting clear on this and knowing the steps you need to take to get the visa is an important step before looking at property and setting your heart on somewhere!

Why so many Brits choose the VT region? I think because there's still relatively lower cost property in the villages there. It's surrounded by lovely countryside. VT city has pretty much everything anyone needs and plenty of interesting history. It's easy to get to either Varna or Sofia, or the mountains. There are plenty of Brits already there, including British property sellers and English speaking estate agents. We started looking there simply because hubby read a British couples' blog, they had converted the annex of their village house to a guest apartment, and we decided to stay there for a couple of weeks for our first visit to Bg. But there are plenty of other regions worth looking at, too.

Varna is a great place to start as well. You need a generous budget to buy in the city itself, but there's more affordable property in the region and in Dobrich region. If you decide you want to visit further afield, there are buses to almost everywhere from the main Varna bus station. (Forget long-distance trains, unless you are a train buff. They are very cheap but very slow and not as reliable as the bus network).

I hope you have a great trip!

@janemulberry

amazing thanks so much!! plenty of reading this weekend!

@Martin Adams

Having an ongoing income is, of course, a very positive factor. However, Bulgaria has no specific residence option based on passive income (unlike, say, Spain's NLV or Portugal's D7).

Passive income from a business doesn't count as a pension, so that option is off the table. My guess is that the most plausible option would be the TRO (freelancer might work too, but requires proven language proficiency). The TRO is a registration (with the BCCI) of a foreign entity (e.g. UK limited company) with at least 2 years of trading history. With a successful TRO registration, you can apply for a D visa.

You should note that the TRO is not a trading entity, so in Bulgaria you can either continue to trade via your UK entity, or (and) establish a new Bulgarian EOOD. You should also note that the TRO criteria are related to the proper establishment of the entity and sufficient trading history, rather than the specifics of your income/profit (and whether you could live on it). Separately, as part of your D visa application (with the TRO registration in hand), you would need to demonstrate your financial means, and I doubt your claim to regular passive income would be convincing. More likely, you'd find it easier to make sure you have a year's worth (or more) of the necessary income stashed in a bank account (ideally, but not necessarily, one in Bulgaria).

In general, I consider Bulgaria to be ideal for someone with the ability to work, and generate income, remotely. You benefit from the higher income generated in a prosperous country, while enjoying the low living costs of the EU's poorest country. Additionally, being mobile, you can choose to live in a village and hence save substantially on property costs. Bulgaria has excellent internet connectivity even in small villages. We have fiber to our door for 20 lv per month, and we live up in the Balkan Mountains.

Good luck with move!

@Martin Adams

In terms of areas, I'd suggest the most desirable (but expensive) options are in/near the big cities (Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas). Some smaller cities (e.g. Stara Zagora, Veliko Tarnovo) might also appeal.

The Black Sea coast is very popular and can include the mentioned big cities (Varna and Burgas) plus a number of attractive smaller towns (Balchik, Sveti Vlas, Nessebar, Pomorie, Sozopol, etc.). Sunny Beach is the main summer resort, but it can be quite polarizing (some love it, I'd personally find it very difficult to spend more than a day or two there).

On of the joys of Bulgaria (for me and many others) is its beautiful wide open spaces and National Parks, especially its mountains (e.g. Pirin, Rila, Rodopes, Balkan). It might be you'd also appreciate these areas.

I won't claim that I had particular foresight, or that I made exhaustive research. On the contrary, I was pretty lazy and made decisions based mostly on the (large, reputable) agent's pretty pictures. :-) I also checked the offer/price by comparing other agents, and did a lot of Google searches and exploring Street View. However, whether by luck (a lot) or judgement (a little) we ended up with a wonderful property portfolio, in locations that I heartily recommend.

We have a city flat in downtown Plovdiv (former European Capital of Culture, handily located middway between Sofia and the coast, and two mountain ranges (Balkan Mountains and the Rodopes). Our village house is near Shipka, an area famous for heroic Bulgarians, Thracian Kings, and Roses. With easy access to the Buzludzha Monument and the Central Balkan National Park. We also have a holiday studio in Bulgaria's biggest ski resort (Bansko), just outside the spectacular Pirin National Park. I consider myself a frugal shopper, but I wasn't shopping for the cheapest possible properties. I searched for the best deals in move-in-ready properties in the most desirable locations, and was willing to pay significantly more for something that met our criteria. I encourage folks to push their budget to their maximum, rather than fixating on the cheap-and-cheerful / ruins that are on offer.

@gwynj

good evening mate!! thanks for such an amazing reply! never found such an informative a great forum before!!

this is some really useful information!! a years worth of wages wouldn't be an issue if that was the deciding factor. i have a few business bank account which i would be happy to use for proof of finance.

Really looking to try to build a paradise away from the chaos in the UK at the moment, as i mentioned in the OP im currently 32 but already want to lease as soon as possible so im hoping within 12 months this can be achieved!

great to hear you speak so positively about BG, i cnt wait for my trip in the next few weeks

@gwynj

another incredible comment with tons of useful information! thanks alot mate!

im not looking for anything luxurious or too materialistic, i would much rather something in a great rural location with a nice amount of land and modest property that i can renovate into something that myself and others can enjoy.

youve given alot of areas for me to research tommorrow, i think i would definitely agree in regard to the wide open spaces! ive made sure to rent a car for my trip to make sure i can venture out to anywhere that takes my fancy.

would be great to continue to discuss with you if possible maybe by private message? as i am in the property industry and would be great to hear more on your journey. Sounds like you have incredible knowledge of BG too!

thanks so much

kindest regards

martin