Service 05 of 08
EU Blue Card and Work Permits (Bulgaria)
The EU Blue Card is the fastest route for a qualified employee, but it is not the only one. A Bulgarian work permit, a Single Permit, or an Intra-Corporate Transfer authorisation may fit your case better, depending on who you are relocating and where they are applying from. We tell you which route applies before you file anything.
- EU Blue Card up to 4 years, for qualified employees
- 1.5x average salary minimum for Blue Card eligibility
- 3 routes Blue Card, Single Permit, or Intra-Corporate Transfer
- Up to 2 months statutory cap for a Single Permit decision
What's included
The EU Blue Card, and the two other routes worth knowing about
The EU Blue Card is built for skilled employment: it requires a higher education qualification or equivalent professional experience, a job contract of at least twelve months, and a salary at least one and a half times the average for the relevant occupation in Bulgaria. It is granted for up to four years and carries mobility rights across much of the rest of the EU after an initial period.
The Single Permit is the general route for combined work and residence authorisation. It exists for roles that do not meet the Blue Card's salary or qualification bar, and it is subject to a labour-market test: the Employment Agency checks whether the position could reasonably be filled by a Bulgarian or EU candidate first, unless the role falls under a quota exemption. It is granted for up to three years.
The Intra-Corporate Transfer permit is different in kind, not just in name. It exists only for staff already employed by a company outside the EU who are being transferred to a related entity inside Bulgaria — a manager, a specialist, or a trainee. Unlike the other two routes, the application has to be filed while the employee is still outside Bulgaria, and the receiving company must show a genuine group relationship rather than one created to move staff around.
We file for the route that actually fits, not the one that is easiest to explain
The three permits have different eligibility tests, different document lists and different filing windows. Choosing the wrong one on the assumption that "a permit is a permit" is the most common cause of delay we see. We check eligibility against all three before we recommend one.
Deliverables
5 items- Permit-route assessment Checked against Blue Card, Single Permit and ICT eligibility before you commit to one
- Full document preparation Employment contract, qualification evidence, and the specific declarations each route requires
- Employer-side filing Submitted to the Migration Directorate and, where a labour-market test applies, coordinated with the Employment Agency
- Employee guidance for the in-person step What to expect and when it falls, since one route requires it before arrival and the others do not
- Renewal tracking So a permit's expiry does not catch you by surprise
How it works
From role definition to a valid permit
Five steps. Which ones apply to you depends on the route.
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1
Route and eligibility check Day 0 · you and us
We confirm salary, qualifications, contract length and whether the employee is being transferred from a related company abroad. This decides which of the three permits applies.
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2
Document preparation Day 1–7 · us and you
Employment contract, qualification evidence, and the specific forms each route requires. The Single Permit route additionally needs evidence the role was advertised, unless it falls under a quota exemption.
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3
Filing Day 7–10 · us
Submitted to the Migration Directorate. For a Single Permit, the Employment Agency has fifteen days to issue its opinion on the labour-market test before the wider procedure continues.
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4
Decision Within statutory limits · authorities
A Single Permit decision is capped at two months overall. Blue Card and ICT applications generally move faster where the file is complete on first submission.
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5
Issuance and in-person step timing depends on route · employee
Blue Card and Single Permit applicants generally complete a short in-person appearance within Bulgaria within a set window after approval. An Intra-Corporate Transfer application, by contrast, must be filed while the employee is still outside Bulgaria — this is the one route where the sequence runs the other way round.
Who this is for
Who this service is built for
Korean companies needing an EU subsidiary
Relocating a manager or a technical specialist from a Korean parent company to a new Bulgarian entity is exactly the case the Intra-Corporate Transfer route was built for.
See the Korea page →Indian IT and services companies
Bringing a qualified engineer or consultant into a Bulgarian entity on a genuine employment contract most often fits the Blue Card route, provided the salary threshold is met.
See the India page →Chinese manufacturers avoiding EU tariffs
A manufacturing operation that needs its own technical or managerial staff on the ground in Bulgaria, rather than only owning the entity from a distance, will usually need a Single Permit or a Blue Card depending on the role.
See the China page →Get in touch
Need help with work permits for your staff?
The right permit route depends on the role, the person's qualifications, and where they are applying from. Get in touch and we will tell you which route fits before you gather a single document.
Related services
Services that usually go with this one
Company formation
A permit application generally needs a registered Bulgarian entity behind it as the employer of record.
Read more → Service 07Nominee director
Some clients relocate operational staff under a permit while keeping a local nominee director in place for the company's statutory functions.
Read more → Service 08Ongoing compliance
Permits carry renewal deadlines and reporting obligations that continue for as long as the employee is in Bulgaria.
Read more →Questions
Questions, answered
If your question is not here, ask it on the discovery call — there is no charge for it.
How do I know whether an employee needs a Blue Card or a Single Permit?
The deciding factors are the role's salary and the employee's qualifications. If the salary is at least one and a half times the Bulgarian average for that occupation and the person holds a relevant higher education qualification, the Blue Card is usually the better fit and avoids the Single Permit's labour-market test. If either condition is not met, the Single Permit route applies instead.
What is the Intra-Corporate Transfer permit for, exactly?
It is specifically for a manager, specialist or trainee already employed by a company outside the EU who is being transferred to a related entity — a subsidiary, branch or group company — inside Bulgaria. It does not apply to a new hire from the open market; the employment relationship with the sending company has to already exist, generally for at least six to twelve months depending on the category.
Does the employee need to be in Bulgaria to apply?
For the Blue Card and the Single Permit, no — the employer generally files first, and the employee completes a short in-person step in Bulgaria within a set window afterward. For the Intra-Corporate Transfer permit, it is the opposite: the employee must still be outside Bulgaria when the application is submitted.
What is the labour-market test, and does it apply to my hire?
It is the Employment Agency's check, for Single Permit applications, on whether the role could reasonably be filled by a Bulgarian or EU candidate before it goes to a non-EU hire. Certain roles and quota categories are exempt. The Blue Card and Intra-Corporate Transfer routes do not carry this test.
How long does the whole process take?
A Single Permit decision is capped by law at two months from a complete filing. Blue Card and Intra-Corporate Transfer applications do not carry that specific cap but move on a broadly similar timeline when the file is complete on first submission. Delays overwhelmingly come from incomplete documentation, not from processing speed at the authorities' end.
Ready to bring your staff into Bulgaria legally?
A short call is usually enough to confirm which of the three permit routes fits your case, and what we will need from you and your employee to start.