- We moved to Bulgaria ourselves, as foreigners, and it took us a full year to do everything on our own.
- What slowed us down wasn't one big obstacle. It was disorganised paperwork, rules explained differently from one office to the next, and information online that contradicted itself.
- Along the way, more than one person who offered to "help" turned out to be a scammer.
- So we built the service we wish we'd found: premium, built on lived experience, smooth from start to finish — and you're never left alone.
- And we're honest about fit: if no route works for you, we tell you.
Why does The Bulgaria Move exist?
Because we needed it, and it didn't exist. When we decided to move to Bulgaria, we found plenty of people selling one piece of the puzzle — a company here, a visa application there — and nobody who would take the whole move from start to finish and stay with us while we did it.
So we did it ourselves. It took a year. By the end of it we understood the process from the inside: which documents actually matter, where files get stuck, which questions to ask before you start, and how to tell a real adviser from someone who just wants a deposit.
The Bulgaria Move is that year, turned into a service. A done-for-you relocation for business owners and remote professionals, based in Sofia, with licensed Bulgarian lawyers and accountants handling the advice that needs a professional signature.
What did moving to Bulgaria on our own actually look like?
Not dramatic. Just slow, repetitive and confusing, in a way no guide had prepared us for.
We queued at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at least ten times.
We chased documents and notarisations that our landlords simply didn't want to give us — and without them, the file doesn't move. At the migration office, the rules were explained to us in Bulgarian, and only in Bulgarian, until we understood.
And more than once, someone who offered to "help" turned out to be a scammer.
None of this is a complaint about Bulgaria, the country we chose to move to. It's a description of a system that is genuinely hard to navigate from the outside: rules that change and are poorly explained, offices that give different answers, and a process designed for people who already know how it works. We spent a year untangling it so that our clients don't have to.
Why is information about moving to Bulgaria so contradictory?
Because a lot of it is out of date, and a lot of it is written to sell. In the space of a few years, almost everything that matters to a British or European business owner has changed:
- Brexit turned British citizens into non-EU nationals, who need a visa and a residence permit to live in Bulgaria.
- Since 1 January 2025 Bulgaria has been a full member of the Schengen area, which changed how the 90-day visitor allowance works.
- Since 1 January 2026 Bulgaria has used the euro — yet plenty of pages still talk about the lev.
Add to that pages written by companies that sell one service and skip everything else, forum posts describing what worked for someone in 2019, and the occasional site that exists mainly to collect deposits. It's no surprise that people come to us having read three different answers to the same question.
That's why our guides start with the plain answer and say clearly where something depends on your situation. If you're at the very beginning, start with which route to Bulgaria actually fits you, or, if you hold a British passport, whether a UK citizen can live in Bulgaria in 2026.
What did the scammers teach us?
That the most dangerous people in a confusing process are the ones who make it sound simple. Every person who tried to take advantage of us offered the same thing: certainty. A faster way. A contact who could "sort it". A guarantee.
Real advisers don't talk like that, because they can't. Visa and residence decisions belong to the Bulgarian authorities, and refusals happen even with a complete, compliant file. Anyone who promises otherwise is either misinformed or selling you something.
It's also why we're careful about how we work: the advice on your case comes from licensed Bulgarian lawyers and accountants who take professional responsibility for it, and you know what's being submitted, and why, before anything goes in.
What does "premium" mean to us?
Not a nicer brochure. It means the things we didn't have:
- One clear plan from the first call. You know your route, what it requires and what happens next — before you commit to anything.
- Someone next to you at every counter. Visa, residence, bank: we accompany you in person at the offices in Bulgaria, and we speak Bulgarian so you don't have to.
- The paperwork nobody warns you about. Landlord documents, notarisations, translations — the small things that held our own file up.
- Licensed professionals where it matters. Your company set-up, bank accounts and accounting are handled by licensed lawyers and accountants who sign off on their advice.
- A team that stays. No handover and goodbye. The same people, in English, after you've settled.
"Never left alone" isn't a slogan for us. It's the direct opposite of the year we had.
When will we tell you Bulgaria isn't for you?
More often than you might think. Being honest about fit is the most useful thing we can do on a first call, and it's also how we protect the people who do move with us. We'll tell you plainly if:
- You want to keep living at home and pay Bulgarian tax. Every residence route assumes you genuinely live in Bulgaria, and the tax regime only holds up when the move is real — you live here and the business is genuinely run from here. If that isn't your plan, we're not the right people.
- Your company is younger than two years, or you can't take on premises in Bulgaria yet. The company route isn't open to you today. Sometimes the right answer is "not yet".
- You'd like Bulgarian clients but want the remote route. That route requires working only for clients outside Bulgaria for the whole stay.
- You want a guarantee. We can't give one, and nobody honest can.
We'd rather lose a client than build a problem. Want to check where you stand first? Book a free strategy call and we'll tell you which route fits — or that none does.
Three things we will never promise
A good agent can guarantee your visa.
The decision belongs to the authorities, and refusals happen even with perfect files. We promise a properly prepared application and a team that stays with you, whatever the answer.
You can stay where you live and pay 10% through a Bulgarian company.
Where you pay tax follows where you actually live and where the business is actually run. A letterbox abroad doesn't change that.
Moving to Bulgaria is quick and easy.
It can be smooth — with the right plan and the right people. It took us a year on our own. That's exactly the year we take off your hands.
What moving with us looks like
- A strategy call. Your passport, your plans, how you earn. You leave knowing which route fits you — or that none does.
- A clear plan and a clean file. Our partner Bulgarian lawyers prepare your application. You know what's needed, and why, before anything is submitted.
- The visa and your arrival. We handle the visa and the residence process, with someone accompanying you to the offices in Bulgaria.
- Company, bank and accounting. Handled by licensed professionals who take responsibility for their advice.
- After you've settled. Same team, in English, for whatever comes next.
Questions we get asked every week
Who is behind The Bulgaria Move?
Founders who moved to Bulgaria themselves, as foreigners, and spent a full year doing the paperwork on their own. We're a done-for-you relocation service for business owners, based in Sofia. Tax and legal advice is given by licensed Bulgarian lawyers and accountants.
Is it easy to move to Bulgaria on your own?
It can be done, but it's rarely easy. Rules are often explained differently by different offices, many documents need your landlord's cooperation, and the migration office works in Bulgarian. It took us a full year.
Can you guarantee my visa or residence permit?
No. The decision belongs to the Bulgarian authorities, and refusals happen even with complete, compliant files. What we offer is a properly prepared application and a team that stays with you whatever the answer.
Will you take me on if Bulgaria isn't right for me?
No. If no route fits you — for example, if you want to keep living at home and pay Bulgarian tax — we tell you on the first call rather than sell you something that falls apart later.
Do I need to speak Bulgarian?
No. We handle every interaction with offices, banks and institutions in Bulgarian on your behalf. You deal with us in English.
What does "done for you" actually mean?
One plan and one team from the first call to after you've settled: your route, your file, the visa and residence process, company, bank and accounting, with someone accompanying you in person at the offices in Bulgaria.
Don't spend the year we spent
Book a free strategy call. We'll look at your passport, your business and your plans, and tell you plainly which route works for you — or if none does. No pressure, no sales script.
Book your free strategy call → Takes 2 minutes to request. In English or Italian.The Bulgaria Move coordinates your relocation end to end. Tax and legal advice on your specific situation is given by licensed Bulgarian lawyers and accountants, who take professional responsibility for it. Figures shown on this site are illustrative and depend on your circumstances — nothing here is tax or legal advice.