Does a birth certificate I will use in Germany need an apostille?

No. Under Regulation (EU) 2016/1191, authorities in another EU country cannot ask for an apostille on birth, marriage, death, address or criminal record certificates. Instead of a translation you can ask the municipality for a multilingual standard form.

Who apostilles my diploma?

NACID — for diplomas and documents from universities, schools and the Ministry of Education and Science. Apply at NACID in Sofia or online; check the fee and whether the school or university must certify the document first.

Will Italy accept a translation certified by the Foreign Ministry?

Not necessarily. The Foreign Ministry explicitly warns that Italy, Austria, Germany, Denmark, Cyprus, Belgium and other countries may ask for a translation under local rules. Ask the authority that will receive the document.

Does an apostille expire?

An apostille has no expiry date. Some documents, however, have their own validity or must be recent — a criminal record certificate, for example, is valid for 6 months.

How do I know which rules apply to a country?

Check on hcch.net whether the country is party to the Hague Convention, and on the Foreign Ministry’s website whether it has a legal assistance treaty with Bulgaria. If it is on neither list, legalisation is needed.

Apostille, legalisation and certified translations

What extra certification you need depends on the country where the document will be used. If it is party to the 1961 Hague Convention, the document gets an apostille. If it has a legal assistance treaty with Bulgaria that waives legalisation, only a translation is needed. For all other countries the document is legalised. Between EU countries many civil status certificates need neither an apostille nor legalisation.

apostille: €2.56; Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Justice
processing: 8 working hours; apostille at the Foreign Ministry
translation: from €7.67; translator’s signature, Foreign Ministry
issue apostilles: 4 authorities; depending on the document

Which rules apply

	Bulgarian document used abroad	Foreign document used in Bulgaria
EU country: birth, marriage, death, address, criminal record certificates	No apostille required (Regulation (EU) 2016/1191)	No apostille required
Party to the Hague Convention	Apostille from a Bulgarian authority	Apostille from the other country’s authority
Legal assistance treaty with Bulgaria	Translation and its certification only	Translation into Bulgarian and certification only
Any other country	Legalisation by the Foreign Ministry, then by that country’s embassy	Certification by that country’s foreign ministry and legalisation at the Bulgarian embassy

The list of Hague Convention parties is on hcch.net; the list of legal assistance treaties is on the Foreign Ministry’s website.

Who apostilles Bulgarian documents

Ministry of Justice — acts of courts and notaries: court decisions, criminal record certificates, notarised documents.
NACID (National Centre for Information and Documentation) — diplomas and other documents from universities, schools and kindergartens and from the Ministry of Education and Science. Since 1 January 2017 the Ministry of Education no longer apostilles them.
Regional administrations — documents issued by mayors and municipal administrations, such as birth and marriage certificates. Since 1 January 2019 the Foreign Ministry no longer apostilles them.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs — all other documents of state authorities.

Bulgarian document for use abroad: step by step

Get the original from the issuing authority
For an apostille at the Foreign Ministry the document must carry the rectangular “for abroad” stamp of the authority that issued it. Copies are legalised only if certified by a notary and by the Ministry of Justice.
Get the apostille or legalisation
From the authority responsible for that type of document. At the Foreign Ministry an apostille takes up to 8 working hours. For countries outside the Hague Convention, legalisation continues at that country’s embassy.
Check the translation with the recipient
The Foreign Ministry warns that translations certified in Bulgaria may not be accepted in, for example, Italy, Austria, Germany, Denmark, Cyprus and Belgium, which often want a local sworn translator. Ask the receiving authority before paying for a translation.
Certify the translation if required
The Foreign Ministry certifies the signature of a translator who has lodged a specimen signature with it and proven their language skills. This is done at the desk of the Legalisations unit.

Foreign Ministry fees and times

	Express	Fast	Standard
Time	up to 4 working hours	up to 8 working hours	on the 4th working day
Legalisation of a Bulgarian document	€15.34	€11.50	€7.67
Certifying the legalisation of a foreign document	€20.45	€15.34	€10.23
Certifying a translator’s signature	€15.34	€11.50	€7.67

Apostille at the Foreign Ministry — €2.56 (BGN 5), within 8 working hours. Pay by card at the desk or by bank transfer; fees follow Tariff No. 3.

The Foreign Ministry’s Legalisations unit is at 2 Alfred Nobel St, Sofia, opposite the ministry’s main entrance. Open Monday to Friday, 9:00–17:30, tel. +359 887 563 987. For express and fast service, documents are accepted until 12:00. NACID accepts documents at 50 Dr G. M. Dimitrov Blvd, Sofia, every working day from 8:00 to 18:30.

Foreign document for use in Bulgaria

A document from a Hague Convention country carries an apostille from the issuing country and needs no further certification. A document from a country with a legal assistance treaty is accepted with a translation only. For other countries the document is certified by that country’s foreign ministry and legalised at the Bulgarian embassy there. If the foreign country’s embassy in Sofia has certified it, the Foreign Ministry in Sofia certifies the legalisation.

The translation into Bulgarian can be done in one of two ways: by a translator appointed by the Bulgarian embassy in that country, or by a translator in Bulgaria whose signature on the translation is notarised by a Bulgarian notary.