Restoring Bulgarian citizenship

If you were released from Bulgarian citizenship at your own request — for example, to take another citizenship — you can ask for it to be restored. You apply in person at the Ministry of Justice in Sofia or at a Bulgarian embassy or consulate. Citizenship is restored by presidential decree.

legal time limit

up to 6 months

until the decree is proposed

fee

€153.39

for people of Bulgarian origin

with Bulgarian origin

no residence

otherwise 3 years in Bulgaria

Who can apply

Citizenship is restored to a released person who (Art. 26 of the Act):

• has no final conviction for an intentional crime in their country of residence or in Bulgaria;
• is not a threat to public order, public morals, public health or national security;
• has held a permanent or long-term residence permit in Bulgaria for at least 3 years before applying.

The third condition does not apply to people of Bulgarian origin — that is, with at least one Bulgarian ascendant. Nor does it apply to people deprived of citizenship on grounds that no longer apply (Art. 27). The Ministry checks residence itself.

How to apply

1. Prepare the documents

   An application form (Annex 2 to Ordinance No 1) and the listed documents. Everything is submitted in Bulgarian; foreign documents need an apostille or legalisation and a translation.

2. Book an appointment

   At the Ministry of Justice via publicbg.mjs.bg/BgSubmissionDoc. At an embassy or consulate, follow the mission’s rules.

3. Apply and attend the interview

   You apply in person and are interviewed using an approved questionnaire. The embassy gives a reasoned opinion on the application.

4. Review and decree

   The Citizenship Council gives its view after opinions from the Ministry of Interior and the State Agency for National Security, and the Minister makes a proposal to the President. Track your case with the registration number and PIN at publicbg.mjs.bg/BgInfo.

5. Certificate and EGN

   After the decree you collect a certificate in person at the Ministry or through the embassy and give an address in Bulgaria. If you had a personal number (EGN), it is restored with your citizenship.

Children

When citizenship is restored to the parents, their children under 14 also become Bulgarian, and children aged 14–18 do so if they ask too. If only one parent applies, the other parent must consent (Art. 28). For a child under 14 both parents apply; a child aged 14–18 applies personally, with the parents countersigning.

If you are not sure you lost citizenship

Bulgarian citizenship is not lost automatically by taking another one. It ends only by decree — on release at your request (Art. 20), revocation of naturalisation or deprivation. If you do not remember applying for release, or you left Bulgaria decades ago, first ask for a certificate of Bulgarian citizenship (Art. 39). It is issued within 30 days and costs €127.82. You may turn out to be a Bulgarian citizen still, with no need to restore anything.

In April–June 2026 the President restored citizenship to 209 people and refused 9 (Citizenship Commission report).