Applying to Bulgarian universities from abroad

There are two main routes to a Bulgarian university from abroad. Bulgarian citizens and citizens of the EU and EEA apply on the same terms, under the rules of the chosen university. Foreign nationals of Bulgarian ethnicity or origin living outside Bulgaria can also apply for separate state-funded places under Decree No. 103 of 1993, with admission run by the Ministry of Education and Science.

places

up to 2,000

a year under Decree No. 103

doctoral places

up to 40

under Decree No. 103

Bulgarian

1 year

language course in year one

no fees

7 countries

application and tuition

Places under Decree No. 103/1993

Each year the Council of Ministers approves up to 2,000 places for full-time degree courses at state universities, on top of general admission. Up to 150 of them are for the Taraclia branch of the University of Ruse in Moldova. There are also up to 40 doctoral places and up to 240 months of postgraduate specialisation. Places are allocated by university, field and degree course.

Students admitted take a Bulgarian language course at their university in the first year. They are entitled to a grant, student housing and subsidised canteens. Graduates of a bachelor’s or master’s under the decree can continue to the next degree.

Who can apply under Decree No. 103

Foreign nationals and stateless people of Bulgarian ethnicity or Bulgarian origin who permanently or habitually live in another country. Ethnicity is proven with at least one of:

• a birth or baptism certificate or another civil status record;
• a passport or another official identity document.

As an exception, a person without such a document may apply if they use Bulgarian, identify as Bulgarian and come from a place that was once part of the Bulgarian state or Exarchate, have ancestors with the traditional Bulgarian naming system, or belong to a Bulgarian community in another country. Bulgarian origin is proven under the Bulgarians Living Abroad Act.

Fees

Tuition is funded by the state budget. Students who are citizens and residents of Albania, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Moldova, North Macedonia, Serbia or Ukraine are exempt from application and tuition fees. For others the fees are set under the university’s rules — check when you apply.

How the campaign works

1. Get informed

   The Ministry, the Executive Agency for Bulgarians Abroad and the embassies hold information meetings — in 2026 between February and May (Skopje, Bitola, Strumica, Korçë, Tirana, Kukës and elsewhere). The year’s rules and available places are published on mon.bg.

2. Prepare your documents

   Proof of Bulgarian ethnicity or origin, an identity document, your secondary school diploma (or proof you complete it this year) and others under the year’s rules — translated into Bulgarian.

3. Apply online

   Registration and document upload are done on the Ministry’s platform eskis.mon.bg.

4. Ranking and enrolment

   Admission is run by a permanent inter-ministerial committee under rules approved by the Minister. Successful applicants enrol at the university and arrange their residence in Bulgaria.

The admission rules for 2027/2028 have not been published yet. Follow the Ministry’s website and the embassy in your country. In 2026 the free online courses were taught by the Institute for Bulgarian Language at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, with sign-up through Bulgarian associations and cultural centres.

Places for olympiad winners and top pupils

Up to 30 of the places go to winners of national Bulgarian language and literature olympiads in their countries and to top graduates of named schools in Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Romania and Kazakhstan. Head teachers send nominations to the Ministry by 30 June. These places exclude medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, sport and the arts.

Regular admission for Bulgarian and EU citizens

EU and EEA citizens are admitted on the same terms as Bulgarian citizens (Art. 68(7) of the Higher Education Act). Each university publishes its rules by 31 March — exams, grade conversion, deadlines. If you finished secondary school abroad, your diploma must be recognised by NACID with a certificate for university entry; where grading differs, grades are converted.

Secondary school documents from Hague Convention countries need an apostille; from other countries, legalisation. They are translated into Bulgarian, with the translator’s signature notarised or certified at the embassy.