Bulgaria - Intra-corporate transferee (ICT)

An application for an Intra-Corporate Transferee permit shall be submitted to the Migration Directorate or to the relevant Migration Department/Sector/Group at the Sofia Directorate or the Regional Directorates of the Ministry of the Interior. It may be submitted either by the employer, by an authorised person, or personally by the third-country national when the latter is already holder of a residence permit within 30 days before the expiration of the residence. The whole procedure, from submitting the application to obtaining a decision, is set out in Art. 33п of the Law on Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria.

Visa

Once there are grounds for authorising a prolonged residence of an intra-corporate transferee, for which fact you will receive a notification, you may apply to obtain a visa type D at the Bulgarian embassy or consulate in your home country.

Residence permit

Once you have arrived in Bulgaria with your valid visa (in case you need a visa to enter the country), you must also obtain a residence permit from the Migration Directorate.

To obtain a permit, you must provide:

• a copy of a valid passport or a document substituting it containing the pages with the photo and the personal data; the period of validity of the passport or of the document substituting it must cover at least the period of validity of the Intra-Corporate Transferee permit; it must have been issued in the last 10 years;
• a criminal record certificate issued by the state whose citizen is the third-country national or by the state of third-country national’s usual residence - upon initial submission of an application for issuance of a permit under Para. 1;
• a proof for available housing;
• a justification of the request in which the employer shall indicate the facts and circumstances imposing the temporary relocation of the third-country national for the purposes of the intra-corporate transfer;
• a document for completed higher education, legalised and accompanied by a certified translation - for the position of an employee who is trainee;
• a reference-declaration by the employer for the third-country nationals working in the company, who are employed under an employment contract, indicating the names under the passport, the date of birth, citizenship, grounds and period of residence;
• a declaration by the employer that the conditions of work and payment have been observed and that they are not less favourable than the conditions for the Bulgarian citizens for the relevant labour category. It shall be presented upon initial submission of an application;
• a document proving that the host company and the company established in the respective third country belong to the same company or group of companies. It shall be legalised according to the Bulgarian law and accompanied by a translation certified by a notary or by the Consular Relations Directorate;
• a document containing data on the duration of the transfer. It shall be legalised according to the Bulgarian law and accompanied by a translation certified by a notary or by the Consular Relations Directorate;
• documents legalised according to the Bulgarian law certifying that the third-country national:
  1. has being working in the same company or group of companies for a period of not less than 12 months without interruption immediately before the date of application for managers and specialists, and for not less than 6 months without interruption for trainees;
  2. has the necessary professional experience and qualification - for the position of manager and specialist;
  3. has been transferred in the case of an intra-corporate transfer;
  4. will continue working for the company which is established in the relevant third country after the transfer period;
• a copy of the training agreement related to the preparation of the future position of the trainee within the company or group of companies, accompanied by a description of the training programme - for the trainee employees; the training programme shall explicitly state that the purpose of the employment of the third-country national worker is a professional development or training in the field of business techniques or methods. It shall also indicate the duration of the programme and the conditions under which the trainee will be guided during the programme period;
• a compulsory medical insurance which shall be valid on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria for the entire period of residence, when the third-country national is not insured under the Law on Health Insurance and has a right of prolonged residence in Bulgaria.

The duration of your residence permit shall be 3 years for managers and specialists and 1 year for trainees.

Upon arrival, you have five days to notify your address of residence to the competent authorities.

Decisions related to residence permits can be challenged before the administrative courts.

More on visas

The right of stay of a third-country national in the Republic of Bulgaria will be revoked when grounds, laid down in case of Intra-corporate Transferees do not exist anymore - if the transferee no longer meets the requirements necessary for it.

The right of stay of a third-country national in the Republic of Bulgaria will be revoked when: it is established that the data presented for its obtaining are untrue.

The right of stay of a third-country national in the Republic of Bulgaria will be revoked when it is established that the holder of the permit of a person transferred during intra-corporate transfer is residing for purposes other than those, for which the residence permit has been given, as well as when the card holder has violated the conditions of access to the labour market under the Labour migration and labour mobility Act

Family members of a person relocated as a result of intra-corporate transfer shall be allowed to work under employment contracts and as freelance professionals in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria for the term of residence of the person relocated as a result of intra-corporate transfer, subject to compliance with the provisions of Article 33р of the Law on Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria, on the basis of a decision issued by the Executive Director of the Employment Agency granting them access to the labour market in compliance herewith.

Art. 33р. Family members of the permit holder who has been transferred during intra-corporate transfer, may obtain a permit for prolonged-term residence on the grounds of Art. 24, Para. 1, Item 13 for the term of residence of the holder, as long as they meet the conditions under Art. 24, Para. 2.

A person with an ICT permit benefits from equal treatment with Bulgarian nationals in what regards recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications; provisions regarding social security (with conditions); access to goods and services.

A holder of a valid residence permit as an intra-corporate transferee, issued by a first Member State, has the right to stay in the Republic of Bulgaria as a second Member State for up to 90 days within any period of 180 days.

The host company in the first Member State shall, immediately after the admission of the person, notify the competent authorities of the first Member State and of the Republic of Bulgaria of the planned intra-corporate transfer to a company in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria within the validity period, if mobility is envisaged already at this stage.

The competent authorities of the first Member State shall notify the Republic of Bulgaria of the intended stay, its duration and the start and end dates and shall submit the following documents:

• a valid residence permit;
• a valid passport or a document substituting it;
• a proof for available housing;
• a compulsory medical insurance;
• an employment contract;
• a document proving that the host company and the company established in the respective third country belong to the same company or group of companies. It shall be legalised according to the Bulgarian law and accompanied by a translation into the Bulgarian language certified by a notary or by the Consular Relations Directorate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
• a document legalised according to the Bulgarian law, certifying that the third-country national has the necessary professional experience and qualification to be recruited to the relevant position;
• a declaration by the employer that the conditions of work and payment have been observed and that they are not less favourable than the conditions for the Bulgarian citizens for the relevant labour category.

The planned stay may take place after the expiry of the period for any objection by the Migration Directorate - MoI to the first Member State, which may not be longer than 20 days from the receipt of the completed notification.

A holder of a valid residence permit as a person transferred for intra-corporate transfer, issued by a first Member State, has the right to stay for more than 90 days on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria as a second Member State, if he/she meets the conditions for access to the labour market under the Law on Labour Migration and Labour Mobility.

The holder of the authorisation shall be granted an intra-corporate transfer mobility authorisation in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EC) № 1030/2002. In this case, the “remark” field shall indicate “mobile ICT”.

The Migration Directorate - MoI shall inform the competent authorities of the first Member State when issuing an Intra-Corporate Transfer mobility permit.

The first Member State shall inform the Ministry of the Interior when withdrawing an authorisation for a person transferred within an intra-corporate transfer.

The host company shall inform the Migration Directorate - MoI of any changes affecting the conditions on the basis of which mobility has been authorised when Bulgaria is the second Member State.

A holder of an intra-corporate transferee permit issued by a first Member State shall submit in person to the Migration Directorate or to a Migration Department / Sector / Group at the Sofia Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior or the regional directorates of the Ministry of the Interior an application form according to the rules on implementation of the Act, to which he/she attaches the documents:

1. a copy of a regular passport or a document substituting it with the pages of the photo and the personal data; the period of validity of the passport or its replacement document must cover at least the period of validity of the permit for the purposes of the intra-corporate transfer; it must have been issued in the last 10 years;
2. a criminal record certificate, issued by the state, whose citizen is the third-country national, or by the state of his/her usual residence - upon initial submission of an application for issuance of a permit under para. 1;
3. proof of assured housing;
4. justification of the request, in which the employer shall indicate the facts and circumstances, necessitating the temporary relocation of the third-country national for the purposes of the intra-corporate transfer;
5. proof of completed higher education, legalised and accompanied by a certified translation - for the position of trainee employee;
6. reference-declaration by the employer for the third-country employers working in the company, employed under an employment contract, with indicated names on the passport, date of birth, citizenship, grounds and term for residence;
7. declaration by the employer that the work and pay conditions have been met and that they are not more unfavourable than the conditions for Bulgarian citizens for the respective category of work - upon initial submission of an application;
8. a document proving that the host enterprise and the enterprise established in the third country belong to the same enterprise or group of enterprises, legalised according to the Bulgarian legislation and accompanied by a certified translation by a notary or by the Consular Relations Directorate;
9. a document containing data on the duration of the transfer, legalised according to the Bulgarian legislation and accompanied by a certified translation by a notary or by the Consular Relations Directorate;
10. documents legalised according to the Bulgarian legislation, certifying that the third-country national:
    1. has worked in the same enterprise or group of enterprises for not less than 12 months without interruption immediately before the date of application - for managers and specialists, and for not less than 6 months without interruption - for trainees;
    2. has the necessary professional experience and qualification - for the position of manager and specialist;
    3. has been relocated for intra-corporate transfer;
    4. will continue to operate in the enterprise established in the third country after the transfer period;
11. a copy of the training agreement related to the preparation of the trainee's future position within the enterprise or group of enterprises, accompanied by a description of the training programme - for trainee employees; the training programme explicitly states that the purpose of the employment of the third-country national worker is professional development or training in the field of business techniques or methods, as well as the duration of the programme and the conditions under which the trainee will be guided during the programme;
12. compulsory health insurance, valid on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria for the entire period of residence, when the third-country national is not insured under the Health Insurance Act and has a permitted right of long-term residence on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria;
13. as well as a copy of the residence permit issued by the first Member State for the purposes of the intra-corporate transfer. In these cases a visa D is not required.

Until the decision on the submitted application is made, the person has the right to work in Bulgaria, provided that the period for short-term mobility and the validity of the permit issued by the first Member State have not expired, as well as when the application is complete.

A holder of a valid residence permit as an intra-corporate transferee, issued by a first Member State with a permitted stay of less than 90 days, may apply for a residence permit for more than 90 days in the Republic of Bulgaria at least 20 days before the expiry of the originally permitted stay. An application for long-term mobility may not be submitted at the same time as a notification for short-term mobility.