Getting married in Bulgaria can be a dream come true, you just have to prepare in advance, take your time not only for the party and dresses but for all documents that you will need if you are a foreigner and want to get married in Bulgaria, after all, many people get Bulgarian citizenship by marriage.
You already have your Bulgarian boyfriend/girlfriend (one of you should have Bulgarian citizenship and permanent address (residency) in Bulgaria), visited Bulgaria for the first time, fall in love with the beautiful beaches and the landscape, then you have decided that would like to get your Bulgarian marriage, nothing better than a cozy wedding at a fraction of the cost of getting married back home.
We advise you to take your time (easier say it, than do it) and plan ahead, it make take several months until you issue, collect, translate, legalize and present all documentation you need to get married in Bulgaria, especially if any of you are from a country that doesn’t have consulate in Bulgaria.
Before you can get a date, start preparing all your documents (make sure that your passport has more than 6 months validity remaining), they will require a few, but very important documents that without them you can’t get married and if your country is on the other side of the world better be prepared for some translation and legalization (All documents not in Bulgarian should be translated into Bulgarian by a sworn translator, and authenticated with an apostille by the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs).
Now is time to go to the start putting things in order for one the most important days of your life, need to go to the local Town Hall and choose a date (Marriages in Bulgaria are performed by officials at a civil wedding hall), and start to plan ahead for last-minute inconveniences.
The documents for civil marriage (the only valid in Bulgaria), required by both parties, are:
Proof of identity, ID card if EU citizen, passport non-EU.
Certificates of No Impediment to Marriage (Legalized and in Bulgarian language), to prove that the person is free and legally eligible to marry.)
Medical certificates, valid for 30 days from the date of their issue. These are issued after a standard pre-marital medical check-up which includes a blood test and may be done at any clinic in Bulgaria.
keep in mind that this medical exam has multiple parts, such as a psychiatric release, and a tuberculosis screening, and depending on your town you will probably have to go to multiple places to get them done. (None of you should be hiding dangerous illnesses (such as AIDS or genetic deceases) from the partner. It is okay if you are sick, and your partner knows about that.)
Depending on situation additional documents may be required:
If under 18 years of age, a permit from the regional court allowing to get married.
If either party has previously been married, the final divorce decree or death certificate of the former spouse if widowed (if the divorced partner is from another country this resolution have to be legalized and translated to the Bulgarian language)
And when you are ready with all previous steps, is time to start planning about wedding dresses, choosing restaurants and invitations, and prepare to say YES I DO!
And after you marry, you can start preparing for doing your visa D if you are a non-EU citizen and you will receive a personal number of a foreigner along with the longterm residence card.
You must submit the following:
1 a completed application form
2 a valid ID document (a government-issued ID card or passport)
3 documentary evidence they are family members or live together with the EU citizen (e.g. a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, evidence for actual cohabitation issued by a competent authority)
4 the long-term residence certificate of the EU citizen in their family the previous long-term residence permit (if reapplying)
5 a payment receipt
For Residence Permit Translate any supporting documents and include them with the originals if they are not in Bulgarian. There is no requirement to notarise/legalise the translation.
Exceptions: is important to point that currently only marriages between man and woman are allowed in Bulgaria, so gay marriages are forbidden.
How to arrange the ceremony
If you have met all these conditions and have all the necessary documents, you need to visit a civil status officer and schedule a public ceremony. You can find these officers in every municipality.
Bring your identity documents (and your registration card) with you as the civil status officer will check your name, age, citizenship, and the validity of the documents you submit.
If there are no obstacles, you can get married, then you will be able to book a date for your wedding.
In your wedding day, bring 2 witnesses. They can be Bulgarians or foreign nationals.
You will need to sign a document that enters you into civil matrimony. Your partner, 2 witnesses, and the officer will also sign the document.
Registration in Bulgaria of Bulgarian citizens’ civil marriages contracted abroad
Citizens of the Republic of Bulgaria residing abroad are under the obligation to bring or send to the Bulgarian diplomatic or consular mission in the relevant country, within six months after a local civil registry authority draws up a civil marriage certificate, a certified copy or excerpt of the document, together with an application indicating their permanent address in Bulgaria.
Alternatively, citizens may bring the legalized civil marriage certificate directly to the relevant Bulgarian municipality. The civil marriage certificate shall be accompanied by a certified translation into Bulgarian made by a Bulgarian diplomatic or consular mission or by a translation company wherewith the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria has concluded a contract.
If the document is issued in a state wherewith Bulgaria has not concluded a legal assistance treaty explicitly waiving the requirement for legalization, the document shall be legalized through an apostille certification in accordance with Hague Convention No. 12 or certified through a stamp of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the relevant state, which shall then be certified by the Bulgarian diplomatic or consular mission in that country.
