Intra-corporate transfer (ICT) permit in Bulgaria

The ICT permit implements EU Directive 2014/66/EU. You must be a manager, specialist or trainee employee of a company established outside the EU and be transferred temporarily to an entity in Bulgaria that belongs to the same company or group. Before the transfer you must have worked for the group without interruption for at least 12 months as a manager or specialist, or 6 months as a trainee, and you must return to the company in the third country after the transfer.

At the first application the foreigner must be outside Bulgaria. Work is allowed only for the receiving entity or group and only in the approved role.

The application lists a passport issued within the last 10 years and valid for at least the permit period, a criminal record certificate, proof of housing, the employer’s justification for the temporary transfer, an employer declaration on foreign staff and on pay and working conditions no less favourable than for Bulgarian workers, and legalised and translated documents proving that the two companies belong to the same group, the length of the transfer, the prior employment period, the qualifications for the post and that you will return to the third-country company. Trainees add a degree certificate and the training agreement with a programme description.

The employer, an authorised person, or the foreigner if already a residence holder (within 30 days before expiry) submits the application to the Migration Directorate or a regional migration unit. When the conditions are met you receive a notice and apply for a D visa at the Bulgarian mission in your home country. After entry you collect the permit and notify your address within five days.

Holders of an ICT permit from another member state can work in Bulgaria for up to 90 days in any 180-day period under short-term mobility, after notifications by the host company and the first member state; the Migration Directorate can object within 20 days. For longer stays they apply for a mobile ICT permit, with no D visa needed.

Family members can obtain long-stay residence under Article 24(1)(13) for the holder’s term if they meet the general housing, insurance and means conditions. They may work as employees or freelancers after the Executive Director of the Employment Agency grants access to the labour market. ICT holders enjoy equal treatment with Bulgarian nationals in recognition of diplomas, certain social security matters and access to goods and services.