Bulgaria in the Schengen area
Entry documents, borders and short-stay rules
Documents to enter Bulgaria
What you show at the border depends on your citizenship, not on which Schengen country you enter — arriving in Bulgaria opens the whole area.
EU, EEA & Swiss citizens
Cross with a passport or national ID card. Free movement: the 90/180 limit doesn’t apply to you.
Visa-exempt visitors
Enter with a passport (valid 3+ months beyond departure, issued within 10 years) for up to 90 days in any 180. EES registers you biometrically at the border; the ETIAS authorisation comes next.
Visa-required passports
Apply for a uniform short-stay (type C) Schengen visa before travelling — one visa covers Bulgaria and every other member.
Borders of Bulgaria
Internal Schengen borders have no systematic checks; external ones are fully controlled with EES registration.
Visas Bulgaria's consulates issued in 2025
In 2025, consulates run by Bulgaria across 60 countries and 78 posts received 179,402 short-stay visa applications. 152,236 visas were issued and 15.1% of applications were refused. These are the totals for Bulgaria's own consulates worldwide, counted by the office that handled each application — not by where applicants come from.
Get a packing plan matched to Bulgaria’s real weather, your airline’s limits and your trip length.