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Bulgarian citizenship will be awarded in a special ceremony

Persons who have previously renounced their Bulgarian citizenship can no longer restore it

Photo: Archive

Those who have voluntarily renounced their Bulgarian citizenship will not be able to restore it, MPs decided at the first reading of the amendments to the Bulgarian Citizenship Act.

Naturalization will be granted only to those who have not been convicted of a general crime. Foreigners married to a Bulgarian citizen may apply for Bulgarian citizenship only after three years from the date of the marriage. Citizenship will be revoked if the marriage was entered into fictitiously to circumvent immigration legislation.


A person will be considered to have renounced his or her first citizenship if he or she has applied for it but cannot renounce it for reasons beyond his or her control. A requirement is introduced for naturalized citizens to be proficient in the Bulgarian language. All decrees granting, restoring, releasing or depriving Bulgarian citizenship shall be published in the Official Gazette.


The granting of citizenship will take place with a ceremony, according to the approved amendments, which must pass a second reading in Parliament.



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