Bulgaria Single Permit 2026: New Employer Rules, Not Law Yet

If you hold a Bulgarian single permit and plan to switch jobs under the new rules, wait: they are not law yet, and under the Foreigners in the Republic of Bulgaria Act (the Foreigners Act) as in force today, your right of residence ends on the date your employment ends. Bulgaria single permit 2026 coverage often blurs three layers: what EU Directive 2024/1233 requires, what Bulgaria's pending bill proposes, and what the law says today. Member States had until 21 May 2026 to transpose the directive. As of 16 October 2026, Bulgaria has not finished. The government bill that would let single permit holders change employer, and keep their status through a short spell of unemployment, sits between first and second reading in the National Assembly.

This guide is for non-EU workers who hold, or want, a Bulgarian single permit for residence and work, and for employers planning to hire them. We take the three layers one at a time, so you can see which rules you can rely on now and which ones to plan for. Each point is sourced to the directive on EUR-Lex, the European Parliament's procedure summary, the bill and its explanatory memorandum on parliament.bg, the State Gazette, or the government's public consultation portal (strategy.bg). Where we could not confirm a point, we say so rather than fill the gap.

Where the reform stands as of October 2026

The EU directive is final and binding on Bulgaria. The Bulgarian text that implements it is not. The timeline below comes from EUR-Lex, from the bill record on parliament.bg and from the government's public consultation portal (strategy.bg).

In practice, the Migration Directorate of the Ministry of Interior keeps applying the Foreigners Act as it stands until the amending act is adopted, promulgated and in force. MPs have filed second-reading amendments, so the final wording may differ from the government text described below. We also found no transitional provisions in the bill text we reviewed, meaning nothing yet says how the new rules would treat permits already issued or applications already filed. Watch the final text for both points.

Not sure how this applies to your permit or your hiring plan? Book an initial consultation to discuss your permit or hiring plan.

What Single Permit Directive 2024/1233 requires from Bulgaria

The 2024 directive replaces the 2011 one. It keeps the basic design, where one application leads to one decision that serves as both residence permit and work permit. On top of that, it adds rights that make the worker less dependent on a single employer. According to the European Parliament's procedure summary, the aim is to attract the skills the EU needs and fix gaps in legal migration.

A 90-day decision deadline

The competent authority must decide "in any event within 90 days of the date of submission of a complete application" (Art. 5(2)). In exceptional, duly justified cases linked to the complexity of the application, that limit can be extended by 30 days (Art. 8(3)). The Parliament's summary adds that where a labour-market check is carried out for the individual application, it falls inside those 90 days. If the file is incomplete, the authority must tell the applicant in writing what is missing, and it may reject the application if the documents do not arrive by the deadline it sets (Art. 5(4)).

Directive: a right to change employer, with three optional conditions

The core sentence of the directive is short: "Member States shall allow a single permit holder to change employer" (Art. 11(2)). In Bulgaria this is not yet law; see What applies today. Each State may attach any of three conditions (Art. 11(3)):

• Notification to the competent authorities. Where notification is required, the directive lets the State suspend the change for up to 45 days.
• A labour-market check, if the State runs such checks for single permit applications.
• A minimum period with the first employer. It may not exceed the contract or the permit's validity, and in any event it may not exceed six months.

Even inside that minimum period, States must allow a change in duly justified cases of a serious breach by the employer of the terms of the employment relationship.

Directive: unemployment is no longer an automatic ground for withdrawal

Under the directive, unemployment on its own is not a ground for withdrawing the permit, provided the total period of unemployment does not exceed three months during the permit's validity. In Bulgaria this is not yet law; see What applies today. The limit is six months where the worker has held a single permit for more than two years (Art. 11(4)). The start and end of any unemployment must be notified, and each State decides whether the worker or the employer does this. For periods longer than three months, States may ask for evidence of sufficient resources. Where there are reasonable grounds to believe the worker faced particularly exploitative working conditions, the directive adds three months to the permitted period (Art. 11(6)).

Other points that matter in practice

• Who files: each State decides whether the worker, the employer, or either of them submits the application (Art. 4(1)).
• Where from: applications may come from abroad, or from inside the State where the person already holds a residence permit there (Art. 4(2)).
• Equal treatment: single permit workers enjoy equal treatment with nationals on working conditions, including pay, dismissal and working time (Art. 12(1)). Some restrictions are allowed under Art. 12(2).

What Bill No. 52-602-01-29 proposes for Bulgaria's single permit

The government bill rewrites much of Article 24i of the Foreigners Act, the article that governs the single permit for residence and work. Its explanatory memorandum says it transposes Directive 2024/1233 (it also covers EU border screening rules, which we leave aside here). Below is what the text filed on 28 July 2026 says. Read every "would" literally: second reading can still change it.

Changing employer after six months (proposed)

A single permit holder could change employer while the permit is valid, after working at least six months for the first employer. That is the longest minimum period the directive allows. An earlier change would be possible where the General Labour Inspectorate Executive Agency (the Labour Inspectorate) holds data on established breaches of labour legislation by the first employer during the worker's employment, and has passed that data to the Migration Directorate on request.

On procedure, the new employer, a person it authorises, or the worker would file an application for change of employer in person. The filing would go to the Migration Directorate or to a Migration unit at a regional directorate of the Ministry of Interior. It would include a defined subset of the documents required for a first application, and the review steps that apply to first applications would apply here as well.

Changing position with the same employer (proposed)

A separate rule would let the worker move to a different position with the same employer during the permit's validity, after at least six months in the current position. The application route and the document set would mirror the change-of-employer procedure.

A 90-day procedure, extendable by 30 days (proposed)

The bill would replace the current wording of Article 24i(18) with a procedure conducted within 90 days of the date the application is filed. Where the case is factually and legally complex, the period could exceptionally be extended by 30 days. The two texts count from different points: the directive runs from submission of a complete application, the bill from filing. Either way, the clock helps most when the file is complete on day one.

Unemployment: 3 or 6 months, with short notice deadlines (proposed)

The director of the Migration Directorate, or an authorised official, could not withdraw the permit because of unemployment as long as the total unemployment within the document's validity stays at or below three months. The limit would be six months for someone who has held a single permit for more than two years. If the bill is adopted as filed, the protection would come with tight duties:

1. The worker would have to register with the Employment Agency within 7 working days after the employment ends.
2. The worker would then have to notify the Migration Directorate (or the regional Migration unit) within 3 days of registering.

The explanatory memorandum adds that the permit can be withdrawn if an unemployed worker registered with the Employment Agency fails to notify the Migration Directorate in time. Two further rules help the worker. First, where a competent authority has established that the worker was subjected to particularly exploitative working conditions, the permitted unemployment period would be extended (the bill's wording is "up to three months"). Second, a worker who starts with a new employer within the permitted period could stay in Bulgaria until the new permit is issued or refused, even if that period runs out in the meantime.

Other changes employers will notice

• First applications from abroad: a first-time applicant who has no right of residence in Bulgaria would have to be outside the country when applying, except in the cases the Foreigners Act lists.
• Headcount declaration: the employer's declaration would cover the average number of staff employed under employment contracts, and the total number of third-country nationals employed, in the preceding 12 months.
• Renewals: if the residence document expires while a renewal is pending, the holder could remain in Bulgaria until the renewal decision.

Directive vs bill vs the law today

What applies today, before the law changes

Until the amendments take effect, the Foreigners Act as last amended governs. A second sentence added to Article 24i(19) by the amending act published in State Gazette No. 52 of 27 June 2025 provides that the right of residence ends on the date the employment relationship ends. The current Article 24i(18) does not set the 90-day decision period discussed above; that period comes from the directive and the bill. The paragraphs on changing employer, changing position and permitted unemployment are new paragraphs the bill would create, so none of them is in the Foreigners Act as of 16 October 2026.

• For workers: today, leaving or losing the job ends the residence right tied to the permit. Plan the next step before any resignation.
• For employers: in our reading, until the bill is in force you cannot use its change-of-employer procedure to hire someone who holds another company's single permit. Get the route checked before the worker gives notice.

That's the legal map. Not sure which rules apply to you? Book a free consultation.

Bulgaria work permit processing time: what the proposed 90 days does and does not mean

Under Directive 2024/1233 and the pending bill, 90 days is the maximum decision time; the Foreigners Act in force on 16 October 2026 still applies the current wording of Art. 24i(18). Once the new rules apply, the 90 days is a ceiling, not an estimate of the usual time, and nobody can lawfully promise a faster result. Three practical points follow:

• The start date differs. The directive counts from a complete application. The bill counts from the date of filing. Under either text, a complete file avoids rounds of requests for missing documents.
• Plan for up to 120 days once the new rules apply. Under both texts, the extra 30 days is reserved for exceptional, complex cases, but an employer's hiring plan should still allow for it.
• Preparation sits outside the clock. Gathering, legalising and translating documents happens before filing. Build it into the timeline as well, and see our residence permit renewal guide for the renewal side.

Applying for a Bulgarian single permit in 2026 under current law

Until the bill is in force, a new application follows the Foreigners Act as it stands, not the proposed rules described above. For the permit types and fees under the current regime, see our main-site guide to work permits in Bulgaria, which covers the basics. This article is limited to the reform.

Changing employer on a Bulgarian single permit: a checklist for workers

1. Note two dates: your permit's expiry date and the day you started with your first employer. Under the bill, the six-month count runs from your work for the first employer.
2. Do not resign on the strength of the bill. Under the Foreigners Act in force on 16 October 2026, the residence right ends with the employment.
3. If the bill passes as filed and your job ends, register with the Employment Agency within 7 working days, then notify the Migration Directorate within 3 days of registering. Keep proof of both.
4. Keep records of your contract, payslips and any written complaints. The bill ties an early change of employer to data held by the Labour Inspectorate, so a recorded complaint can matter.
5. Count your years. If you have held a single permit for more than two years, the bill would allow six months of unemployment instead of three.
6. Renewing? Under the bill, you could stay while a renewal decision is pending, even if your card expires in the meantime.

Hiring non-EU workers in Bulgaria: what employers should plan for

Once the bill is in force, an employer's position changes. After six months, a single permit holder could move to another employer through an application filed by that new employer. In our view, retention will depend more on pay and conditions and less on the permit itself. The directive's equal-treatment rule points the same way. Practical planning points:

• Timeline: budget up to 90 days for the decision, plus 30 in complex cases, and add lead time for documents before filing.
• Where the candidate is: under the bill, a first-time applicant without a right of residence in Bulgaria would need to be outside the country when the application is filed.
• Headcount data: prepare 12-month figures for your average staff numbers and for the third-country nationals you employ, because the new declaration would ask for both.
• Recruiting from other employers: after the worker's six months, you, or a person you authorise, could file the change-of-employer application.
• A separate, parallel bill: the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy consulted on a different draft, amending the Labour Migration and Labour Mobility Act, from 8 to 22 January 2026. It deals with seasonal workers (Directive 2014/36/EU), recruitment intermediaries and the caps on third-country staff per employer.

For the cost side of a hire, see our breakdown of what it costs to employ someone in Bulgaria. For highly qualified roles, the EU Blue Card is a separate route with its own rules.

Questions about your sector or your team's nationalities? Ask us in a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

The bottom line on the Bulgaria single permit 2026 reform

The Bulgaria single permit 2026 reform is real but unfinished. The directive already fixes the direction: decisions within 90 days of a complete application, a right to change employer, and three months of tolerated unemployment, or six after two years. Bulgaria's bill would use the full six-month first-employer period the directive allows and set short national notice deadlines for unemployed workers. As of 16 October 2026, though, it is still a bill, and the Foreigners Act in force ends the residence right when the job ends. Workers should not resign on the strength of the bill. Employers should build its 90-day clock, plus the 30-day extension, into their plans and watch the second reading closely.