Public documents

Bulgaria

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Bulgaria

Article 24(1)(a) - languages accepted by the Member State for the public documents to be presented to its authorities pursuant to point (a) of Article 6(1)

Translation is not required when the public document is drawn up in Bulgarian.

Article 24(1)(b) – an indicative list of public documents falling within the scope of this Regulation

  1. Birth – birth certificate, birth certificate following simple adoption, extract of birth certificate, full copy of birth certificate, certified copy of birth certificate;
  2. Death – copy of death certificate, full copy of death certificate, certified copy of death certificate, court decision;
  3. Name – certificate of identity of a person with different names, court decision;
  4. Marriage, including capacity to marry, or marital status – civil marriage certificate, copy of civil marriage certificate, full copy of civil marriage certificate, certified copy of civil marriage certificate, marriage certificate issued to a Bulgarian citizen who married abroad, certificate of marital status, certificate of marital status including spouse and children;
  5. Divorce, legal separation or marriage annulment – court decision, extract from civil marriage certificate, stating in the ‘Comments’ field the form in which the civil marriage was dissolved and the date on which it was dissolved;
  6. Origin – court decision, certificate of marital status, spouse and children, certificate of spouse and family ties, certificate of a mother’s biological children;
  7. Adoption – court decision, birth certificate (in the case of simple adoption), copy of birth certificate (in the case of simple adoption), full copy of birth certificate (in the case of simple adoption), certified copy of birth certificate (in the case of simple adoption);
  8. Domicile and/or residence – certificate of permanent address, certificate of current address, certificate of change of permanent address, certificate of change of current address;
  9. Nationality – certificate of existence of Bulgarian citizenship, certificate of obtaining Bulgarian citizenship;

10.  Absence of a criminal record – criminal record certificate attesting that the person has not been convicted (Template 1 of Annex 2 to Article 45(1) of Regulation No 8 of 26 February 2008 on the functioning and organisation of criminal records offices).

Article 24(1)(c) – the list of public documents to which multilingual standard forms may be attached as a suitable translation aid

Annex I may apply to a birth certificate, a birth certificate following simple adoption or an extract from a birth certificate.

Annex III may apply to an extract from a death certificate.

Annex IV may apply to a civil marriage certificate or an extract from a civil marriage certificate.

Annex V may apply to the marriage certificate issued to a Bulgarian citizen who married abroad.

Annex VI may apply to a certificate of marital status or a certificate of marital status including spouse and children.

Annex X may apply to a certificate of permanent address and a certificate of current address.

Annex XI may apply to a criminal record certificate attesting that the person has not been convicted (Template 1 of Annex 2 to Article 45(1) of Regulation No 8 of 26 February 2008 on the functioning and organisation of criminal records offices).

Article 24(1)(d) – the lists of persons qualified, in accordance with national law, to carry out certified translations, where such lists exist

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs keeps a register of natural persons working as translators on an individual basis or in a translation company, who carry out translations of documents.

The list is available only in Bulgarian on the following website:

http://apostille.mfa.bg/MFAL/apostille_certificates.nsf/cert1.xsp

Article 24(1)(e) – an indicative list of types of authorities empowered by national law to make certified copies

Certified copies may be made by the authorities that issued the original document.

The correctness of the copies of official documents may be certified by a notary or an assistant notary.

Copies of official documents may be authenticated by persons who are not notaries but are entitled to perform notarial functions only in so far as this is provided for by law.

Article 24(1)(f) – information relating to the means by which certified translations and certified copies can be identified

I. The means by which certified translations may be identified

1. The features of certified translations of Bulgarian documents carried out in the Republic of Bulgaria and intended for use abroad.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria is authorised to certify the signature of the translator on his or her translation of Bulgarian documents translated into a foreign language intended for use on the territory of a foreign country.

Certification is done by affixing a rectangular sticker containing information on the translator’s name, the place and date of certification, the amount of the fee paid, a unique identity number, signature, stamp and other relevant information.

The translations of documents may be original copies only, printed in monochrome on A4-sized paper. All the pages of the translation must be numbered and initialled by the translator. Translations are inseparably linked to the duly certified and authenticated translated document.

At the end of the translation, the following text must be written in Bulgarian or in the relevant foreign language: ‘I, the undersigned, ..., certify the accuracy of my translation from ... into ... of the attached document ... (describe the type of document and its attributes – number, series, date, certified and authenticated). The translation consists of ... pages. Translator ... (signature).’

The translator’s name and signature are written immediately after the end of the text and may not be on a separate page or with blank spaces.

Translations containing corrections, deletions and insertions are invalid. No national flag and coat of arms are permitted.

2. The features of certified translations of documents from Bulgarian into a foreign language and from a foreign language into Bulgarian, carried out outside the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria.

Outside Bulgaria, in the case of translations of documents and other documents from Bulgarian into a foreign language and from a foreign language into Bulgarian, the signature of the translator on his or her translation must be certified by the diplomatic and consular representations of the Republic of Bulgaria. The translation is attached to the original document, bearing the stamp of the diplomatic/consular representation in three places in the middle of the attached part or in the upper corner of the document, which is folded in such a way as to hold all the pages of the document, and is stamped.

Certification is done by authenticating the translator’s signature by placing a rectangular stamp on the document, containing information on the name and position of the authorised person who issued the certification, the place and date of the certification, the fee paid, the reference number of the consular certification, a signature and a stamp.

3. The features of certified translations of foreign-issued documents translated into Bulgarian and intended for use in the Republic of Bulgaria.

On the basis of Article 21a of the Rules on the legalisation, certification and translation of documents and other records, notaries in the Republic of Bulgaria have the right to certify the translator’s signature on the translation of foreign documents translated into Bulgarian and intended for use in the Republic of Bulgaria.

Certification is made by affixing a rectangular stamp containing information on the translator’s name, the place and date of certification, the amount of the fee paid, a unique registration number, signature, stamp and other relevant information.

I. The means by which certified copies may be identified

1. A certified copy must specify the authority validating the copy

– by means of the name and signature of the official and the stamp of the authority and

– by writing on the copy the name and signature of the notary/assistant notary in accordance with an approved stamp template (see the notification in the following point).

2. For each certification of correctness of a copy of an official document, the issuing authority makes a corresponding entry in its records.

Article 24(1)(g) – information about the specific features of certified copies

When copies of civil status documents are issued, the copy must bear the date on which it was made and the first name and surname of the civil registry official who made it. The civil registry official signs the document and stamps it with the regular stamp of the municipality.

To certify the authenticity of a copy of an official document, the original of the document shall be presented to the notary or the assistant notary. Certification is made in accordance with Annex 6 to Article 17 of Regulation No 32 of 29 January 1997 on the official archives of notaries and notary offices.

On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ., I, notary for the . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . district (Chamber of Notaries reg. No. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .), certify the authenticity of this transcript made by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . of an official (private) document submitted to me by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ., residing in the town (village) of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , and certify that there were no deletions, additions, corrections or other peculiarities in the original. Reg. No . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fee paid: BGN . . . . .

Notary:

Last update: 06/06/2022

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