Bulgaria at a Glance

Geographic, political and economic background:

• The country is one of the East European states which has undergone continuous political changes during the last 20 years and since the beginning of 2007 is a full member of the European Union;
• The intensive process of privatisation and the influx of foreign investments in Bulgaria have made it one of the fast developing economies in Eastern Europe.
• The current decrease of the Corporation Tax down to 10% and the introduction of 10% flat rate of the Personal Income Tax from the beginning of 2008 make the country an attractive place to invest.

Bulgaria is divided into twenty eight provinces and lies in South Eastern Europe, occupying the north eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. In the east, it borders the Black Sea with Romania to the north separated by the Danube River. Serbia and Republic of Macedonia are to the west and to the south are Greece and Turkey.

Just over 40% of the country is arable land with the main agricultural products being vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers and sugar beet.

In 2007, Bulgaria joined the EU and extensive efforts are under way to harmonise Bulgarian legislation with EU legislation, which makes the investment potential very attractive to foreign investors.

Politically, Bulgaria is rated as a stable democracy. The Cabinet (Council of Ministers) are nominated by the Prime Minister and elected by the National Assembly.

Bulgaria simply resembles a continent in miniature because of its very varied relief and miraculous working of nature where measure is paramount. Eye-catching mountain lakes, sunny beaches, gorgeous rose valleys, curative hot springs and deep chilly caves coexist in harmony.

The natural charms of Bulgaria are becoming better known as increasing numbers of tourists visit and enjoy the great range of outstanding beauty to be found here. With an ideal climate for beach holidays in the summer months as well as skiing and stunning mountain scenery during winter, Bulgaria boasts a wealth of natural charms which provide a solid base for its expanding tourist industry.

In fact tourism plays a very large part in Bulgaria’s success story and it has become the fastest growing tourism economy in Europe. With this kind of growth in the tourist sector and property prices still at a low, it is not surprising that Bulgaria has become one of the world’s most exciting emerging property markets and it is currently attracting interest from investors all over the world.