Employing in Bulgaria: fourteen straight answers on contracts, euro pay and costs

1

How does a first Bulgarian hire come together?

Begin by settling whose name goes on the labour contract: a Bulgarian EOOD that you form, or an employer of record. Next, fix the gross monthly salary in euro, no lower than the €620.20 minimum for 2026, and confirm the candidate may work in Bulgaria. The signed contract then goes onto the NRA’s employment register no more than 3 days after signing, and before the first working day. Salary, tax and contributions follow every month, settled by the 25th.

2

What does a Bulgarian employee cost the employer each year?

Expect roughly 12.4% on top of gross pay at developer salaries. For a Sofia developer earning €40,000 in 2026, the employer adds about €4,972.46 in contributions, for a total near €44,972.46. The employer rate is 18.92%, yet it applies only up to the monthly ceiling: €2,111.64 until 31 July 2026 and €2,300 from 1 August 2026.

The developer keeps about €32,740.57 after 13.78% employee contributions and 10% income tax. Our charge comes on top at from €599 per employee per month, so budget about €52,160 for the year.

3

How many days pass before a Bulgarian hire can begin?

Often within days of signing, provided the candidate is free to move. The legal step that sets the pace is the entry in the NRA employment register, due within 3 days of signing and before day one, and nobody may be admitted to work until they hold a certified copy. Notice owed to a current employer, 30 days by default, is usually the longer wait. Candidates from outside the EU need a Blue Card or single permit first, which can take several months.

4

Is a Bulgarian company needed before you can employ anyone?

No. You can form an EOOD and register it as an employer, or have the Bulgarian contract signed by an employer of record instead. Share capital for an EOOD can be as little as €1, yet double-entry bookkeeping, internal pay rules, a contract with an occupational health service and electronic access to the NRA all come with it, so the first payroll is usually some weeks away. Through an EOR there is no company to set up or wind down later, and the employee keeps identical rights.

5

Could the person sign a civil contract instead?

Only where the person truly runs their own business. The Labour Code says that providing labour is governed solely as employment, so a civil contract covering fixed hours, continuing duties and instructions from your managers is treated as a labour relationship. The Labour Inspectorate can declare that employment exists and set the date it began. Back contributions, paid leave and notice rights then follow, along with fines for missing the written contract and the NRA register entry.

6

What must a Bulgarian labour contract say?

It has to be written and identify both sides, the job and its workplace, the start date and length, pay in euro and pay period, working time, leave and notice. Probation can be agreed for up to 6 months, or 1 month when the contract runs under a year, and fixed terms stop at 3 years. Normal hours are 40 a week across five days. A post-employment non-compete will not hold, so protect know-how with confidentiality and IP clauses.

7

Which deductions and levies apply to pay?

Two deductions leave the payslip: employee contributions of 13.78% on pay up to the ceiling (raised to €2,300 a month on 1 August 2026), then income tax at a flat 10% on what remains, with no bands and no personal allowance. The employer separately adds 18.92% for pensions, sickness and maternity, unemployment, work accidents, the universal pension fund and health insurance. Both shares and the withheld tax reach the National Revenue Agency in one payment, a month in arrears, by the 25th.

8

Which pay floor does Bulgaria set for 2026?

€620.20 a month for full-time work, or €3.74 an hour, from 1 January 2026. Above the agreed basic salary the law adds a length-of-service bonus, known as klas, for each year of counted experience, including time with earlier employers and in other EU countries. Contributions never run on less than the minimum insurable income set for the job, or the minimum wage where none is set.

9

How much paid leave does an employee in Bulgaria get?

A minimum of 20 working days off on full pay every year, plus at least 5 more where hours are irregular. Someone in a first job can take it after 4 months of service, and unused days are paid out when the job ends. Public holidays come on top; one falling at a weekend gives a day off on the next working day, Easter excepted. Maternity leave runs to 410 days and fathers get 15 days plus 2 months, all paid by the NSSI.

10

What does sick leave cost?

Very little for the employer. It pays the first 2 working days of each absence at 70% of the employee’s average daily gross pay. The National Social Security Institute covers day 3 onwards, paying 80% of the person’s average daily insurable income, provided the person has 6 months of insurance behind them. The employee hands in a medical sick note, and payroll records the absence and reports it so the NSSI can pay its share.

11

Where do the Bulgarian contributions end up?

In six funds, all paid to the National Revenue Agency in a single monthly transfer. Of the employer’s 18.92%, state pensions take 8.22%, health insurance 4.80%, the employee’s universal pension fund 2.80%, sickness and maternity benefits 2.10% and unemployment cover 0.60%, plus a sector-based work-accident rate, typically 0.40% for office roles. The National Social Security Institute then pays out the benefits. Staff born before 1960 skip the universal fund and pay a higher state pension rate.

12

How does an employment end in Bulgaria?

Only on a ground the Labour Code lists, such as staff reduction, a smaller workload or unsuitability for the post, or for disciplinary reasons; there is no dismissal at will. Notice on an open-ended contract lasts 30 days, unless the parties agreed a longer period of up to 3 months. Several grounds bring up to a month of compensation, and unused leave is always paid out. A mutual-consent exit proposed by the employer costs at least 4 months of gross pay.

13

Remote work, and staff outside Bulgaria

Remote work is ordinary employment with extra terms written into the contract. Neither side can impose it, the contract names one or more places of work, and the employer pays for equipment, software, internet and data protection while staying responsible for health and safety. Staff may also switch off outside working hours. Someone working from another country is a separate question: EU coordination rules decide where social security is due, so check each case before it starts.

14

Which employer tasks do we take on for you?

Everything that comes with holding the Bulgarian contract. We draw up the labour contract, make the NRA register entry before day one, run payroll in euro, withhold the 10% tax and contributions, pay them by the 25th, track leave and sick days, and handle notice and final pay when a job ends. Picking the candidate, setting pay and deciding on projects remain your calls. The monthly fee per employee is from €599.