What Bulgaria can offer you?

Political and business stability

• Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, NATO and WTO
• The stability of the currency is supported by the currency board,1 € (EUR) is equal to 1.95583 (BGN) Bulgarian levs
• Bulgaria has one of the lowest government debts in the European Union (18.5 % of GDP) and one of the lowest budget deficits (0.8%) as of 2012

Low cost of doing business

Bulgaria has the most favorable tax regime in Europe.

•  Corporate income tax rate is 10%, the lowest in the EU.
• Personal income tax is 10 %, flat rate.
• Industries in high-unemployment areas are granted 0% tax rate
• There is a 2-year VAT exemption for imports of equipment for investment projects over €5 million, creating at least 50 jobs
• Depreciation time for computers and new manufacturing equipment is 2 years
• 5% withholding tax on dividends and liquidation quotas (0% for EU tax residents)
• Bulgaria has one of the most competitive costs of labor in Central and Eastern Europe
• Favorable office rents and low cost of utilities. Bulgarian cost of electricity for industrial users is 70% of the European average

Strategic location

Located at the heart of the Balkans, Bulgaria is a strategic logistics hub. Ease of transportation of cargo is provided by

• Five Pan-European corridors ( IV, VII, VII, XI, X), which pass through the country
• Transport program TRACECA, which connects Europe with Caucasian and Central Asian region
• Four major airports: Sofia, Plovdiv, Bourgas and Varna
• Two main seaports: Varna and Bourgas
• Numerous ports at the Danube River

Access to markets

Due to its location Bulgaria provides direct access to the following key markets:

• European Union – zero tariff market with population of 500 million
• CIS – still not well penetrated market with a high potential
• Turkey – zero tariff market of near 80 million population
• Middle East – a market with high purchasing power
• North African market

Human resources

• Work force is well educated, highly skilled and multilingual
• 62.2 % of the total population is in working age (appr. 4.6 million)
• 60 000 students annually graduate from 51 universities
• 98% of the high school students study a foreign language (usually English) and 73% study a second language (mainly German, French, Spanish, Russian)