BGN 200 000 Donation to Secure Bulgarian Citizenship

Foreign nationals would be granted Bulgarian citizenship if they donate at least BGN 200 000 to the National Innovation Fund, the Parliament decided Friday.

The amendments to the Encouragement of Investments Act were passed without debates at first reading with 116 Members of the Parliament voting – of them 103 for, 3 against and 10 abstained.

The amendments provide additional opportunities to motivate foreign investors to increase investments in productions and services with high added value, for the creation of new highly-productive jobs, and for optimizing the certification procedures for investment projects.

They also include partial State reimbursement of some of the mandatory social security payments made by the investor in his/her capacity of employer, lowering the said investors' cost by 17.4%, Economy and Energy Minister, Delyan Dobrev, has calculated.

Priority incentives will be directed to investments in high technologies and economically disadvantaged regions.

The Act introduces additional measures giving opportunities to potential foreigner investors to gain permanent resident status or Bulgarian citizenship over their investment projects. They include owners of capital in Bulgaria enterprises, foreigners holding key posts, and those who have donated BGN 200 000 or more to the Innovation Fund.

Investors, who open at least 50 jobs, will also be granted additional incentives.