Updated information for travellers upon entry in the Republic of Bulgaria

31 January 2022

From 1 February 2022 to 31 March 2022 according to Order № РД-01-49/28.01.2022 г. of the Minister of Health for the purpose of tourism on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria, tourists are allowed through the following border checkpoints (BCPs):  

  1. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Burgas Airport“;
  2. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Varna Airport“;
  3. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Plovdiv Airport“;
  4. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Sofia Airport“ (Terminal 1 and Terminal 2);
  5. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Port of Burgas“;
  6. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Port of Varna“;
  7. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Vidin“;
  8. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Vrashka chuka“;
  9. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Durankulak“;
  10. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Gyueshevo“;
  11. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Zlatarevo“
  12. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Ilinden“;
  13. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Kalotina“;
  14. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Kapitan Andreevo“;
  15. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Kapitan Petko voyvoda“;
  16. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Kulata“;
  17. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Lesovo“;
  18. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Makaza“;
  19. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Malko Tarnovo“;
  20. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Oltomantsi“
  21. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Oryahovo“;
  22. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Russe“ 
  23. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Stanke Lisichkovo“
  24. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Somovit-Nikopol“
  25. BORDER CHECKPOINT “Strezimirovtsi“

The entry in the country is conducted on an assessment of the prevalence of COVID-19 in the respective countries by criteria and placement of the countries in color zones.

Color zones are as follows:

  • Green zone;
  • Orange zone;
  • Red zone;
  • Dark red zone.

Persons arriving by color zones of the countries in the Republic of Bulgaria

Green zone countries:

  • The person is admitted to the territory of the country upon presentation of a valid EU digital COVID certificate for vaccination, disease or testing or for a similar document containing the same data as the EU COVID digital certificate.
  • Persons who do not present a document are quarantined for 10 days in home or other accommodation where the person has indicated that he will reside, with a prescription issued by the director of the relevant regional health inspectorate or his authorized deputy-director.
  • The quarantined person may perform a polymerase chain reaction – PCR test to detect COVID-19 or a rapid antigen test of those listed in Annex № 2 not earlier than 72 hours of arrival in the country. In case of a negative result of the conducted research, the quarantine of the person shall be considered terminated from the day following the registration of the result in the National Information System for Combating COVID-19.

Orange zone countries:

  • Those persons are admitted to the territory of the country only upon presentation of a valid EU digital COVID certificate for vaccination, recovery from the illness or a test conducted, or a similar document containing the same data as the EU digital COVID certificate.
  • Persons who do not present a document are quarantined for 10 days in home or other accommodation where the person has indicated that he will reside, with a prescription issued by the director of the relevant regional health inspectorate or his authorized deputy-director.
  • The quarantined person under may conduct a polymerase chain reaction test to detect COVID-19 or a rapid antigen test of those listed in Annex No 2 not earlier than 72 hours of arrival in the country. In case of a negative result of the conducted research, the quarantine of the person shall be considered terminated from the day following the registration of the result in the National Information System for Combating COVID-19.

Red zone countries:

  • Persons are admitted to the territory of the country upon presentation of a valid EU digital COVID certificate for vaccination, disease or testing or an equivalent or similar document containing the same data as the EU digital COVID certificate.
  • Bulgarian citizens and persons with permanent, long-term or long-term residence on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria and members of their families who do not present any of these documents are allowed on the territory of the country and placed under quarantine for 10 days or in another place of accommodation where the person has indicated that he will reside, with a prescription issued by the director of the relevant regional health inspectorate or a deputy director authorized by him/her;
  • The quarantined person may perform a polymerase chain reaction test to detect COVID-19 or a rapid antigen test of those listed in Annex № 2 not earlier than 72 hours of arrival in the country. In case of a negative result of the conducted research, the quarantine of the person shall be considered terminated from the day of registration of the result in the National Information System for Combating COVID-19.

Dark Red zone countries:

  • Persons are admitted to the territory of the country upon presentation of a valid EU digital COVID certificate for vaccination, disease or equivalent or similar document, simultaneously with a negative result from a study conducted up to 72 hours before entry into the country by polymerase chain reaction for COVID-19.
  • Persons who present a valid EU digital COVID vaccination certificate for an additional (booster) dose or equivalent or a similar document are not required to submit a negative result from a polymerase chain reaction for COVID-19 test performed up to 72 hours before entry into the country.
  • Bulgarian citizens and persons with the status of permanent, long-term or long-term residence on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria and members of their families who do not present any of the documents are allowed on the territory of the country and placed under quarantine for 10 days or in another place of accommodation where the person has indicated that he / she will reside, with a prescription issued by the director of the respective regional health inspectorate or a deputy director authorized by him.
  • Bulgarian citizens and persons with the status of permanent, long-term or long-term residence on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria and members of their families who present upon entering the country only one of the documents (for vaccination with completed vaccination course or for illness or negative conducted up to 72 hours before entry into the country polymerase chain reaction test for COVID-19) shall be quarantined for a period of 10 days in the home or other accommodation where the person has indicated that he will reside, with a prescription , issued by the director of the respective regional health inspection or deputy director authorized by him. The quarantined person may perform a polymerase chain reaction test to detect COVID-19 no earlier than 72 hours of arrival in the country. In case of a negative result of the conducted research, the quarantine shall be considered terminated from the day of registration of the result in the National Information System for Combating COVID-19.
  • Children aged from 12 to 18 years of are allowed on the territory of the country upon presentation of a valid EU digital COVID certificate for testing or an equivalent or similar document with a negative result from a polymerase chain reaction test for COVID-19, conducted up to 72 hours before entering the country. If they do not present such a document, they shall be placed under quarantine for a period of 10 days in the home or other accommodation where it is stated that they will reside, with a prescription issued by the director of the relevant regional health inspectorate or authorized by him deputy director. The quarantined person may perform a polymerase chain reaction test to detect COVID-19 no earlier than 72 hours of arrival in the country. In case of a negative result of the conducted research, the quarantine shall be considered terminated from the day of registration of the result in the National Information System for Combating COVID-19.

 

All countries outside the European Union and the European Economic Area and the Swiss Confederation that are not in red zone counties list are considered orange zone countries.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

List of countries and overseas territories by color zones, countries with information about a significant negative change in the epidemic situation and countries with a reciprocal basis, according to Annex 1 under item I, 3 of Order № РД-01- 49 /28.01.2022:

Green zone: have not

Orange zone:

All countries outside the green and red zone.

Red zone:

  1. Australia
  2. Republic of Austria;
  3. Anguilla;
  4. Antigua and Barbuda;
  5. Barbados;
  6. The Bahamas;
  7. Belize;
  8. Bermuda;
  9. Bosnia and Herzegovina;
  10. British Virgin Islands;
  11. The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg;
  12. Grenada;
  13. Georgia;
  14. Commonwealth of Dominica;
  15. Dominican Republic;
  16. The State of Kuwait;
  17. Uruguay;
  18. Ireland;
  19. Italy;
  20. Jordan;
  21. Cape Verde;
  22. Cayman Islands;
  23. Canada;
  24. Qatar;
  25. Kyrgyz Republic;
  26. The Principality of Liechtenstein;
  27. Principality of Monaco;
  28. Kingdom of Spain;
  29. Kingdom of the Netherlands;
  30. Kingdom of Norway;
  31. The Kingdom of Sweden;
  32. Cooperative Republic of Guyana;
  33. Kingdom of Bahrain;
  34. Curacao;
  35. The Lebanese Republic;
  36. Multinational State of Bolivia;
  37. Mongolia;
  38. Montserrat;
  39. Swiss Confederation;
  40. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
  41. Isle of Man;
  42. Aruba Islands;
  43. Albania;
  44. Argentine Republic;
  45. Republic of Botswana;
  46. Greece;  
  47. Ecuador;
  48. Estonya;
  49. Republic of Kazakhstan;
  50. Republic of Colombia;
  51. Republic of Kosovo;
  52. Republic of Costa Rica;
  53. Republic of Latvia;
  54. The Republic of Lithuania;
  55. Republic of Malta;
  56. Moldova;
  57. Republic of Panama;
  58. Republic of Paraguay;
  59. Republic of Peru;
  60. Republic of Poland;
  61. The Republic of Northern Macedonia;
  62. Singapore;
  63. Republic of Suriname;
  64. Republic of Serbia;
  65. Republic of Tajikistan;
  66. Republic of Trinidad and Tobago;
  67. The Republic of Turkey;
  68. The Republic of Finland;
  69. Republic of Chile;
  70. Romania;
  71. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines;
  72. Saint Lucia;
  73. Slovak Republic;
  74. United States of America;
  75. Republic of Tunisia;
  76. Turkmenistan;
  77. Turks and Caicos Islands;
  78. Hungary;
  79. Federal Republic of Germany;
  80. Federative Republic of Brazil;
  81. Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis;
  82. Croatia;
  83. Montenegro;
  84. Czech Republic;
  85. Jamaica.

Dark Red zone:

1. Afghanistan;

2. Boner;

3. Gibraltar;

4. Greenland;

5. Israel;

6. Iceland;

7. The Principality of Andorra;

8. Swiss Confederation;

9. the Kingdom of Belgium;

10. The Kingdom of Denmark;

11. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea;

12. Maldives;

13. United Republic of Tanzania;

14. The Republic of Palau;

15. The Portuguese Republic;

16. Republic of San Marino;

17. Republic of Seychelles;

18. Saba;

19. Saint Pierre and Miquelon;

20. Synt Eustatius;

21. Slovenia;

22. Faroe Islands;

23. France.

 

Annex 4, I, 11, Order No РД -01-49/ 28.01.2022

Countries whose COVID-19 vaccination, testing and disease certificate are considered equivalent to the EU digital COVID certificate:

  1. Armenia;
  2. Georgia;
  3. Vatican City State (only in respect of vaccination certificates issued);
  4. Israel;
  5. Eastern Republic of Uruguay;
  6. Iceland;
  7. Cape Verde;
  8. The Principality of Andorra;
  9. The Principality of Liechtenstein;
  10. The Principality of Monaco;
  11. Swiss Confederation;
  12. Kingdom of Morocco;
  13. The Kingdom of Norway;
  14. Kingdom of Thailand;
  15. The Republic of Lebanon;
  16. New Zealand;
  17. United Arab Emirates;
  18. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
  19. The Republic of Albania;
  20. Republic of El Salvador;
  21. The Republic of Moldova;
  22. Republic of Panama;
  23. Republic of San Marino;
  24. The Republic of Northern Macedonia;
  25. The Republic of Singapore;
  26. Republic of Serbia;
  27. Тhe Republic of Turkey;
  28. Taiwan;
  29. Togolese Republic;
  30. Tunisia;
  31. Ukraine;
  32. The Faroe Islands;
  33. Montenegro.

The list is subject to update and supplementation depending on the development of the epidemic situation.

Information by countries from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in connection with the travel conditions at COVID-19 – https://www.mfa.bg/bg/covid19map

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

On 15 November 2021, the European Commission adopted four decisions certifying that the COVID-19 certificates issued by Georgia, Moldova, New Zealand, and Serbia are equivalent to the EU digital COVID certificate. As a result, from 16 November 2021, the four countries will be connected to the EU system and their COVID certificates will be accepted under the same conditions as the EU digital COVID certificate.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

By the Order No РД -01-49 /28.01.2022 of the Minister of Health:

"State (territory) from which the person arrives" means the country (territory) - the starting point of his departure, regardless of the stay associated with his transit through other countries during his movement.

“Valid digital COVID EU vaccination certificate or similar document” is a document for completed vaccination course against COVID-19. The document must contain the names of the person written in Latin, according to the identity document he/she travels, date of birth, the date of last received dose of vaccine against COVID-19, serial number of the dose, and doses total number in double vaccines, the trade name of the vaccine against COVID-19, name of the manufacturer/holder of the marketing authorization, country of issue and name of the issuing competent authority and, for the EU certificate, its unique identifier.

The completion of a vaccination course is considered to be the administration of the appropriate number of doses COVID-19 vaccine listed in Annex No 3 and expiry of a 14-day period from the date of last dose administration. The combination of one dose of Vaxzevria / AZD1222 with one dose of Comirnaty / BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine) is also considered a completed vaccination course.

“Valid EU digital COVID certificate” is a document certifying that a person has suffered from COVID-19 and which is valid for the period from the 11th to the 180th day from the date of the examination entered in the document. The certificate must contain the names of the person written in Latin, according to the identity document he/she travels, date of birth, date of the first positive result of the NAAT test and a positive result (Positive), details of the issuing authority, country, which the examination was done and its unique identifier. “NAAT test” means a molecular test for nucleic acid amplification, such as polymerase chain reaction with reverse transcriptase (RT-PCR), cyclic-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), and transcriptional-mediated amplification (TMA) techniques used to detect the presence of ribonucleic acid of SARS-CoV-2 (RNA).

A document analogous to the EU's digital COVID certificate of illness is a document certifying that a person has suffered from COVID-19, and which is valid for the period from the 11th to the 180th day from the date of the examination entered in the document. The document must contain the names of the person written in Latin, according to the identity document with which he/she travels, date of birth, date of the first positive result of PCR test or rapid antigen test and a positive result (Positive), information about the medical institution, carried out the examination (name, address or other contact details) or the issuing authority and the country in which the examination was conducted.

“Valid EU digital COVID certificate for testing” or a similar document is a document showing a negative result from a polymerase chain reaction test performed up to 72 hours before entry into the country or a negative result from a rapid antigen test conducted up to 48 hours before entry into the country, as of the date of sampling entered in the document. The document must contain the names of the person written in Latin, according to the identity document with which he/she travels, date of birth, type of test, written in Latin method (PCR or RAT) and negative result (Negative), date and time of collection test sample, trade name and manufacturer of the test (mandatory for rapid antigen tests), name of the laboratory / medical institution that performed the test, country where the test was performed and authority that issued the certificate / document, and for the EU certificate - and its unique identifier.

Equivalent to the EU digital COVID certificate are also COVID-19 certificates issued by a third country in accordance with standards and technological systems that are interoperable with the Digital COVID Trust Framework. EU certificate. The list of countries whose COVID-19 vaccination, testing and relapse certificates are considered equivalent to the EU digital COVID is in Annex № 4.

 

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