Issuance of the birth certificate

The birth certificate is an official written document in which, in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Civil Registration Act, the public official registers the birth event.

The certificate is issued in the municipality or mayorality in which the person was born, on the basis of a notification of birth made by a competent medical professional and an application form (provided free of charge) submitted by the parents of the newborn, containing the newborn’s selected full name and permanent address. The written notification of birth is provided to the public official within 5 days of the date of birth, excluding the day of birth.

A birth certificate based on a written notification is issued within 7 days of the date of birth, excluding the day of birth.

If parentage is acknowledged prior to the issuance of the birth certificate and the mother states that she will not dispute it, the father’s data is filled in the respective field of the certificate. The mother may state that she will not dispute the recognition of parentage in person via a written application submitted to the public official, or through a declaration with a notary certification of the signature submitted to the public official.

The application may also be submitted through the manager of the medical establishment in which the child was born.

A birth certificate based on a court decision is issued within 3 days of the date of receipt of the decision.

Birth certificate of a Bulgarian citizen born abroad

Bulgarian citizens born abroad are issued with a birth certificate in the following cases:

- if both parents are Bulgarian citizens: if the permanent address of the mother is in the territory of the municipality;

- if only one parent is a Bulgarian citizen: if the permanent address of the Bulgarian parent is in the territory of the municipality.

The foreign birth certificate must be submitted in an original copy drawn up in accordance with the requirements of the Rules for the Legalisation, Certification and Translation of Documents and Other Papers, taking into account whether the document’s country of origin is party to the 1961 Hague Convention with regard to the legalisation of foreign public documents or whether it is a party to legal aid agreements with the Republic of Bulgaria, or a certified copy thereof, or an extract from a birth certificate issued after the document was legalised. The document can be legalised by a notary or by a Bulgarian diplomatic or consular representative in the respective country.

When registering a birth that occurred abroad, the information relating to the holder’s name, date and place of birth, sex and the established parentage will be entered on the birth certificate as set out in the copy or the Bulgarian translation of the foreign document produced.

When registering a birth that occurred abroad, the Bulgarian citizenship of the holder and the parent(s) must be entered on the birth certificate.

For births occurring abroad, an original birth certificate is issued following the issuance of a birth certificate in the Republic of Bulgaria.

On the basis of the issued birth certificate, a person may apply for services for the issuance of the following documents: