Bulgarian citizenship is EU citizenship, and its bearer can work, learn, and reside anywhere in the EU. All people who marry Bulgarian citizens have the right to apply the Bulgarian citizenship. Nevertheless, it is not a single-stage, straightforward process, and it has stages and legalities to acquire Bulgarian citizenship.
The marriage should be legitimate and registered by the Bulgarian authorities, either done abroad or done in Bulgaria. In case the couple was married lawfully in Bulgaria, they must be registered in the municipality where the Bulgarian spouse resides.
Marrying in Bulgaria does not necessarily involve a Bulgarian citizen among the married persons (except that he/she is a Bulgarian citizen in the case of a foreigner. That being said, the only marriage that will allow the foreign spouse to apply as a Bulgarian citizen through marriage is the marriage of a Bulgarian citizen.
Bulgarian citizenship through marriage initiates a procedure of Bulgarian citizenship application through naturalisation. Other reasons under which one can apply to be naturalised as a Bulgarian are available.
The applicant should have been married to a Bulgarian citizen for at least 3 years before the application for citizenship through marriage. Other than that, permanent residency in Bulgaria must be held for at least three years
There has got to be no such thing as a false marriage or shortcut around the process; it is a harsh felony and might cost you some jail time!
What are the conditions to get Bulgarian citizenship through marriage
The applicant has to be an adult (at the age of recommendation). The first is that the applicant is married (still married) to a Bulgarian citizen lawfully and not less at least three years. Marriage that was held outside Bulgaria has to be legitimate and recorded within the country. Another reason the applicant will use to gain a permanent residence permit is the fact that he or she is a family member (spouse) of a Bulgarian citizen and has resided in Bulgaria for at least 3 consecutive years. Obtaining a permanent address for a spouse of a Bulgarian citizen depends on the citizenship of the foreign spouse.
There are variances between the EU nationals and the non-EU nationals in terms of the conditions and processes of getting a Bulgarian residency permit (long-term and permanent). Bulgaria belongs to the EU; hence, EU citizens will use fewer documents to submit during an application, and they will be permanent residents. There is the type D visa that should be sought at the Bulgarian embassy/consulate in various countries before they can be granted long-term residence by non-EU nationals. The non-EU applicants who are married to a Bulgarian citizen may acquire permanent residence following the acquisition of a long-term residency permit at the end of three years.
The candidate has never been convicted of any deliberate indictable criminal activities by any Bulgarian official of law. They cannot be involved in criminal law proceedings where laid on with a crime of that nature unless they have been rehabilitated.
The candidate has to submit evidence of adequate finances or a good occupation that indicates that they can support themselves in Bulgaria.
The candidate has to demonstrate mastery of the Bulgarian language by passing a formal test stipulated by the Ministry of Education and Culture of Bulgaria.
Bulgarian marriage citizenship notes, remarks and summary
As indicated earlier, obtaining Bulgarian citizenship through marriage is not the only means through which one can acquire Bulgarian citizenship through naturalisation. Only after three years of permanent residency are the grounds available to an applicant to apply for Bulgarian citizenship based on marriage.
In the cases of the non-EU nationals who are married to a Bulgarian citizen, the minimum time duration before their application for Bulgarian citizenship will not be less than six years. Three years to obtain the permanent residency card, and three years following the obtaining of the permanent residency card. This does not necessarily give persons the right to Bulgarian citizenship automatically. It has demands (described above) that the candidate has to meet, and the relatively difficult official test in Bulgarian that is taken in order to determine who knows the language.
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