Relocating to Bulgaria: Seeking advice on tax, residency for a non-EU spouse, and family life
Hello Everybody, I'm looking at the possibility of moving to Bulgaria. I have an EU citizenship, and my wife is Serbian. I have a bunch of questions about the move and would love to hear about your experience.
-
Any weird catches to the tax system or is it as good as it looks? I'm a tech freelancer and will keep my existing clients, so I'll be coming in with foreign income and the idea of retaining most of it is very appealing.
-
Any Serbians that moved in? How is it for you ?
-
Any spouses of EU citizens who did the residency process in Bulgaria? How hard was it?
-
Is there good private healthcare? Do you have experience with giving birth in Bulgaria, and particularly with natural birth?
-
I would love to hear about international schooling options; I see that it's mostly located in Sofia. Is it high-quality education, and how much does it cost? Same for kindergartens.
-
Bureaucracy sucks everywhere, but i hear that bureaucracy can be extra challenging in Bulgaria. Anybody can shed some light on the processes of applying for residency (for EU citizens and for spouses), opening a bank account, setting up a legal company, and doing the accounting? Do you have any local lawyers/immigration firms/fixers that can help make the bureaucracy less painful?
I have alot more questions, and while i already found some answers online, hearing about personal experiences of others will be very helpful. thank you very much :)
Posted Jun 8, 2026, 4:42 PM UTC