Buying or Selling Property in Bulgaria Without Being There: A Guide to Power of Attorney

Scenic view of Bansko buildings and mountains framed by flowers

Many of our clients live in Tel Aviv, London, Berlin or Sofia, not in Bansko. They find the right apartment, agree the price, and then face a practical question: do I have to fly in for the notary? Often the answer is no. A properly made power of attorney lets someone you trust sign for you. This guide explains how it works, what the document must contain, and the mistakes that most often delay a deal.

Тази статия е обща информация, а не правен или данъчен съвет.

What a Power of Attorney Does in a Property Deal

A power of attorney (in Bulgarian, power of attorney) is a document in which you, the principal, authorise another person, the attorney, to act in your name. In a property purchase or sale, the attorney can sign the preliminary contract, appear before the notary, sign the final notarial deed and complete the steps around it.

The attorney can be a relative, a friend or a lawyer. What matters is that you trust them and that the document gives them exactly the powers they need, no more and no less.

The Form the Law Requires

Bulgarian law is strict here. Under Art. 37 of the Obligations and Contracts Act, a power of attorney for a contract that requires a notarial form, such as the sale or purchase of real estate, must be in writing with notarial certification of both the signature and the content, made at the same time. A certificate of the signature alone is not enough, and neither is certifying the signature one day and the content another.

In practice this means you sign the document in front of the official who certifies it. A document signed at home and brought in later will be refused.

Three Ways to Sign It

1. Before a notary in Bulgaria

If you are in Bulgaria at any point before the deal, even for one day, this is the simplest route. The notary certifies the signature and content on the spot, and the document is ready to use.

2. At a Bulgarian embassy or consulate

Bulgarian consular offices can certify the signature and the content of a power of attorney for the sale, purchase, exchange or gift of property, including for foreign citizens, as long as the document is intended to take effect in Bulgaria and is written in Bulgarian. You must appear in person with a valid passport (or, for EU citizens, a national ID card) and sign in front of the consular officer. A power of attorney issued by a Bulgarian consul has the same legal force as one made before a notary in Bulgaria. Check the opening hours and appointment rules of your nearest consulate in advance.

3. Before a local notary abroad, with an apostille

If you live in a country that is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, such as Israel, the UK and the other EU member states, you can sign before a local notary. The document then needs an apostille (a stamp that confirms the notary’s authority) from the competent authority in that country. For countries outside the Convention, full consular legalisation is needed instead. A document in a foreign language must then be translated into Bulgarian by a sworn translator, and the translator’s signature is certified by a notary in Bulgaria.

Ask the local notary to follow the Bulgarian requirement for simultaneous certification of signature and content. A bilingual document, Bulgarian and English side by side, prepared in advance, saves time and translation costs.

Bansko town street with clock tower

What the Document Should Say

A vague power of attorney is the most common reason a notary stops a deal. A good one usually includes:

Full details of both people — names as in the passport, dates of birth, passport or ID numbers, Bulgarian personal or foreigner’s number if there is one.
The exact property — address and cadastral identifier, as shown in the title deed or the cadastral sketch.
The powers — to sign a preliminary contract, to sign the notarial deed, to agree or confirm the price (or a price range), to pay or receive money, to submit declarations, to pay taxes and fees, to sign the handover protocol and to collect documents.
Related steps — for example, registering the property with the municipality for local taxes, or transferring electricity, water and maintenance accounts.
Self-contracting — if the same person will represent both sides, this must be expressly allowed.
Validity — a fixed end date, if you want one, stated clearly.

Before signing, send the draft to the Bulgarian notary who will handle the deal. Notaries differ slightly in what they want to see, and a five-minute check saves a second trip to the consulate.

Buying From Abroad: What to Watch

Declarations. The notary will ask for declarations, for example on marital status and on the origin of the funds. Ask in advance which of them your attorney can sign and which you must sign yourself, so you can sign them at the same time as the power of attorney.
Payment. The purchase price can be paid by bank transfer, often through the notary’s special (escrow) account, so you do not have to hand money to your attorney.
Checks before signing. Your attorney signs, but you still need to know what you are buying. Ask for the title deed, the cadastral sketch and a check for mortgages and other encumbrances before the deal, not on the day.

Selling From Abroad: What to Watch

Price limits. If you give your attorney power to sell, set a minimum price or name the agreed buyer and price.
Where the money goes. Посочете банковата сметка, по която трябва да бъде платена цената. Това защитава както Вас, така и адвоката.
Данъци. A sale may trigger tax in Bulgaria and in your country of residence. Speak to a tax adviser before you sign.
Utilities and maintenance. Settle the final bills and the building maintenance fee so that the handover is clean.

Cobblestone street in Bansko Old Town

Revoking a Power of Attorney

You can revoke a power of attorney at any time, without giving a reason. The revocation takes effect for the attorney from the moment they learn about it. To avoid disputes, make the revocation in writing with a notary and deliver it to the attorney, and tell the notary handling the deal.

Common Mistakes

Signature certified, but not the content.
Document signed before a foreign notary, but no apostille.
Property described only by address, without the cadastral identifier.
Name spelt differently from the passport.
Power to sign the deed, but not to pay taxes or sign the handover protocol.

How We Can Help

We work with clients who are not in Bulgaria, in Bulgarian, English and Russian. We can prepare the list of details the notary needs, coordinate the draft power of attorney with the notary, and follow the deal through to the keys. Our commission on a sale or purchase is 3%, with a minimum of 2,000 EUR.

Buying and selling property in Bansko
Free property valuation — with a viewing on site and a result within 1 working day of the viewing.
Property management and rentals — for owners who stay abroad after the deal.