Staff - Bulgaria

Updated 09/2011

Legal requirements

Relations between employers and employees are subject to the Labour Code.

The Bulgarian Labour Code

The Labour Code applies to the labour relations between Bulgarian citizens, citizens of EU Member States, signatories to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or of Switzerland and employers in Bulgaria, as well as with Bulgarian employers abroad, unless otherwise stated in law or any international agreement that applies in Bulgaria.

The Labour Code does not extend to employment relations having an international element if the parties have opted to place their relations under the legislation of another country.

Labour rights acquired abroad are recognised in Bulgaria by the law, an act of the Council of Ministers or an international agreement to which Bulgaria is party.

Conditions for hiring employees

Social security

Social security in Bulgaria covers unemployment, pensions and health insurance.

Social security

State social security provides compensation, assistance and pensions in the case of: temporary incapacity; temporary reduced capacity; invalidity; maternity; unemployment; old age; death.

Insurers, insurance funds, person paying their own contributions and employers must regularly provide the National Revenue Agency with data on insurance revenue, insurance contributions for state and public insurance, social insurance payments, the time paid and the chargeable income пunder the Law on Tax on the Income of Natural Persons individually for each person subject to insurance.

The main legislative act for state public social security is the Social Security Code.

Social Security Code in Bulgaria

Pensions and compensation are paid by the National Social Security Institute (NSSI).

National Social Security Institute

Citizens living in other countries and who wish to use social security rights or to draw their Bulgarian pensions abroad are served by the Central Office of the NSSI, Directorate on European Integration and International Agreements.

Declarations for the certification of insurance contributions periods made in another EU/EEA country using the Е 104 and Е 301 forms are available on the NSSI website.

Health insurance

Bulgaria has compulsory health insurance in the form of the National Health Insurance Fund. Contributions, with a few exceptions, are usually payable by the employee. The employer is responsible for the health care costs:

of staff, being paid compensation for temporary leave because of sickness, pregnancy, childbirth or childrearing;
where payment is a statutory requirement ;
for staff taking unpaid leave, if they have taken the leave because of operational necessity or outage, or to look after a child.

The main legislative act setting out the categories of person covered by and the conditions for paying health insurance contributions for various categories is the Health Insurance Law.

Contracts of employment

Contracts of employment are made between an employer and an employee when the employee starts work.

Contracts of employment must be in writing, give the details of the parties and set out:

the place of employment;
the name of the position and the nature of the work;
the date of the contract and the start of the employment;
the duration of the contract;
the length of basic and extended annual leave and any additional paid annual leave;
an identical notice period for both parties;
the basic and supplementary fixed salary and the frequency of payment;
the length of the working day or week.

Contracts of employment may also cover other areas relating to the provision of labour which are not covered by applicable legislative provisions, or any conditions that are more favourable to the employee than those set out in the collective labour agreement.

Contracts of employment may be open-ended, for a fixed time, or for a probation period:

Fixed-term contracts are for:

a certain period that cannot exceed 3 years;
until a particular job is finished;
to replace an absent employee, and for certain other situations provided for in the Labour Code.

A fixed-term contract of employment becomes open ended if the employee works for 5 or more working days after the end of the agreed period without the employer objecting, provided that the position is vacant.

Contracts of employment with probationary periods

If a job requires that the employee's competence to do the work is checked, final acceptance of the employee may be preceded by a contract with a probationary period of up to 6 months.

Employees may make a supplementary contract of employment with their employers to do work which is outside the range of their normal duties and outside the contracted working time.

The working week is five days with a normal duration of the working week of up to 40 hours.
The normal working day is up to 8 hourslong.
The minimum paid leave is 20 days per annum.
The minimum pension age is 63 years for men and 60 years for women.
The minimum salary is BGN 270 per month.

The authority which is responsible for ensuring the legality of labour relations is the Central Labour Inspectorate.

Central Labour Inspectorate in Bulgaria

Employees may hold general meetings to elect representatives, to represent their common interests on labour and social security issues before their employers or government agencies. These representatives must be elected with a more than two-thirds majority of members of the general meeting.

Employers are required to provide healthy and safeworking conditions by ensuring that any hazards to the life and health of employees are removed, restricted or reduced.

All employees must undergo compulsory preliminary and regular medical check-ups. The frequency of these check-ups depend on the type of job, the working conditions and the ages of employees and are determined by the minister responsible for health.

Special protection for minors

The minimum working age is 16 (under certain conditions covered by the law it is less than 16). Minors may not be employed for work which is heavy, dangerous or harmful to their health or their physical, mental and moral development. Minors may only be employed after strict preliminary medical examinations and a medical report stating their fitness for the work in question, and with a permit from the labour inspectorate for each particular case.

The methods and procedures for issuing permits are subject to an ordinance from the minister for labour and social policy and the minister for health.

The working time of employees under the age of 18 is 35 hours a week and 7 hours a day within a five-day working week. They are entitled to paid annual leave equal to at least 26 working days, including the calendar year in which they turn 18.

Medical check-ups

All employees must undergo compulsory preliminary health checks:

before starting work (when first starting work, or after a longer period - of more than 3 months - out of work);
when changing to a different job involving risks to their life or health.

All employees are also subject to regular health checks, whose provision is the employer's responsibility. The nature and frequency of depends on the working conditions and any hazards and risks identified during risk assessments carried out at the site.

Employing foreign nationals

EU citizens may work in Bulgaria without a permit.

Citizens of non-EU member states must first obtain a work permit from the Employment Agency.

The Bulgarian Employment Agency
EURES
Ministry of Work and Social Policy - European integration

There are minimum social rules to follow, especially about non-discrimination, gender equality and health and safety.

Staff welfare — Bulgaria

Administrative procedures

Starting and ending employment relations

An employee starts work after a written contract of employment has been made. There are no pro-formas or model contracts of employment. Within three days of making or amending a contract of employment, and within seven days of its termination, the employer or the employer's authorised representative must send a notification to the relevant territorial office of the National Revenue Agency. The contents of the notification and the method for sending it are laid down in an ordinance issued by the minister of labour and social policy.

Employees must start work within one week of receiving the Paragraph 1 documents unless the parties have agreed on a different timescale. The obligations arising under the contract of employment become effective when the employee starts work, which must be confirmed in writing.

The Labour Code sets out the conditions under which contracts of employment can be terminated by the employer or the employee, and with our without notice. A contract may not be terminated if the employee is on sick, maternity or pregnancy leave.

Social security contributions

The National Revenue Agency provides e-services and has a record of written queries sent in by users.

NRA e-services
Archive of written queries

Details of persons for social security purposes are provided by the employer/insurer or by the persons themselves if they are self-insured.

The amount of the contributions are paid into the state social security funds and set out in the Social Security Code.

The income on which social security contributions are payable for state social security includes all remuneration, including additional and unpaid payments, and any other income from work. The State Social Security Budget Law lays down:

the maximum monthly contribution income for the calendar year;
the minimum monthly contribution income for the calendar year payable by self-insured persons;
the main economic activities and qualifying groups of professions for which the minimum monthly contribution income is applicable for the calendar year by activities and professions, as well as the minimum income for contributions.

Employees' social security contributions are distributed among the insurers and the insured, as set out in the Social Security Code. Contributions to the "Occupational accident and diseases " fund are payable by employers/insurers.

Reimbursements of contributions

Contributions can be refunded when the final amount of the contribution income and the social security contributions due have been assessed. The final amount of monthly social security contributions is determined on the basis of the details declared in the documents related to the annual tax return in accordance with the Tax on the Income of Natural Persons Law. The final social security contribution is payable on the annual contribution income determined as the difference between the income declared and the total of thei incomes on which advance contributions were paid.

Work permits for foreign citizens

EU citizens may work in Bulgaria without a permit.

Citizens of non-EU member states must first obtain a work permit from the Employment Agency.

The Bulgarian Employment Agency
EURES

Keeping records

When employees start work for the first time, the employer has to issue them with an employment record-book within 5 days. Employees confirm their first starting employment with a written declaration.

The employment record-book must be retained by the employee and must be presented to the employer on demand and enter any change of circumstances in it.

Employers must keep accurate and timely records in the employment record books of the details required and any changes thereto.

Employers must keep a Register of Employment Record Books Issued, and any forms needed to certify time of service and of insurable income for the NSSI.

Dismissals

The termination of employment relations is regulated by the Labour Code. It is done by issuing an order terminating the contract of employment. Contracts of employment must be terminated in writing.

Contracts of employment can be terminated:

if notice has been given, when the notice period expires;
if the notice period has not been observed, when a corresponding part of the notice period has expired;
when terminating without notice, at the moment a written notice of termination has been issued.

The conditions and circumstances under which contracts of employment can be terminated without notice are seto ut in the Labour Code.

The notice period for terminating open-ended contracts of employment is 30 days, unless the parties have agreed on a longer period, although this can be no longer than 3 months. The notice period for terminating a fixed-term contract of employment is also 3 months, but no more than the period remaining on the contract.

Protection against dismissal

To dismiss the following persons, employers require special permission from the labour inspectorate issued on a case-by-case basis:

employees who aremothers of children under the age of 3;
employees who have beentransferred to more suitable employment on health grounds;
employees suffering from any of the diseases set out in anordinance of the minister of health;
employees who have started using their officialleave ;
employees who have been elected torepresent other employees, for as long as they remain in this capacity;
employees who aremembers of special negotiating bodies, of the European Workers' Council or a representative body in a European trade or cooperative society for as long as they continue to perform their functions.

The members of the trade union leadership in an enterprise, and of a territorial, industry or national elected trade-union body are also afforded protection under the Labour Code for as long as they occupy this trade-union post and for 6 months after they resign from it.

Resources

EURES, the European job portal, offers employers information and support on recruiting across the EU. As well as assisting jobseekers, it helps entrepreneurs find workers from across the EU. In border regions, EURES provides information on cross-border commuting and helps workers and employers with problems that may arise.

Programmes

The Employment Agency carries out a wide range of employment and training programems and measures aimed at various groups, depending on their requirements. For more information, please apply to:

Employment stimulation programmes and measures

Check also the legislation on this topic in:

Staff - Bulgaria