Bulgaria in 2016 – a tangible opportunity for a second passport through investment
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Bulgaria is a country in Europe, located on the Balkan Peninsula. A nation with over 1 300 years of history, characterized with local hospitality, tolerance, tasty food and wonderful nature. Today Bulgaria is a member of the EU, WTO, and NATO and is one of the fastest developing economies in the EU in the post-financial & economic crises time.
2016 was a good year for Bulgari, characterized with:
- Noticeable economic growth – up to 3.4% GDP growth at the Q3 of 2016;
- The economic relations with third countries were strengthen - Bulgaria turned its face to the markets on the East.
2016 is another year for economic growth and stability
Bulgaria has an open market economy with a developed private sector and a limited number of state enterprises. The Bulgarian economy is characterized by economic, political and financial stability. The country has a strategic geographic location, liberal access to the EU markets, consisting of more than 560 million consumers, and the lowest corporate tax in the EU - 10%. There are also provisions for a 5% tax upon dividends and a 10% “flat rate” tax on the incomes of physical persons. Bulgaria enjoys the lowest operating costs in the EU. The level of national indebtedness and the state deficit for 2016 is also among the lowest in the EU. Bulgaria is one of three countries in the EU that has not changed tax rates as a result of the financial crisis. Its farsighted fiscal policy and stable business environment make Bulgaria one of the most stable countries in the EU.
In the latest Global Competitiveness Report 2016-2017 the World Economic Forum has ranked Bulgaria 50th in the world out of a total of 140 countries, and for a fourth year in a row, Bulgaria has improved its score.
According to the seasonally adjusted data, the GDP growth rate in the third quarter of 2016 is 3.4% compared with the same quarter of 2015. GDP figure suggests that the economy has been largely stable so far this year and it remains one of the fastest-growing economies in the EU.
2016 was really good year for the tourism sector in Bulgaria
Within the year over 7.5 million foreign tourists visited Bulgaria, which is 15,7 % growth in comparison with 2015. During the summer season, Bulgaria has been visited by 5 million foreign tourists, who had chosen the Bulgarian Black sea resorts for their summer holiday. For the winter season, the experts expect over 1 million tourist to visit the Bulgarian ski and SPA destinations.
In 2016 Bulgaria received the Best tourist destination for Russian tourists’ award, by the National Geographic traveler, Russia and is awarded at Third place, according to the Adventure Tourism Development Index.
In 2016 Bulgaria initiated and was the host of the First International Congress of the World Civilizations & Tourism.
The up growth at the tourism sector in 2015 & 2016 leads to upward trajectory of the hotel business in Bulgaria. The capital Sofia, the Black sea resorts, ski resorts and SPA resorts in the country attract strong investor’s appetites. The annual occupancy of the resort hotels reached up to 50 %, while the hotels in Sofia are almost full occupied all year round.
2016 – The boost year of investment in real estate in Bulgaria
In 2016 the Real Estate Market in Bulgaria is on a growing track
- 12 % increase of the investment purchase of luxury properties
- Rise in the real estate prices with 17 %
- Increased interest in residential properties over 200 sq. m
- Big rental deals are pushing forward Bulgaria's office market
- Over 1/3 of the trade deals with business properties are in purchase of hotels
- Preferences to the newly completed projects
- Stable secondary property market
- Increased interest to the “green field” projects
- Short-term completion of the deals
- Stable market growth
The Real Estate Market in Bulgaria become highly attractive for the international investors & financing institutions. An important element of the new market reality is the return of the confidence of the clients, who are considering the real estate as a safe real asset and good investment on reasonable price. Both primary and secondary market experienced greater investment activity. The second- and third- tire market's rise is due mostly to the local investors, who are aiming to secure their financial assets into properties and to favor high rental yield. Latest research, produced by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, state that the investors in real estate in Bulgaria are expecting further growth on the local market. In comparison to other countries in the region, Bulgaria is on track for rise in rents and capital value of properties. In 2016 the deals with properties with high yield of investments, such as hotels, office buildings and industrial, are over 70% of the active deals on the market. The current growth is mostly due to the stable economic growth of Bulgaria, political and economy stability.
2016 – Another year of Bulgarian IT sector extensive growth
The Bulgarian IT sector has been one of the driving forces behind the countries steady growth over the past few years. With an average annual increase of 17% since 2007, the ICT sector is one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy. It generates 10% of the Bulgarian GDP and employs the third largest contingent of ICT specialists in the world.
According to European Information Technology Observatory (EITO), the Bulgarian IT industry has been enjoying at a two-digit rate, and there are no signs that this growth will slow down anytime soon. Arguably, Bulgaria is one of the leading countries with a high number of top Multinational ICT corporations in Eastern Europe. Among these multinational corporations are HP, SAP, Johnson Controls, VMware, CISCO, ProSyst and Atos among others. Note that the presence of the IT multinational corporations in this country implies that businesses that engage in ICT business can easily access top-notch technologies at affordable prices.
In 2016 Canada decided to lift the visa requirements for Bulgarians
In 2016 the Bulgarian Government and the Canadian Government agreed, that Canadian visas for Bulgarian travelers shall be removed before the end of 2017 and meanwhile some restrictions shall be lessen.
The Bulgarian Government had made visa-free travel a key condition for their support of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) that was signed by Canada and the EU at the end of October 2016.
In 2016 Bulgaria affirmed its diplomatic and economic line to Asia and Middle East countries.
Bulgaria has 69 international treaties to provide tax reliefs or reduce tax rates for foreign investors in the local economy. In October 2016 the Bulgarian Government has approved a Convention for avoidance of double taxation between Bulgaria and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This is a new step at the interstate relations among the two countries. The aim is to be stimulated the bilateral economic cooperation and to be increased the trade between the two countries.
In October 2016 Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy of UAE, leaded a high-profile trade and economic delegation to the Bulgarian capital, Sofia. Officials from the UAE and Bulgaria met in Sofia to explore prospects for co-operation and investment in areas of economy, trade, transport, information and communications technology (ICT), tourism and agriculture. As a conclusion of the high-profile meetings was signed a Cooperation Agreement aimed at boosting economic ties and bilateral trade.
In October 2016 Bulgaria and Vietnam confirmed its longstanding bilateral relations. Bulgarian official delegation visited Vietnam aiming to highlight the huge potential of bilateral trade and investment and to encourage further advancement of mutual economic relations. During the official visit a mutual Agreement of Cooperation between the Bulgarian development Bank and the Vietnamese Development Bank has been signed and a Bulgaria - Vietnam-Business Forum has been held, aiming to increase the effectiveness of the implementation of various investment projects in the sphere of trade, aquaculture, energy, infrastructure etc.
The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina visited Bulgaria in May 2016 to attend the Global Women Leaders' Forum and was received by the Bulgarian President and the Prime Minister to discuss how to further strengthen the bilateral relations between Bulgaria and Bangladesh. During her visit several mutual agreements have been signed: for cooperation in the cultural sector, for exchange of technology and trade and investment.
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