Revival or standstill of tourism in the upcoming winter season

Bulgaria will take the Presidency of the Council of the EU in January 2018

This news has been confirmed by the European Commission at the end of July 2016. 

Check the news here

The decision making process in the EU is a mix of national interests, leadership strategies, and administrative procedures. The Council of the EU is the primary arena of policy–making, where the positive outcome of the negotiations depends mostly on the Presidency.

Bulgaria will lead the Council of the EU for the first time within the period January-July 2018. The Presidency shall provide substantial opportunity for the country to set up the strategic agenda of the Union, but also to maintain its national priorities. Carefully planned and utilized, the Presidency mandate shall enable the Bulgarian authorities to gain considerable strategic results to the EU, but also to their own country.

What the Presidency would bring to Bulgaria?

 Schengen Accession

Schengen Accession of Bulgaria is a political issue. Although the country has fulfilled all the technical requirements and has set its border and security systems fulfilling the Schengen standards, still the European political elite uses the matter as a tool of political pressure. It appears that the visa-free-travel of the Bulgarian citizens is not a query of competence, but depends on diplomacy strength. The EU Presidency is the best opportunity the Bulgarian authorities to push this process to its successful end. The good news is that 3 years before the start of the Presidency, Bulgaria set the shuttle diplomacy in action. Some of the countries, which for years oppose the accession of the country, today express smoother positions. Lately, the speaker of the European Commission has announced that Bulgaria is ready to enter the Schengen zone. EU Council President, Donald Tusk, during his visit in Sofia, confirmed that the EU is working hard for all member-states agreement on Bulgaria’s accession to Schengen visa-free area.

As soon as Bulgaria becomes a member of the Schengen visa free area, the Bulgarian citizens and holders of Bulgarian Permanent Residence Permits shall travel freely /no borders check points, neither visa issue/ within 28 European countries.

Who shall favor most?

For the Bulgarian citizens who travel rarely, or only for tourism the accession will not make a difference. Even today, each Bulgarian citizen is allowed to travel visa-free for 90 days within the EU.

Schengen accession shall matter for business travelers and Permanent Residence Permit holders. The businessmen shall save time at the airports and for businesses that exchange goods, lack of border checks shall ease the transportation. Holders of Permanent Residence Permit will favor visa-free travel within 28 countries, not only Croatia, Cyprus and Romania, as it is now.

However, the Schengen accession shall lead to further straiten of the external border control and tighten the requirements of access of third-country nationals to Bulgaria.

Boost of the Real Estate Market in Bulgaria

Certainly the idea of a link between international diplomacy of Bulgaria and the Real Estate Market in the country is not the first thing to cross somebody’s mind. However, the brokers predict a boost of property deals /sales and lease/ up to 2020 based on previous experience of other European countries which held the Presidency.

In the last two years the property market in Bulgaria has a positive trend: properties demand grows; investor’s confidence is up. Currently the market is alive, flexible and liquid. The prices are reasonable in comparison to the average prices of properties in the region and Europe. Plus that the positive trend of the market development opens opportunity for profitable re-sale in short term.

This general outlook of the broker’s expectations and evaluations is enhanced additionally by the fact, that the Bulgarian Presidency shall attract considerable rush of public administration, businesses and clerical. Numerous of people and services shall need to settle somewhere in Bulgaria.  

Perspicuous investors already foresee the opportunity of higher demand for high quality offices. The current market is already at edge of its limits, which constantly rises the rent prices of such properties. Latest estimations show, that the price per sq. m. in Sofia grew with 5-6% only for the first half of 2016. At the moment the lease of a class “A” office spaces is 11-13 € per sq. m., and the experts expect further rise due to the lack of offers and increase demand.

The residential market follows similar tendency. Since the beginning of 2016 deals with luxury properties have marketed 10% growth. The trend has already attracted the investors /individuals and business/. Currently an investment in residential property favors rent income, which gives 5 to 6 times higher liquidity of the investor’s savings.

Notes to those who are interested in immigration through investment:

Now is the best time to invest under the provisions of the Bulgarian Investment Immigration Program.

Now, you can follow smooth and clear application procedure, which leads to acquisition of Bulgarian Citizenship in less than 2 years. Once Bulgaria becomes member of the Schengen area, the experts expect the visa issue requirements to be strained.

Still the initial investment is 1 000 000 BGN (only € 512 000), something that might change, as soon as the Bulgarian Passport increase its international value.

The prospect of further development of the real estate market in Bulgaria is appealing to those who aim to gain profit along with Bulgarian citizenship.

For further information, contact us: Visa Free Europe