08/05/2026
⚖️ Update on our challenge against outdated barriers to doing business in Bulgaria
Those who follow us may remember that we filed a formal appeal before the Supreme Administrative Court against the “bank-only” capital evidence requirement applied by the Bulgarian Company Register.
In short: although Bulgarian law allows a limited liability company to be incorporated with a minimum capital of only BGN 2 / effectively EUR 1, the Ordinance still requires proof that the capital has been paid into a bank account. In practice, this creates unnecessary costs, delays and administrative friction for businesses.
We have explained our legal reasoning and the practical impact of this issue in more detail in our article here:
👉 https://progressive.legal/challenging-an-outdated-bank-only-capital-evidence-rule-in-the-bulgarian-company-register/
We also gave the Ministry of Justice the opportunity to resolve the issue without waiting for a court ruling, by amending the Ordinance on its own initiative. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Justice has decided not to proceed with such amendment at this stage. This means that the matter will now be reviewed by the Supreme Administrative Court.
📅 The hearing is scheduled for 11 May.
Part of our team working on this case - Georgi Traykov Atanas Petrov, Antonia Yakimova, Tihomira Stoycheva and Maria Vasileva - will continue to argue that the contested provisions are outdated, disproportionate and inconsistent with the purpose of the 2009 reform, which was to make company formation easier, faster and less expensive.
This is not just a technical legal issue. It is about removing unnecessary barriers for entrepreneurs, startups, foreign investors and growing businesses in Bulgaria.
We will keep you updated on the development of the case.
Our team has filed a complaint before the Bulgarian Supreme Administrative Court challenging two provisions of Ordinance No. 1 of 14 February 2007, insofar as they are applied as requiring that paid-in or increased share capital be evidenced exclusively through a bank-issued document. In practice, t...