We would like to highlight for you some important legislative changes in the field of labour regulation in Bulgaria. We consider these changes important for your operations and therefore we have prepared a brief summary of the most important ones.

We really hope you will find the provided information useful.

Changes in the Labour Legislation

  • Labour Code: Trade union organizations and their divisions have the right to represent employees at their request in court.
  • Business Trip Legislation: From the beginning of 2017 new rules are enacted in Bulgaria, according to which when an employee is seconded or sent for provision of services from/to an employer from Bulgaria, another EU Member State, a State Party to the European Economic Area Agreement or the Swiss Confederation, at least the minimum payment for the country is owed from the first day of the secondment. Before the changes in the legislation, this was only obligatory for secondments for over 30 days. When the secondment is from Bulgaria to another country, it is necessary to sign an agreement amending the labour contract in Bulgarian language. Before sending an employee abroad the employer has to give them a deed of sending. The general insurance contributions are owed to the people seconded or sent abroad. Employers and companies that provide temporary work and second or send employees until the implementation of the new rules, have 30 days to adapt their employment relationships to them.
  • Local HR legislation: Changes are also introduced regarding the employment record, kept by the employer. A part of the documents about the employment relationship can now be created and kept as electronic documents.
  • Labour Code: When the public holidays (apart from Easter) are on Saturday and/or Sunday, the first day or the first two days after them are also to be a holiday.
  • Labour Code: When a violation of the law, the Regulations and the Directives is found, if an employee files a signal to the Financial Supervision Commission, this does not qualify as a violation of the work discipline.
  • Labour Code: New rules are introduced about the Information System of the Internal Market, which is an electronic multilingual information system for mutual assistance and exchange of information between the competent authorities of the EU Member States, the State Parties to the European Economic Area Agreement or the Swiss Confederation.