--- title: "Blog | FreeMe.bg" canonical: "https://freeme.bg/en/blog" language: en --- Blog # Practical guidance for your company We're just getting started - expect articles on accounting, VAT, company formation, and everything else you need to know as a small business owner in Bulgaria. 8 October 2026 ### [Ordinance N-18 for online stores in Bulgaria: NRA registration and the audit file](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/n-18-ordinance-online-store-bulgaria) Who has to register an e-shop with the Bulgarian tax authority, who is exempt, and what the monthly audit file actually is. The rules in force as of October 2026. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/n-18-ordinance-online-store-bulgaria) 17 September 2026 ### [How to Run a Bulgarian Company from Abroad: a Guide for Non-Resident Founders](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/run-bulgarian-company-from-abroad) Registration takes days. Running the company from another country is the long game. Here is what stays tied to Bulgaria (address, bank, signatures, deadlines) and which parts actually need you on the ground. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/run-bulgarian-company-from-abroad) 27 August 2026 ### [Bulgaria Company Taxes for Non-Residents: 10%, 5% and Treaties](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/non-resident-company-taxes-bulgaria) You own a Bulgarian company but live somewhere else. Here is what the company pays, what is withheld when profit leaves Bulgaria, when it is 0%, and how to claim a tax treaty. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/non-resident-company-taxes-bulgaria) 6 August 2026 ### [Bulgaria vs Estonia: Where to Register Your Company](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgaria-vs-estonia-company) Estonian e-Residency sells the dream of a fully digital EU company. Bulgaria sells 10% tax. Both are real, both win in different situations, and both share a risk the marketing rarely mentions. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgaria-vs-estonia-company) 05 July 2026 ### [Switching accountants in Bulgaria: what you really need](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/switching-accountants) It is not a betrayal and it does not need anyone's permission. Here is the honest handover list, the best timing, and how the migration to FreeMe.bg works. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/switching-accountants) 01 July 2026 ### [Accounting for a small Bulgarian company: why it feels so hard](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/small-company-accounting) You registered a Bulgarian company for the simple 10% tax. Then came the monthly rituals nobody explained. Here is how the market works today, and what we are building to change it. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/small-company-accounting) 08 July 2026 ### [When You Must Register for VAT in Bulgaria](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-registration-threshold) Since 1 January 2026, the mandatory threshold is €51,130 and you only get 7 days to file once you cross it. Here's what foreign founders running a Bulgarian company need to know. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-registration-threshold) 27 June 2026 ### [The fines small companies pay most often (and how to not be one of them)](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/fines-bulgarian-companies) It is not bad luck, it is a missed deadline. Here are the four fines that trip up small Bulgarian companies every year, roughly how much they cost, and how to avoid them. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/fines-bulgarian-companies) 25 June 2026 ### [How to Start a Company in Bulgaria as a Foreigner (and Why 10% Tax Is Only Half the Story)](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/start-company-bulgaria-foreigner) Bulgaria's 10% corporate tax and 5% dividend tax get all the attention. Here's the actual formation process, the honest costs, and the compliance calendar nobody mentions in the sales pitch. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/start-company-bulgaria-foreigner) 22 June 2026 ### [Invoicing EU clients: when you skip VAT and what the invoice must say](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/invoicing-eu-clients-vat) If your Bulgarian company bills business clients elsewhere in the EU, you're probably already skipping VAT on the invoice. Here's why, which registration you need in place first, and exactly what the invoice has to state. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/invoicing-eu-clients-vat) 19 June 2026 ### [Dividend or salary: how to take money out of your Bulgarian company](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/dividend-vs-salary-bulgaria) Your company is not your wallet, even if you own 100% of it. Here is the honest breakdown of the two legal ways to get money out, what each one costs, and what most small owners actually do. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/dividend-vs-salary-bulgaria) 17 June 2026 ### [What can you run through your Bulgarian company? What NAP actually accepts](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/deductible-expenses-bulgaria) A laptop is the easy case. A car, a home office, and client dinners are not. Here is what really counts as a deductible expense in Bulgaria, and what invites a tax review. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/deductible-expenses-bulgaria) 15 June 2026 ### [Why your company's books should not live on one computer](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cloud-accounting-software) If you are used to Xero or QuickBooks, Bulgarian accounting software will surprise you: much of it still installs on Windows and hopes someone remembers the backup. Here is what the cloud changed. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cloud-accounting-software) 12 June 2026 ### [Bulgaria's tax calendar: every deadline your company owes, in one place](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgarian-tax-calendar) NAP will not remind you in English, and deadlines do not move because you are traveling. Here is the whole year, month by month. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgarian-tax-calendar) 10 June 2026 ### [Buying property through a company in Bulgaria: when it makes sense, and the traps](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/property-through-company) VAT credit, depreciation, hidden profit distribution: an honest guide for owners considering, or already holding, property through a Bulgarian EOOD. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/property-through-company) 8 June 2026 ### [Dormant Bulgarian company: what you actually owe and how to stop overpaying](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/dormant-company-bulgaria) Holding a Bulgarian company that does nothing, a property vehicle, a paused project, a leftover from an old plan? Here is what it really owes every year, what it doesn't, and how to stop paying like it is still active. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/dormant-company-bulgaria) 5 June 2026 ### [How much does a company in Bulgaria cost? The real running costs](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cost-of-bulgarian-company) Everyone hears about the 10% flat corporate tax. Almost nobody hears about the running costs. Here's an honest breakdown for a simple Bulgarian EOOD: setup, monthly bookkeeping, the annual closing, and the fee nobody mentions until spring. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cost-of-bulgarian-company) 3 June 2026 ### [EOOD or freelance registration: which one actually costs less?](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/eood-vs-freelancing) Taxes, social contributions, liability and paperwork, compared honestly with real numbers. Here is when each structure wins. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/eood-vs-freelancing) 28 May 2026 ### [Closing a company in Bulgaria: EOOD liquidation, step by step](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/closing-company-liquidation-bulgaria) The decision, the registry filing, the mandatory creditor window, and the faster route for a company that never really traded: what closing an EOOD actually involves. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/closing-company-liquidation-bulgaria) 24 May 2026 ### [VAT for online stores selling to EU customers: OSS explained](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/ecommerce-vat-oss-bulgaria) Shipping to customers in Germany, France, or anywhere else in the EU? Here is when you stay on Bulgarian VAT, when you switch to OSS, and where IOSS fits in. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/ecommerce-vat-oss-bulgaria) 20 May 2026 ### [Owner social contributions: how a self-insured person pays in Bulgaria](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/owner-social-contributions-bulgaria) Running an EOOD without an employment contract, or freelancing on civil contracts, makes you a self-insured person under Bulgarian law. Here is the 2026 minimum and maximum insurable income in euro, the contribution rates, and the year-end reconciliation, explained plainly. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/owner-social-contributions-bulgaria) 17 May 2026 ### [Do You Actually Need a Cash Register in Bulgaria?](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cash-register-supto-bulgaria) Cash, card, or bank transfer only? How your customers pay decides whether you owe a registered fiscal device, and getting it wrong is expensive. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cash-register-supto-bulgaria) 15 May 2026 ### [Company car through your Bulgarian company: the 10% expense tax, explained](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/company-car-expense-tax-bulgaria) The car drives to the office on Monday and to the beach on Saturday. Here is what Bulgarian tax law actually taxes, what costs are deductible, and what paperwork keeps you covered in an audit. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/company-car-expense-tax-bulgaria) 13 May 2026 ### [How to issue an invoice in Bulgaria: requisites and deadlines](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/how-to-issue-invoice-bulgaria) Which number, which date, whose company ID: what the law says every invoice must contain, how many days you have to issue it, and what to do when you get something wrong. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/how-to-issue-invoice-bulgaria) 09 May 2026 ### [Bulgaria's annual financial statements: what they are, how to file](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/annual-financial-statements-bulgaria) Not a tax return, and it does not go to NAP. Here is what the ГФО actually contains, who must publish it by 30 September, and when you can file a simple declaration instead. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/annual-financial-statements-bulgaria) 07 May 2026 ### [Bulgaria's personal income tax return: who files it and by when](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/personal-income-tax-return-bulgaria) Your personal return is separate from your company's annual return. Here is who has to file, by when, how, and what can bring the tax down. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/personal-income-tax-return-bulgaria) 05 May 2026 ### [Bulgaria's euro switch and your company: what actually changed](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/euro-adoption-bulgarian-business) No need to panic or re-file anything old. Here is exactly what the euro changeover means for your invoices, your prices, and your existing books. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/euro-adoption-bulgarian-business) 02 May 2026 ### [How to Register an EOOD in Bulgaria: A Step-by-Step Guide](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/how-to-register-eood-bulgaria) Name, documents, capital, notarized signature specimen, and filing with the Commercial Register using a qualified e-signature. Everything a founder needs, explained plainly. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/how-to-register-eood-bulgaria) 12 May 2026 ### [LLC vs joint-stock company in Bulgaria: OOD or AD, EOOD or EAD](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/llc-vs-joint-stock-company) OOD, EOOD, AD, EAD, four acronyms, one decision. Here is how capital, ownership, management, and running costs differ, so you pick the right structure from day one. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/llc-vs-joint-stock-company) 01 May 2026 ### [The accounting memorandum: the document your accountant writes for itself](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/accounting-memorandum) It showed up in your monthly documents folder, but it looks nothing like an invoice or a receipt. Here is what an accounting memorandum is, when your accountant produces one, and what it legally needs to contain. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/accounting-memorandum) 24 April 2026 ### [The payroll sheet: the core document every Bulgarian company with staff needs to understand](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/payroll-sheet) Even with two or three employees, the payroll sheet is what your accountant books every month and what the tax agency checks first. Here is what it records, how it differs from a payslip, and which deadlines come with it. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/payroll-sheet) 13 April 2026 ### [Cash Orders in Bulgaria: PKO and RKO, Explained for Small Business Owners](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cash-orders-pko-rko) Every banknote that moves through your company's cash box needs a paper trail. Here is what a cash receipt order and cash payment order are, how they tie into the cash book, and the legal limit on cash payments now that Bulgaria uses the euro. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/cash-orders-pko-rko) 01 April 2026 ### [The bank statement: the most underrated primary document in your company](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bank-statement) Every incoming payment, every outgoing payment, every fee runs through it. Here is why the bank statement counts as a primary accounting document, how your accountant actually uses it, and how it differs from a payment order. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bank-statement) 20 March 2026 ### [Fiscal receipts in Bulgaria: what they are and when they are not enough](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/fiscal-receipt) A customer pays cash or by card and expects a receipt. As the seller you need to know what must be printed on it, and as a buyer, when that receipt alone is fine and when you need a proper invoice instead. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/fiscal-receipt) 09 March 2026 ### [The VAT protocol: how you self-charge Bulgarian VAT, and when it applies](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-protocol-reverse-charge) You buy goods or a service from abroad and the invoice carries no Bulgarian VAT. The protocol under Article 117 of the VAT Act is the document that lets you charge yourself the tax, instead of waiting for the supplier to do it. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-protocol-reverse-charge) 25 February 2026 ### [Debit note: how to increase the taxable amount of an invoice you already issued](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/debit-note) The client owes more, but the invoice is already out the door. Here is what a debit note is, when Bulgarian law requires one, and how VAT treats the increase. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/debit-note) 13 February 2026 ### [Credit note in Bulgaria: how to reduce the taxable amount of an invoice you already issued](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/credit-note) A customer returns goods, you agree a discount after the invoice went out, or a deal simply falls through. A credit note is the document that fixes the taxable amount without touching the original invoice. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/credit-note) 02 February 2026 ### [The invoice as a primary accounting document: what the law actually requires](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/invoice-accounting-document) The invoice is the first document every company runs into, yet few founders know exactly what the law requires it to contain. We cover the mandatory elements, invoice types, deadlines, and storage rules, not how to click the button that issues one. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/invoice-accounting-document) 20 January 2026 ### [VAT audit in Bulgaria: when it happens and what to do](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-audit) A letter from the tax authority with the word audit in it sounds alarming, but the process has clear rules: who orders it, how long it runs, what rights you have, and how to prepare before it starts. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/vat-audit) 08 January 2026 ### [Share Capital or Owner Loan: How to Fund Your New Bulgarian Company](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/share-capital-vs-owner-loan) Before a company earns anything, someone has to put money into it. Here is when to register capital, when to lend to your own company instead, and why the choice matters for the balance sheet and for tax. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/share-capital-vs-owner-loan) 21 July 2026 ### [Bulgarian Tax Residency: the 183-Day Rule and the 10% Flat Tax](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgarian-tax-residency) Citizenship is irrelevant. What matters is where you sleep, where your family is, and where you work from. Here is how Bulgarian law decides whether it gets to tax your worldwide income. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/bulgarian-tax-residency) 17 April 2026 ### [Business Trips as a Deductible Expense in Bulgaria](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/business-trip-expenses-bulgaria) Since 1 January 2026, domestic per diem is EUR 22 a day. Here's how per diem, travel and accommodation work for a Bulgarian company, and what changes when the traveller is you, the owner. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/business-trip-expenses-bulgaria) 27 March 2026 ### [Advance Corporate Tax Payments in Bulgaria: Who Owes What](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/advance-corporate-tax-bulgaria) Most small Bulgarian companies owe nothing at all. Here are the 2026 euro thresholds, the 15 April filing window, the exact payment dates, and the interest you pay for guessing too low. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/advance-corporate-tax-bulgaria) 18 February 2026 ### [Art. 97a VAT Registration: Buying Meta and Google Ads From a Bulgarian Company](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/art-97a-vat-registration-ads) One invoice from Meta Ireland or Google Ireland forces your Bulgarian company into the VAT register, no matter how small your turnover is. Here's the deadline that catches almost every founder out. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/art-97a-vat-registration-ads) 14 January 2026 ### [Hiring your first employee in Bulgaria: paperwork, filings and real cost](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/hiring-first-employee-bulgaria) A written contract, an Employment Register entry within three days and before day one, two monthly declarations, and roughly 19% on top of gross pay. Here is the full picture. [Read the article →](https://freeme.bg/en/blog/hiring-first-employee-bulgaria)