An EU country is offering a rock-bottom tax rate in a bid to attract new citizens as fears over its falling birthrate grow.
Bulgaria has just unveiled its Digital Nomad Visa in a bid to draw in newcomers to the Balkan nation that’s in the grips of a population crisis. The visa is open to all non-EU citizens who earn their income from outside the nation and want to live in the Eastern European country on a long-term basis.
Once fully signed up, the tax benefits are considerable. According to Etias, individuals who spend more than 183 days in the country during a year are considered tax residents. That means their worldwide income is subject to Bulgaria’s flat 10% personal income tax.
Depending on your home country or where your job is technically based, this may be the only income tax you’re subject to. That said, anyone thinking about making the move should seek professional tax guidance before doing so, especially if they earn income from multiple countries.
There are plenty of reasons why moving to Bulgaria might be attractive. The cost of living is significantly lower than in most European countries, while Bulgaria switched to the euro and became part of the Schengen area in 2025, making it a convenient base for free travel around Europe.
The country itself is a geographically and culturally diverse one that is home to some of the Continent’s cheapest ski resorts, such as Bansko in the Pirin Mountains, and increasingly popular coastal spots, including Sunny Beach on the Black Sea.
There are also a number of factors that have led Bulgaria to introduce the digital nomad visa now, despite concerns that it could push up the cost of living for locals, as it has in countries such as Portugal.
Among them is the fact that Bulgaria is suffering from intense depopulation.
“The country’s demographic crisis has been worsening for years, with the population steadily declining over the past three decades. Bulgarian society, which continues to have one of the lowest average life expectancies in the EU, suffers from a significant imbalance between younger and older age groups. These challenges are further exacerbated by the ongoing and increasing emigration of economically active Bulgarians,” warns the Centre for Eastern Studies.
Since 1990, Bulgaria has recorded negative natural population growth, estimated at -0.6% in 2024. In 2023, 62,000 Bulgarians were born, compared to 155,000 in 1950. The most pessimistic long-term projections sugget that, if the negative growth rate – expected to reach -0.73% by the early 22nd century – persists, Bulgaria’s population could fall to just 3.5 million by 2100.
At its peak in 1987, the country’s population stood at 8.976 million. By 2024, this had declined by over 2.2 million, representing a 27.5% reduction.
In 2019, the UN Population Division projected that Bulgaria would lose 23% of its population by 2050 – a projection so high that the country was neck-and-neck with Lithuania for the fastest shrinking population in the world.
There are several hoops that applicants must jump through to obtain and maintain a digital nomad visa.
The permit is issued for one year and can be renewed once, allowing eligible applicants to stay for up to two years.The residence permit does not allow holders to work for Bulgarian companies or provide services to clients based in Bulgaria, and all income must come from employers, clients, or companies registered outside the European Union.
Applicants must also meet a minimum income requirement equal to 50 times Bulgaria’s monthly minimum wage for the previous year. Based on current figures, this translates to roughly €27,500, or about £23,000.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
