Getting married or registering a civil partnership abroad: Information based on your answers

Marriage in Bulgaria

Contact the relevant local authorities in Bulgaria to find out about local marriage laws, including what documents you’ll need.

You should get legal advice before making any plans.

What you need to do

You’ll be asked to provide a certificate of no impediment (CNI) to prove you’re allowed to marry.

To get a CNI, you must give notice of your intended marriage in Bulgaria. You can do this in front of a notary public.

CNIs issued in Bulgaria are valid for 6 months.

You’ll need to have been living in Bulgaria for at least 3 full days before you can give notice, for example if you arrive in the country on Thursday, the earliest you can give notice is the following Monday.

A notary public can take your oath or affirmation and witness your notice of marriage. The notary public may charge 2 separate fees for this.

Get your documents witnessed in front of a notary public

Download a ‘Certificate of no impediment application pack’, fill in the forms and take them with you to a notary public.

You’ll need to provide supporting documents, including:

your passport
proof of residence, such as a residence certificate or flight tickets - check with the embassy or notary public to find out what you need
equivalent documents for your partner

The names on all documents you provide must appear exactly as they do on your passports - if not, the authorities may refuse to allow the marriage to go ahead. You may need to provide evidence if the name on your passport is different to your birth certificate (for example marriage certificate or deed poll).

If you or your partner have been divorced, widowed or previously in a civil partnership, you’ll also need whichever of the following documents is appropriate:

a decree absolute or final order
a civil partnership dissolution or annulment certificate
your (or your partner’s) former spouse or civil partner’s death certificate

You’ll also need to provide evidence of nationality or residence if the divorce or dissolution took place outside the UK. You’ll need to:

get your evidence legalised (certified as genuine)
get your evidence translated if it’s not in English

Send your documents to the embassy

Once the notary public has witnessed your documents, send the original documents to the British embassy in Sofia:

British Embassy Sofia
9, Moskovska St
1000 Sofia
Bulgaria

The consulate will display your notice of marriage publicly for 7 days before issuing your CNI.

Your CNI will be sent by courier to an address in Bulgaria. You’ll need to pay any courier fees.

You don’t need to stay in the country while your notice is posted.

Get your CNI legalised (certified as genuine)

Once you have your CNI, contact the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to get it legalised.

Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2 Alfred Nobel Street
Sofia
Bulgaria

Telephone: +359 2 807 64 23
Telephone: +359 (0) 887 563 987

Your partner will be able to get their own equivalent document from their embassy or consulate.

Naturalisation of your partner if they move to the UK

Your partner can apply to become a British citizen once they’ve lived in the UK for 3 years.

Fees

Service	Fee
Receiving a notice of marriage	£50
Issuing a CNI, Nulla Osta or equivalent	£50

You normally have to pay fees for consular services in the local currency - these are shown in the list of consular fees for Bulgaria.

You can pay by cash or credit card, but not by personal cheque.