Company Information in Bulgaria: What Is Public, What Is Not

Last reviewed and updated: March 2026

Quick answer

Bulgaria has a public company register where essential corporate information is accessible online. Company identity, management, ownership (for most private companies), filed documents, annual financial statements, and VAT registration status are public. Bank accounts, contracts, VAT returns, invoices, and internal accounting records are not. Bulgaria is transparent for compliance purposes — not anonymous and not intrusive.

At a glance: what’s public vs what’s not

Category	Public	Not public
Company identity & legal form	✔
Directors / managers	✔
Owners / shareholders (EOOD/OOD, most ADs)	✔
Articles of association & changes	✔
Annual financial statements (high-level)	✔
VAT registration status	✔
Bank accounts		✖
VAT returns & payments		✖
Invoices & transaction data		✖
Clients, suppliers, contracts		✖
Employee & salary data		✖

Introduction

When foreign founders consider company registration in Bulgaria, one of the first questions is visibility. How much can others actually see about a company? Is ownership public? Are financial results exposed? What about VAT data?

These concerns are understandable. Transparency rules differ significantly across jurisdictions, and Bulgaria is often mischaracterised — sometimes as opaque, sometimes as “semi-anonymous.” The reality is more balanced.

This article explains where and how to find company information in Bulgaria, what is legally public, what remains private, and how this works in real business practice.

The Bulgarian Trade Register: the central source

All Bulgarian companies are registered with the Bulgarian Trade Register, operated by the Registry Agency. It is the single authoritative source of public corporate information.

The register is freely accessible online via the official portal: Bulgarian Trade Register

Searches can be performed by:

company name
UIC / BULSTAT number
person (director, manager, partner, or other registered role)

Most filings are in Bulgarian, which creates a practical language barrier, but not legal secrecy. If information is public in Bulgaria, it appears here.

What company information is public

Bulgarian company law is clear: information that defines identity, ownership, and legal responsibility must be public.

This typically includes:

company name and legal form (EOOD, OOD, AD, etc.)
registered office address
directors or managers
partners / owners in EOOD and OOD structures
shareholders in most non-listed ADs (via founding and subsequent filings)
articles of association and amendments
changes in management or ownership
annual financial statements (once filed)
UIC / BULSTAT number

For large listed public companies, detailed shareholder information is usually maintained through the Central Depository rather than fully reflected in the Trade Register. For the vast majority of foreign founders using EOOD, OOD, or small AD structures, ownership visibility via the Trade Register is complete and accurate.

In addition to registered shareholders or partners, Bulgarian law also requires disclosure of the Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) — the natural person who ultimately owns or controls the company, directly or indirectly. This information is filed with the Commercial Register as part of the company’s official record.

For a detailed explanation of beneficial ownership rules and the 25% threshold, see our guide:
Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) Bulgaria: Key Rules

Annual financial statements: visible, but limited

Annual financial statements become public once filed, but their scope is often misunderstood.

Publicly visible:

balance sheet
profit and loss statement
filing year and filing status
limited notes (depending on company size)

Not public:

accounting ledgers
invoices and transaction data
client or supplier lists
bank balances
internal management reports

For micro and small companies, statements are intentionally condensed and high-level. They support statutory compliance and credibility, not commercial insight.

This is where professional bookkeeping in Bulgaria plays a key role — ensuring that published information is accurate, compliant, and proportionate, without exposing internal business data.

VAT registration: what can be checked

VAT status is public only to a limited extent.

Publicly checkable:

whether a company is VAT-registered
VAT number validity
registration date

This is typically verified via national databases and the EU VIES VAT number validation system

Not public:

VAT returns
sales volumes
client identities
VAT payments or refunds

VAT visibility confirms registration — not business performance.

What is explicitly not public

Certain information is legally protected and never appears in public registers.

This includes:

personal identification numbers (EGN, passport numbers)
bank accounts
contracts with clients or suppliers
invoices and transaction histories
employee lists and salaries
source-of-funds documentation
internal accounting records and VAT returns

In short: the public sees who the company is, not how it operates internally.

Who can see more than the public

Some institutions legitimately access additional information — but only for regulated purposes.

Banks require:

Banks require full ownership and ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) disclosure, identity documents, source-of-funds explanations, and business activity details. These requirements are governed by Bulgaria’s Anti-Money Laundering framework, which defines what regulated institutions must verify during onboarding.
identity documents
source-of-funds explanations
business activity details

Tax authorities and regulators access information through:

tax filings
VAT submissions
audits
EU information-exchange mechanisms

This is regulatory access, not public disclosure.

Nominee directors and shareholders: reality vs expectation

Bulgaria does not operate a formal nominee director or nominee shareholder regime comparable to offshore jurisdictions.

In practice:

appointing third parties does not remove UBO disclosure obligations
banks still require full transparency
compliance complexity increases
legal and operational risks rise

For most legitimate businesses, nominee arrangements offer no real privacy benefit and often trigger additional scrutiny.

What people actually find online

In real life, online visibility is limited and predictable.

Typically visible:

basic company identification data
official Trade Register filings
annual financial statements (if published)
VAT registration status

Not visible:

bank accounts
invoices and contracts
clients and suppliers
VAT returns or tax payments

Bulgaria sits firmly in the middle of the EU transparency spectrum — neither unusually opaque nor unusually intrusive.

For deeper guidance on related compliance topics, see our Bulgaria Business & Tax Knowledge Hub.

Managing privacy concerns properly

For founders with genuine privacy or risk considerations, the solution is structure, not secrecy.

Effective approaches include:

clear corporate governance
separation of personal and business finances
compliant bookkeeping and reporting
holding structures where commercially justified

Artificial anonymity and nominee-driven setups tend to backfire, especially with banks.

FAQ: company information in Bulgaria

Is company ownership public in Bulgaria?
Yes, for most private companies (EOOD/OOD and non-listed ADs). Listed companies use the Central Depository.

Are annual financial statements public?
Yes, but only in high-level statutory form.

Is VAT information public?
Only VAT registration status, not VAT returns or transaction data.

Are Bulgarian companies anonymous?
No. Bulgaria is transparent and EU-compliant.

Do nominee directors remove disclosure obligations?
No. Ultimate beneficial owners must still be disclosed.

Conclusion

Bulgaria applies a balanced transparency model. Ownership and statutory filings are public, while operational and financial details remain protected. Annual financial statements and VAT registration support trust and compliance — not exposure.

For foreign founders, the key is not avoiding transparency, but understanding it. With proper bookkeeping, clear governance, and professional accounting support, disclosures remain accurate, proportionate, and fully compliant — without revealing more than the law requires.

If you are setting up or already running a company in Bulgaria and want clarity on what must be disclosed, what remains private, and how to structure your reporting correctly, you can always get in touch for a short, no-pressure discussion.

Disclaimer

This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or accounting advice. Disclosure obligations depend on individual circumstances. Always seek professional advice before making structural or compliance decisions.