Tax number

Steps

1. Register your residence with the Migration directorate of the МВР if you stay more than 3 months (see sheet BG-SEJOUR-TOUS-001). According to the official sheet on tax numbers, foreigners who obtain an extended or permanent residence receive an ЛНЧ from the Ministry of the Interior.
2. Ask at the counter where your ЛНЧ appears. The МВР instruction does not list the personal number among the contents of the paper certificate (certificate number, name, nationality, date of birth, sex, registration date, validity). Have the number and the document that carries it confirmed.
3. If you are a tax resident in Bulgaria without an ЛНЧ, submit to the Териториална дирекция на НАП (НАП territorial directorate) the form Искане за издаване на номер на чужденец (application for a foreigner's number, model ОКд-162). It asks for your name, nationality, date of birth, sex, address and signature.
4. Use this number everywhere: the official sheet specifies that it serves as a tax identifier and that it appears on identity documents (ЛНЧ) or on НАП certificates (service number).

Documents

• For the ЛНЧ: those of the residence certificate application (identity document, supporting documents depending on your situation, proof of address, proof of payment of the fee), see sheet BG-SEJOUR-TOUS-001.
• For the НАП service number: the form Искане за издаване на номер на чужденец filled in and signed. The list of documents to attach is not published: to be confirmed with the НАП territorial directorate (bring at least your identity document).

Costs and timelines

• ЛНЧ: variable, to be confirmed with the Migration directorate. The ministry's 2016 leaflet refers to a scale "of fees for issuing the residence certificate and the personal number" without reproducing it, and the 2026 scale of the Varna directorate contains no line for the personal number.
• НАП service number: no fee or deadline published on the form page; to be confirmed with the НАП.

Common pitfalls

• Looking for a "NIF" Portuguese-style. In Bulgaria, a person's tax identifier is their personal number: ЕГН (единен граждански номер, unified civil number) for Bulgarians, ЛНЧ for resident foreigners, НАП service number for other tax residents.
• Believing that the residence certificate makes you a tax resident. For the НАП, you are a tax resident (местно лице) if you have a permanent address in Bulgaria, if you spend more than 183 days there in any 12-month period, or if your centre of vital interests is there. The НАП specifies that a person with a permanent address in Bulgaria can remain a non-resident if their centre of vital interests is elsewhere. This is a tax matter to check before acting.
• Confusing the two numbers. The ЛНЧ is assigned by the Ministry of the Interior and appears on identity documents; the service number is assigned by the НАП and appears on its certificates. Keep a written record of the one you were given.

What changes by country of origin

• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens: ЛНЧ assigned with the extended or permanent right of residence registered with the МВР; НАП service number if you are a tax resident without an ЛНЧ.
• British citizens (Scots included): third country since Brexit. The ЛНЧ comes with an extended or permanent residence permit obtained under the Foreigners Act (or, for residents from before 2021, with the withdrawal agreement permit). If you are a tax resident in Bulgaria without an ЛНЧ, the НАП service number applies.
• Currency: Bulgaria has used the euro since 1 January 2026; some official pages still show amounts in leva.