Giving to Bulgarian non-profits: a short guide for donors abroad

Published 2026-11-04 · Editorial team „Отворени покани“

Bulgaria has an active civil society, from large national organisations to small community groups and community centres (читалища) in villages. Most of what a donor abroad needs to check is public and free: the register of non-profits, the organisation's public-benefit status and its published annual reports. This guide shows where to look and what to agree before the money moves.

Step 1: find the organisation in the register

Since 1 January 2018 associations and foundations are entered in the register of non-profit legal entities kept by the Registry Agency (Агенция по вписванията). Search by name or by the 9-digit identification code (ЕИК). The entry shows the legal form, seat, management, the purpose and whether the organisation acts for public or private benefit.

Public-benefit status is chosen at registration or later, is entered in the register and cannot be reversed. It brings obligations and is a prerequisite for most tax relief for Bulgarian donors.

Step 2: read the published reports

Public-benefit organisations must publish an annual activity report and their annual financial statements in the register by 30 September of the following year. If an organisation fails to publish for two consecutive years, its public-benefit status is suspended until it catches up. Missing or very thin reports are worth a question before you give.

Look for consistency: does the activity report match the purpose in the register, and does the money in the financial statements match the size of the work described?

Step 3: agree the essentials in writing

• Purpose: what the donation is for, or that it is unrestricted.
• Amount and payment: a bank transfer to the organisation's own account, never to a personal account.
• Reporting: what you expect and when; a short narrative and a financial summary are usually enough for small grants.
• Unspent funds and changes: what happens if plans change.
• Personal data: if the project involves beneficiaries' data, who is the controller and how it is protected under the GDPR.

The Bulgarian template of a letter of intent and the ten checks before donating are useful here even if you do not read Bulgarian: a browser translation is enough.

Where Bulgarian organisations find funding

Besides private donors, Bulgarian non-profits rely on EU programmes (Erasmus+, CERV, Creative Europe, the European Solidarity Corps), on Bulgarian programmes co-financed by the EU, on the EEA and Norway Grants civil society fund and on Bulgarian private and corporate foundations. The calendar of open calls lists the current ones; co-funding a Bulgarian partner's own contribution to such a grant is often the most effective small donation.