Public sales register in Bulgaria: four places to check
Bulgaria has no single public sales register. Notices sit in four places: private agents, Ministry of Justice, regional court and NRA. See which you need.
Contents10 sections
- 1.The four places where sales are announced
- 2.The trap that knocks out bids
- 3.How bidding works at a classic public sale
- 4.An electronic auction follows different rules
- 5.НАП sales are a different regime
- 6.The starting price and what happens if nobody buys
- 7.What the buyer pays besides the price
- 8.When you become the owner
- 9.Frequently asked questions
- 10.Related topics
You are looking for an apartment at a public sale (публична продан, a forced sale of a debtor's property), you open Google and land on five different sites. One has properties, another has nothing, and on a third the notice has already expired. You wonder which one is the real register.
The answer is unwelcome but useful: there is no single register of public sales in Bulgaria. In enforcement proceedings the notices are published in four separate places, and each shows different properties. If you look at only one, you miss the others.
❓What is the register of public sales in Bulgaria?
10%
Bid deposit at a classic public sale under the Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
20%
Deposit at a НАП sale under the Tax and Social Security Procedure Code (ДОПК)
+30%
Cap on bidding. Above it the bid is invalid
The four places where sales are announced
Each of these places is filled by a different body under a different law. That is why one property can be on one and missing from another.
| Where | Who sells there | What you will find |
|---|---|---|
| sales.bcpea.org | Private enforcement agents (ЧСИ) | Enforcement agents' notices for real estate and movable items. Maintained by the Chamber of Private Enforcement Agents |
| zapori.mjs.bg | Ministry of Justice | Two separate sections: Notices of public sales and Auctions (the electronic public auctions) |
| The regional court's website | All enforcement agents, including state ones (ДСИ) | The place the law requires. The notice appears here even if it is nowhere else |
| sales.nra.bg | National Revenue Agency (НАП) | Property sold for tax and social security debts. A different law, different rules |
Check all four. None of them contains all the notices.
Which place the law requires
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 487(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„Обявлението по ал. 1 се поставя на съответните места в канцеларията на частния съдебен изпълнител, в сградата на районния съд, в общината или кметството по местонахождението на имота, на самия имот и се публикува на интернет страницата на окръжния съд по местоизпълнението, и то най-малко един ден преди посочения в обявлението ден за започване на проданта.“
The term “register of public auctions” (регистър на публичните търгове) does exist in the law, but it refers only to electronic auctions. That is the platform of the Ministry of Justice.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 501а(5)
Official Bulgarian text
„Министерството на правосъдието създава и поддържа единна онлайн платформа за електронни публични търгове, която включва регистър на публичните търгове и система за провеждане на публични търгове.“
There are also sales outside these four places
Commerce Act (ТЗ)
Art. 717а(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„Синдикът представя за публикуване обявлението за продажба в специален бюлетин на Министерството на икономиката, инвестициите и индустрията в срок 14 дни преди посочения в обявлението ден за продажба.“
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The trap that knocks out bids
This is the rule almost nobody explains, and it throws bidders out of the auction. You cannot offer as much as you like.
A bid that exceeds the starting price by more than 30% is invalid. Not “less advantageous”, but void. It is as if you had not taken part.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 489(6)
Official Bulgarian text
„Наддавателни предложения от лица, които нямат право да вземат участие в публичната продан, предложения за цена под началната, както и предложения, надхвърлящи началната с повече от 30 на сто, са недействителни.“
What it looks like in practice
There is a second restriction in the same article: each bidder submits only one bid.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 489(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„Наддавачът може да направи само едно наддавателно предложение.“
How bidding works at a classic public sale
A classic sale is not held online. It takes place in the district court building and lasts exactly one month.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 488(1)
Official Bulgarian text
„Проданта се извършва в сградата на районния съд. Тя продължава един месец и завършва в посочения в обявлението ден.“
The steps of a classic public sale
Find the notice and see the file
The sale file is kept at the district court registry and is available to anyone interested in the property.
Pay a bid deposit of 10% of the starting price
It is paid to the enforcement agent's account, not in cash on the spot.
Submit your bid in a sealed envelope
Until the end of working hours on the last dayThe price is written in figures and in words. You attach the receipt for the deposit paid. The envelope is submitted at the district court registry.
Attend the opening
On the next working day the envelopes are opened in front of the bidders who have come. Whoever offered the highest price is declared the buyer.
Oral bidding, if anyone asks for it
Those present can raise the price in steps of one bid deposit. That is why being there matters.
Pay the rest of the price
2 weeksYou have two weeks from being declared the buyer. The bid deposit is deducted from the price.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 489(1)
Official Bulgarian text
„За участие в наддаването по сметка на съдебния изпълнител се внася задатък 10 на сто върху началната цена.“
2 weeks
From being declared the buyer to paying the full price
If you do not pay within the deadline, you lose the bid deposit and the property is offered to the next bidder.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 492(3)
Official Bulgarian text
„Купувачът е длъжен в двуседмичен срок от обявяването му за купувач да внесе предложената от него цена, като приспадне внесения задатък.“
What to put in the envelope
A bid stating the price in figures and in words*
The receipt for the bid deposit paid*
10% of the starting price, to the enforcement agent's account
An identity document*
A notarised power of attorney, if you bid through a representative
* Mandatory
An electronic auction follows different rules
If the sale is announced as an electronic public auction, it is held on the Ministry of Justice platform. Registration runs for a whole month, but the bidding itself is short.
Electronic public auction
Registration on the platform
You register with an electronic signature online or in person at an enforcement agent's office. You pay a bid deposit in the amount set by Art. 489(1).
Authorisation by the enforcement agent
The agent confirms or refuses your registration. They refuse if no bid deposit has been paid, and also if you are among the persons not allowed to bid.
Bidding
Prices go up in steps. The last price offered is public and visible to everyone.
End at 17:00 and the last-10-minutes rule
If a new bid comes in during the last 10 minutes, the auction is extended automatically.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 501е(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„В случай че през последните 10 минути на търга се подаде ново наддавателно предложение, търгът се удължава автоматично с още 10 минути, но не повече от 48 часа.“
The practical point: do not plan to bid in the last minute and go to bed. The auction can run for up to 48 hours more.
Thresholds written in leva
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НАП sales are a different regime
This is the most expensive mistake in preparation. When НАП sells, the Civil Procedure Code (ГПК) does not apply, but the Tax and Social Security Procedure Code (ДОПК). The deposit is twice as large and the deadlines are shorter.
| What | Enforcement agent (ГПК) | НАП (ДОПК) |
|---|---|---|
| What the payment is called | Bid deposit (задатък) | Deposit (депозит) |
| Amount | 10% of the starting price | 20% of the announced starting auction price |
| Where the bid is submitted | The district court registry | With the public enforcement officer (публичен изпълнител): in a sealed envelope at a sealed-bid auction or on the spot at an open auction |
| Deadline to pay the price | 2 weeks from being declared the buyer | 7 days from the date of the auction |
| Cap on the bid | The starting price plus 30% | There is no such cap in the ДОПК |
| Where to look for notices | sales.bcpea.org, zapori.mjs.bg, the regional court's website | sales.nra.bg |
The two regimes are often confused, because both are called a public sale.
Tax and Social Security Procedure Code (ДОПК)
Art. 246(3)
Official Bulgarian text
„Депозитът за участие в търга е 20 на сто от обявената начална продажна цена.“
Useful on the НАП portal
The starting price and what happens if nobody buys
The starting price is not the market price. It is 80% of the expert valuation.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 485(4)
Official Bulgarian text
„Началната цена на имота, от която да започне наддаването, е 80 на сто от стойността на имота.“
If the sale fails, the next one starts from 90% of the starting price of the first.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 494(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„Тя започва не по-рано от един месец от приключването на първата продан при начална цена, равна на 90 на сто от началната цена по първата продан.“
You will often come across the figure 75% as well. It is correct, but for a different law: this is how the price drops at a НАП repeat auction, not at a sale by an enforcement agent. That is why you should first see who is selling.
Tax and Social Security Procedure Code (ДОПК)
Art. 250(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„Продажната цена на вещта на новия търг се определя в размер 75 на сто от първоначалната тръжна цена на предишния търг.“
What the buyer pays besides the price
The price from the bidding is not everything. On top of it come tax and fees, which differ by municipality.
The buyer's costs after winning an auction
Local tax on acquisition for consideration
The exact percentage is set by the municipal council where the property is located
0.1% to 3%
Fee for registering the order awarding the property (постановление за възлагане)
Paid to the Registry Agency (Агенция по вписванията)
per tariff
The enforcement agent's fee for the order
For a private enforcement agent it is set under the Tariff to the Private Enforcement Agents Act
per tariff
Fee for putting the buyer into possession (въвод във владение)(optional)
If there are people in the property and forced eviction is needed
per tariff
Ask the enforcement agent for a breakdown of the fees due before you bid. Tariffs change.
Local Taxes and Fees Act (ЗМДТ)
Art. 47(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„При възмездно придобиване на имущество данъкът се определя от общинския съвет в размер от 0,1 до 3 на сто върху оценката на прехвърляното имущество, а при замяна - върху оценката на имуществото с по-висока стойност.“
When you become the owner
In a sale by an enforcement agent: not on the day of the auction and not on the day you pay. Ownership passes when the order awarding the property comes into force.
Civil Procedure Code (ГПК)
Art. 496(2)
Official Bulgarian text
„От деня на влизане в сила на постановлението за възлагане купувачът придобива всички права, които длъжникът е имал върху имота.“
In a НАП sale the moment is different: ownership passes from the date of the order, without waiting for it to come into force.
Tax and Social Security Procedure Code (ДОПК)
Art. 246(8)
Official Bulgarian text
„Собствеността преминава върху купувача от датата на постановлението. Нотариална форма не е необходима.“
The property may be occupied
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Frequently asked questions
❓Is there one website with all the public sales in Bulgaria?
❓Can I offer a much higher price to be sure?
❓Is the bid deposit returned if I do not win?
❓Who is not allowed to bid?
❓Can the debtor stop the sale?
❓Can I buy a property at a public sale with a mortgage loan?
Related topics
Before you bid, check exactly what you are buying. Encumbrances and area are checked separately:
- Property Register: online search and search by personal ID number (ЕГН) for mortgages, attachments (възбрани) and previous owners
- Free property check in the cadastre for the boundaries and area on the cadastral map
- Permissible difference between a sketch and a notary deed if the areas in the documents do not match
- Notary fees calculator for the costs of a property transaction
- Personal bankruptcy in Bulgaria if you are on the other side and your property has been put up for sale
Legal information, not legal advice
Have a question about taking possession when people live in the property you bought?
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⚠️ Important
Pravko provides legal information, but it does not replace advice from a lawyer. For important legal matters, consult a licensed lawyer.
