Foreigners will be able to buy land in Bulgaria

The Government approved on Thursday 2nd November 2006 draft amendments to the Ownership Act in connection with the changes in Article 22 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Government's Information Service announced on Thursday.Under the draft amendments foreigners and foreign legal entities will be allowed to purchase land at the conditions, stemming from Bulgaria's accession into EU, from compliance with an international agreement, ratified, promulgated and having taken effect, or through inheritance. This provision is complied with the free movement of capital norms of the Treaty Establishing the European Community.
The right of the citizens and of legal entities of the EU member states and countries, having acceded to the European Economic Area Agreement, to acquire ownership over land stems also from the Accession Treaty, which envisages different transitional periods of acquisition for different types of land: seven years for agricultural land and forests and five years for acquiring land for a secondary residence. Self-employed agricultural producers, who are EU citizens, will have the right to acquire agricultural lands and forests for agricultural usage as of the date of accession to the Community in compliance with the Accession Treaty.
The amendments to the Constitution require changes in another four laws that have been approved together with the Ownership Act: on forests, protected areas, agricultural land usage and tenure and restoration of ownership in forests and forest stock land.

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