Continuous Residence for Foreigners in Bulgaria
In accordance with the Bulgarian legislation the term “foreigner” includes every individual who is not a Bulgarian or an EU, EEA or a Swiss citizen. In order to be entitled to Bulgarian residence the foreigners in Bulgaria should obtain a residence permit depending on the period of their stay and their residence status. The continuous residence status entitles the foreign individual to reside in Bulgaria for for a maximum of one year and some of the most common grounds for obtaining such a status include: Grounds for Obtaining a Continuous Residence in Bulgaria Work under an Employment Agreement In order … Continue reading
How to Terminate an Employment Agreement when Closing Down an Enterprise
Nowadays, due to the continuing world economic crisis, unfortunately, the business phenomenon of “closing down an enterprise/a part of an enterprise” is a really common practice. This has been the case in Bulgaria too where companies have increasingly had to close down due to economic reasons. This inevitably imposes the need of termination and settlement of the employment relations between the company which is closing down and its employees. The Bulgarian labour legislation provides for some special rules with regard to company shutdowns which should be strictly observed when a Bulgarian employment agreement is terminated on the grounds of closing … Continue reading
Termination of Employment Agreement Due to Staff Reduction in Bulgaria
Staff reduction is one of the most common grounds used for termination of employment agreements in Bulgaria by the employers with a termination notice for convenience. The reason for this lies in the statutory right of the employer to organize the workflow and to determine the staff number and schedule at his own discretion. Prerequisite: Staff schedule adopted by the employer The presence of a staff schedule adopted by the employer is the corner-stone for the termination of employment agreements in Bulgaria due to staff reduction. The staff schedule represents a list of all job positions and number of people … Continue reading
Typographic Typefaces and Copyright Law
Background In typography a “typeface” is considered to be a set of glyphs representing individual letters, symbols, marks or punctuations. During the 19th century wood was used as a material for developing the so-called wood types. The 20th century allowed for the mechanization of typesetting. The first machine for typefaces was created by Ottmar Mergenthaler. Later on during the 1970s the machine typesetting was replaced by phototypesetting equipment which evolved in the current digital typesetting. The design of a typeface may require a large period of time. Examination and processing of different styles, say for example the basic- roman, italic, … Continue reading
Supplements to the Sale of Products in the Light of Unfair Competition Rules in Bulgaria
I. INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE BULGARIAN LEGAL FRAMEWORK ON COMPETITION AND UNFAIR COMPETITION Legal framework Art. 36 of the Bulgarian Protection of Competition Act (PCA) is titled “unfair soliciting of clients”. It is a part of the unfair competition rules in Bulgarian law and contains four paragraphs providing for four different prohibitions. One of these prohibitions relates to supplements offered or given upon the sale of a product. Art. 36 (2) of the Bulgarian Protection of Competition Act (PCA) provides for the following prohibition: “The offering or giving of supplements for free or at a fictitious price of another good … Continue reading
Fixed-term Employment Agreement For Substitution in Bulgaria
When it comes to fixed-term employment agreements Bulgarian labour legislation is traditionally highly restrictive. Usually a fixed-term employment agreement in Bulgaria is defined as an employment agreement with a short duration aimed at satisfying an employer’s temporary and exceptional need of manpower. Due to the narrow interpretation of the cases when such arrangements are deemed permissible and appropriate, the Bulgarian labour law has established three basic types of fixed-term employment contracts, which are most common in business practice: employment agreement for a definite period of time not exceeding three years, concluded for temporary, seasonal or short-term activities in Bulgaria; employment … Continue reading
The Concept of ‘Advertising’ and Unfair Competition Rules in Bulgaria
Advertising is an integral part of every business and as such it is subject to many and various legal regulations depending on the sector and type of product. Legal framework – Advertising in the Bulgarian law The Bulgarian Protection of Competition Act (PCA) contains regulation on misleading and comparative advertising as a part of the Bulgarian unfair competition rules. PCA prohibits misleading advertising and lists the requirements which comparative advertising should meet in order to be permitted. In this regard PCA transposes Directive 2006/114/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 concerning misleading and comparative … Continue reading
How Can an EU Citizen Reside in Bulgaria?
Following the accession of Bulgaria to the European Union (“EU”) every national of an EU Member State (i.e. every EU citizen) can without explicit permit enter and exit Bulgaria with only a valid personal identity card or passport. Further, EU citizens are entitled to reside in Bulgaria for a period of up to three months without any additional conditions other than to hold the identification documents mentioned above. If a EU citizen residing in Bulgaria wishes to stay in the country for a period exceeding three months, they need to obtain the so called “continued residence” status which is granted … Continue reading
