What is a short stay?

A short stay is defined as a stay of up to 90 days within a period of 180 days in Germany, for example for tourism or visiting purposes.

It is irrelevant whether you stay in Germany for 90 days at a time or enter and leave the country several times.

If you want to work in Germany, you will usually need a visa, even if you intend to stay in Germany for less than 90 days. EU citizens are exempt from this requirement.

Who can enter without a visa?

Non-EU citizens living in Bulgaria do not need a visa for short stays of up to 90 days. Your valid identity document (national passport) together with a valid Bulgarian residence permit are sufficient.

Exceptions:

This does not apply to the following Bulgarian residence permits:

• Card of a Foreigner granted Asylum

Holders of these residence permits still require a Schengen visa to enter the country.

EU citizens living in Bulgaria need a valid identity document from their home country to travel to Germany.

In addtion, citizens of some other countries are not required to have a visa. You can find an overview here.

Can I work?

During a short stay, you are generally not allowed to work without a visa. There may be exceptions, e.g. for internships or artistic performances.

Requirements for a short stay

The fact that you are exempt from the visa requirement does not automatically mean that you have an unconditional right of entry and do not have to meet any requirements for a short stay in Germany.

If you are not an EU citizen, you must meet the following legal requirements even if you are not subject to the visa requirement for a short stay:

• Valid passport, not older than 10 years
• Valid Bulgarian residence permit
• Proof of sufficient financial means for your trip (e.g., current bank statements, credit and/or debit cards, traveler's checks)
• Proof of the purpose of your trip (e.g., hotel reservation, invitation/declaration of commitment from family or friends, invitation from business partners)
• Proof of your intention to leave Germany before the end of 90 days (e.g., return flight ticket)
• Proof of (travel) health insurance valid for your entire stay (minimum coverage €30,000; valid in all Schengen countries). The Bulgarian European Health Insurance Card is sufficient.

Preparing your application / booking an appointment

If you require a visa for a short stay, please proceed as follows:

Application form

Please complete the application form at no additional cost using VIDEX on your computer. Please print out the receipt with the barcode and the remaining pages in full and bring them with you to your appointment!

If you are unable to complete the form via VIDEX, you can also find the application form to print out and fill in under Downloads at the bottom of this page.

Application documents

Please compile the accompanying application documents. Missing documents or evidence may lead to the application being rejected.

• Completed and signed application
• signed declaration in accordance with § 54 AufenthG
• Biometric passport photo
• Passport not older than 10 years (copies of the pages containing personal details, validity period, and place of issue)
• Bulgarian residence permit
• Proof of travel health insurance valid for the entire duration of the visit to Germany. It must have a minimum coverage of €30,000.
• Proof of financing for the intended stay (at least €50 per day of stay or a declaration of commitment in accordance with Sections 66-68 of the Residence Act (AufenthG))
• Documents proving the intended purpose of the stay
• Documents relating to the current purpose of your stay in Bulgaria (e.g., confirmation of enrollment if you are a student, au pair contract if you are an au pair, employment contract if you are working, marriage certificate if you are staying as a family member, etc.)
• 90 EUR fee, payable in BGN in cash or by credit card (Visa/Mastercard, charged in EUR)

The Embassy reserves the right to make the decision on the visa application dependent on the submission of further documents in individual cases.

Appointment booking

Please book an appointment here to submit your application.

During processing

The visa office will review and decide on your application. To do this, it will check whether your application meets the legal requirements. Once a decision has been made on your application, the visa office will contact you. Please understand that questions about the status of your application will not be answered during the processing period. After that, only inquiries from the applicant themselves, a legal representative, or a person authorized in writing will be answered.

Visa issuance

You will be informed as soon as the Embassy has decided on your application. Your passport is required for the visa to be issued.

If all the information on your visa label is correct, nothing stands in the way of your trip. Please check this as soon as you have your passport back in your hands. Please notify us immediately of any errors so that we can issue you a new visa.

Complaints

Applicants for Schengen visas can submit complaints about the conduct of consular staff or the visa application process using the contact form. To do so, please select „Complaint about the Schengen visa procedure“ as the addressee in the contact form. Please note that complaints can only be submitted in German or English; we cannot follow up on complaints in languages other than German or English. Please enter one of the following two options in the „Subject“ field of the contact form:

1. Complaint about the conduct of consular staff
2. Complaint about the visa application process

We will follow up on your complaint upon receipt.

Important note: The complaint contact form cannot be used to appeal decisions to refuse, cancel, or revoke a visa.