SOFIA – The Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced a temporary suspension of visa services at its consular offices abroad.
The suspension would be in effect from August 9 and would last till August 18, 2024, due to the implementation of a new version of the National Visa Information System (NVIS).
The upgrade, part of a larger-scale project agreed upon between Bulgaria and the European Union, requires a full pause in visa processing and the issuance of Bulgarian passports and identity cards during the specified period.
The ministry confirmed that consular offices will not accept any applications for these services until the system upgrade is complete.
In addition to suspending visa services, the Bulgarian government will also halt visa issuance at its borders during the same timeframe. However, temporary passports will be available under exceptional circumstances, such as emergencies involving natural disasters, illness, or the death of a close family member.
‘The technological implementation of the activities necessitates a temporary suspension of work with the current system in the period August 9-18 of this year. Therefore, in this period, the consular offices of the Bulgarian diplomatic and consular missions will stop accepting applications for visas and for Bulgarian identity documents – passport and identity card,’ said a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria.
Since July 21, 2021, Bulgaria, along with Romania, has had read-only access to the Visa Information System, allowing it to review visa applications but not enter information. The NVIS upgrade will enable Bulgarian authorities to fully access and utilize the system’s data, which other Schengen states use for visa processing. The issue of entry of data has also triggered offloading from planes, a concern shared by the Bulgarian premier as well.
After the upgrade is complete, the Ministry will resume regular services on August 19, 2024.
