Need a Bulgarian criminal record certificate for use abroad? We add the apostille from the Ministry of Justice and provide an official translation by a sworn translator. You bring the document to our office in Varna; the rest is our job.
People usually come to us for a criminal record certificate when they are starting a job abroad, applying for a visa or citizenship, or arranging a long-term residence permit. On its own, though, the plain document from the court is rarely enough overseas – an apostille and a translation are almost always required. At Maxima Life we handle both.
The document is issued by the district court for your place of residence. You can also obtain it electronically – through the Ministry of Justice portal, without going to the court. There is one exception: if you were born outside the district of that district court, the certificate is issued by the Ministry of Justice itself.
The order is as follows: first an apostille from the Ministry of Justice is placed on the certificate, and then comes the official translation by a sworn translator into the language of the country where you will be submitting it. An apostille is not accepted everywhere, however. For countries that are not party to the Hague Convention, full (consular) legalisation is carried out instead – a process that takes longer. We explain the difference in detail on our legalisation and apostille page.
Mind the validity period. A criminal record certificate is valid for 6 months from the date of issue. So do not put off the translation and legalisation – we have seen people whose certificate expires just before they submit their documents, leaving them to start the whole process again.
The translation is produced by a sworn translator – that is the only way the receiving authority will accept it without objections.
How much it costs and how many days it takes depends on the language and on whether an apostille is enough or full legalisation is required. Tell us which country you need the document for and we will give you an exact turnaround time and price. You will also find a guide to our prices on the Prices page.
Six months from the date of issue. Because of this, it is sensible to have the translation and legalisation done soon after you obtain the document, so that it does not expire while you are gathering the rest of your paperwork.
For use abroad, yes. An apostille from the Ministry of Justice is placed on the certificate, followed by the official translation from a sworn translator. For countries outside the Hague Convention there is no apostille and full (consular) legalisation is carried out instead.
Yes – through the Ministry of Justice portal, without a trip to the court. Otherwise it is issued by the district court for your place of residence, and for people born outside that court's district, by the Ministry of Justice.
It depends on the language and on whether an apostille is enough or full legalisation is required. We offer both a standard and an express service – write to us or call for an exact turnaround time and a quote.
Tell us which country you need the document for and we will come back with a turnaround time and a price.
Ask for a free quoteor call us: 052 633 632 · 0879 633 632