For advice on customs and laws, entry requirements, health and local travel take a look here

In addition to the links in Fiona's post above:

Be aware that several recent EU member states have restrictions as far as the import into the UK of tobacco, cigarettes, etc., purchased in them is concerned.

My 'gut feeling' is that similar restrictions may, at least initially, also be applied to Bulgaria, even when it accedes to the EU.

For more information, see HERE

Baldur,

I agree, and it's worth pointing out that this DUTY FREE thing is a triple whammy.

As far as I can see, three limits affect visitors to Bulgaria, and they are the same as far as I can determine -

1. What you can take INTO Bulgaria - 200 cigs and 1 litre of spirits per adult. There are other items but these are the important ones.

2. What you can take OUT of Bulgaria - the same.

3. What you can take INTO the UK - the same.

Peter

With effect from 1 January 2006, all children entering Bulgaria will need to have their own passport.

This is from the Bulgarian Embassy in London website at -

Embassy

There is a possibility that there are still parents with children on their passports, and if this is the case, and they are planning to visit Bulgaria, now would be a good time to do something about it.

We need to thank Tonyt for tipping me off about this, and Baldur for something he has written elsewhere which made me realise there could be problem for some of our members.

Peter

Edit
Please also note that as from Jan 1st you are also required to fill in a registration form and state the purpose of your trip and the address at which you are staying.
Fiona HT mod

I have picked up a reliable report from another website that British Subject passport holders are being refused entry at Varna & Bourgas airports.

DON'T PANIC - most UK members of this forum are likely to be British Citizens. The holder status can be found on the passport photograph page.

See HERE under British Subjects.
As you can see, Generally, British subjects are people who were born before January 1 1949 and who had a connection with either British India or the Republic of Ireland (Southern Ireland).
There's nothing new in the requirement that such people require a visa to enter Bulgaria, but what is new is that it is being strictly enforced.

Peter

For the information of board users, in view of the lack of official information regarding the 90-day 'visa free' regime which has been reported in the Bulgarian press, I wrote to the UK Embassy of Bulgaria to query the reports.

I have just received the following from the Consular Section of the Bulgarian Embassy in London:

"Dear Mr. xxxxxxxxxxx,

The info on our official web-site has not been changed because we received the official information from the ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria on Friday.

It is true - as of 1 September British citizens will be allowed to visit Bulgaria without a visa for 90 days (total) within a six month period.

In case you have ever visited Bulgaria before, pls kindly check the dates of your entries and departures.

A six month period starts from the date of your first entry, i.e. lets assume you have entered BG on 01 May 2005 and stayed there till 15 May 2005, i.e. you have a six month period starting as of 1 May and ending on 1 Nov 2005.

You stayed 15 days, i.e. as you are allowed another 75 days without a visa within that period.

Another 6 month period starts on the date of your first entry after 1 Nov. Is that clear?

Check your periods and see how many days you have to stay in Bulgaria without a visa.

We do hope we helped you to clarify the situation.

Pls do not hesitate to contact us in case you have any further queries.

Best regards,
Visa Section"

Hope this helps,

Baldur

Further to the entry on THIS thread.

There is a newspaper story HERE about someone who tried to enter Bulgaria on a British Subject passport and was immediately deported back to the UK.

British Subjects (as opposed to Citizens) are people who were born before January 1 1949 and who had a connection with either British India or the Republic of Ireland (Southern Ireland). See HERE for further information from the UK Passport Office.

There's nothing new in the requirement that such people require a visa to enter Bulgaria, but what is new is that it is being strictly enforced at the moment.

Peter

Further to Peter's post above, another case has been reported of a British passport holder being detained on arrival in Bulgaria and sent home next day, because born in the Irish Republic, her status was British Subject rather than British Citizen, meaning that she should have had a visa.

Click here for full story.

This is the relevant extract from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website:

With effect from the 1 September 2006, British citizens holding valid passports will be allowed to enter Bulgaria for up to 90 days in any 6-month period without requiring a visa, instead of the previous 30 days. Prior to travelling you should ensure that your passport has a validity of three months beyond the end of your intended stay. Damaged passports will not be accepted. You are not allowed to re-enter Bulgaria after the initial 90 days have expired if you have not spent the requisite period outside the country. (Please note that British subjects, e.g. of Irish descent and born before 1 January 1949, must obtain a visa from the Bulgarian Embassy in London prior to any visit to Bulgaria, otherwise they will be refused entry and returned to the UK.)

(Crown copyright material reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland)

In addition to the distress, inconvenience and expense suffered in such circumstances, it is highly unlikely that any insurance policy would cover the cost of the holiday or any additional losses, as the insured person has failed to comply with official immigration/entry requirements.

Hopefully this latest unfortunate incident may serve as a reminder to others in similar circumstances to check their status and apply for a visa if necessary.

David

It has been announced by the British Government, via Sofia News Agency that the duty free ration of cigarettes and Cigars from both Bulgaria and Romania will still be 200 when they join EU in Jan. They state it will be strictly adherred to. Tonyt

Just to follow up on tony's post the 200 limit is detailed here ( thanks to Baldur for providing the link)

It has been suggested that the restriction of cigarette imports to 200 from Bulgaria to the UK has been imposed arbitrarily by our Government and could be subject to legal challenge. Not so.

The restriction on tobacco imports from Bulgaria are stated HERE, and are in accord with EU law and are being applied by Germany; the United Kingdom; Denmark and Hungary.

These Member States have notified the Commission that they introduced on 1 January 2007 a restriction of 200 cigarettes for travellers coming from Bulgaria and Romania until 31 December 2009. Under EU law they are allowed to apply special transitional arrangements for travellers returning from the new Member States that joined the EU on 1 January 2007 as long as these new Member States have not reached the minimum level of taxation for cigarettes.

The suggestion that since duty has been paid in Bulgaria therefore it's all right, is WRONG - The minimum level of taxation is NOT being paid, that is the problem and why the restriction to 200 cigarettes is legal under EU law in those Member States who wish to apply it.

In addition, under Bulgarian law you can't take more than 200 cigarettes out of Bulgaria. This is legislation brought in by the Bulgarians to appease the EU a number of years ago now.

Peter.