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Short-Stay, Type CVerified 29 Apr 2026Bulgaria visa for cultural events, sports competitions, artistic performances, scientific exchange. Short-Stay (Type C). ₹10,100 + ₹2,530 VFS. Requires invitation from the Bulgarian organising body.
Professional filing · fee back if refused
Not included in our fee: a flight reservation (from ₹708) and a confirmed hotel booking (₹590 per hotel). Book them separately, only if your visa needs them:
Opens WhatsApp. We send the 50% advance link; the balance is due before anything is submitted.
What you get
SureshotVisa promise
Visa refused — 100% of our fee back, initiated within 7 days. Embassy and visa-centre fees are collected by the authority and are not refundable by anyone. Refund policy
Pro Lifeset Overseas Pvt Ltd · Licence 849/DC/PTA/PLA/LC-3/2024. The visa decision is the embassy's.
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✓ The ₹499 report is fully refundable · our refund promise
Check the official requirements
Guide last reviewed 2026-04-29. Fees, documents and appointment rules can change.
The Bulgaria Sports / Cultural / Artistic & Scientific Visa is a Short-Stay (Type C) for Indians participating in cultural events, sports competitions, artistic performances, or scientific exchange programmes for up to 90 days. Each event type requires a specific invitation: Ministry of Culture (cultural), Sports Federation (sports), University / Bulgarian Academy of Science (academic / scientific exchange).
What it costs
Paid directly to Bulgaria / VFS — these are not our service fee, and we never mark them up.
Figures per VFS Global, last verified 29 Apr 2026. Fees change without notice — the official page is final.
Visa fees and VFS service charges are non-refundable, regardless of visa outcome. From 12 August 2024, applicants can pay visa fees and VFS logistics via Card / Cash / UPI. Approximate total for an adult short-stay visa: ₹12,630 (₹10,100 + ₹2,530). Long-Term D total: ₹14,080. Diplomatic and Official Indian Passport holders can transit / visit Bulgaria visa-free for up to 90 days within 6 months.
Flights · Hotels · Insurance · Itinerary
Bulgaria applies the Schengen rules, so travel insurance is not a nice-to-have — it is a legal condition of the visa.
2 of 4 are compulsory for Bulgaria
Where people slip: Flying into one city and out of another with nothing showing how you travel between them. Officers read the whole route, and an unexplained gap reads as a plan that does not hold together.
Book for ₹708 (+₹472 per family member)Where people slip: Free-cancellation bookings are accepted, but if the entire file is free-cancellation the officer sees a trip nobody has committed to. Some of it should be real spend.
Confirmed hotel booking, ₹590 per hotel: message us firstWhere people slip: Buying cover for the adults and forgetting the children. Every traveller needs their own EUR 30,000, infants included — a real refusal we have seen on a family of four.
What a Schengen policy must showWhere people slip: Spending more nights in another Schengen country than in Bulgaria. That gets a file rejected before it is even assessed.
The letter your itinerary attaches toWe can arrange the flight reservation, the hotel and the itinerary for your Bulgaria file — each sold separately.
We are a B2B travel agency as well as a visa consultancy, working with partners including Riya Travel — so the flight reservation and the confirmed hotel booking both come from us, and you deal with one team. Every booking is a real one under your own name. We do not sell travel insurance: buy the policy directly from an insurer.
None of them is part of our visa fee: each is bought on its own, at the price below, with or without our visa service.
Flight reservation ₹708 (+₹472 per extra family member) · Confirmed hotel booking ₹590 per hotel · Travel itinerary ₹1,499. GST included.
Delivery. Usually within 30 minutes during office hours, Mon–Sat 10:00–18:00 IST. Confirmed hotel bookings are not bought online: message us first on WhatsApp or email info@sureshotvisa.com with the city, dates and travellers.
Tell us your dates — we will say which of these you actually need
What to gather
Having a document isn't the same as presenting it right — that's the part we handle.
Fully completed in English or Bulgarian, signed in two places (field 37 + last field). For minors under 18 — signed by parent/guardian.
Valid 3+ months beyond intended return; minimum 2 empty pages back-to-back; issued within the previous 10 years; NO alterations or handwritten amendments on the data page
Data pages, plus pages with evidence of previous valid + expired visas / travel
If applicable — to demonstrate travel history
Light background; face covers 70-80%; ICAO-compliant; see Photo Specifications section below. NOT older than 6 months.
Explaining the purpose of the trip and duration of stay
If applicable — applicants temporarily residing in another state should submit a photocopy of the stay permit (e.g. valid Indian Residency Permit or return visa to India)
Valid for Bulgaria for the entire period of intended stay; covers repatriation for medical reasons + emergency medical care + hospital treatment in case of emergency or death. Must be issued by an EU/VFS-approved insurance company. For multiple entries, additional declaration form required.
Return travel ticket OR confirmed booking (for air / surface / sea transport)
Most recent 3 months — both savings and current accounts where applicable
Personal AND company (if applicable) — last 3 assessment years
Either: minimum €50 per day of stay (or equivalent in another convertible currency, but at least €500 total); OR a letter from the inviting organisation/institution covering all expenses of the applicant's stay in Bulgaria
On company's official letterhead — establishing position, years in service, grant of leave, salary certificate of last 3 months
On official letterhead with company registration / ownership papers
Confirming enrolment, grant of leave, plus copy of valid student ID
If applicable
Original notarised consent from the OTHER parent / legal guardian, including: their personal info, the purpose, period and length of stay in Bulgaria, the period for which consent is issued, plus their signature and copy of passport / ID
Original notarised consent from BOTH parents / legal guardians (same content as above)
Signed by authorised representative, certified by official stamp; includes upcoming event details (venue, organisers, accommodation, contact person, who covers expenses)
Signed by authorised representative; certified by official stamp; includes event details
Signed and stamped
For current academic exchange
Confirming conference details + applicant participation
Including phone, email of the contact person
Required · optional / if applicable
5 steps from intake to approval — never as linear as government sites pretend.
Secure the appropriate invitation letter
Cultural → Ministry of Culture; Sports → Federation/Club; Student exchange → University/School + exchange agreement; Conference → University/Bulgarian Academy of Science.
Verify invitation contains required info
Authorised signature + official stamp + event details (venue, organisers, dates) + accommodation info + contact person + cost coverage.
Gather all common documents
Application form, passport, photos, insurance €30,000, financials, etc.
Submit at VFS in person
First trip in person. Pay ₹10,100 + ₹2,530.
Track and collect
Up to 15 calendar days.
Biometrics and the visit to the visa centre are yours to attend in person — no consultancy can do those for you. How we work
What works
21 levers that flip a borderline case.
What kills cases
Top 3 refusal triggers we see.
Each link opens the official Bulgaria page on VFS Global (we never host third-party forms): pick your visa category there and use its "Download Form" section for the current version.
Answer 10 quick questions to see your likelihood of approval. This is not a guarantee — final decision is always with the Embassy — but it flags common weak spots so you can address them before applying.
What's the primary purpose of your trip?
How long do you plan to stay?
Have you previously visited any Schengen country?
Have you ever been refused a Schengen (or any country's) visa?
Past refusals must be disclosed — they show up in VIS database across Schengen countries.
Do you have confirmed travel bookings?
Reservations are enough; a paid ticket is not required.
What's your current employment status?
What's your typical 3-month bank balance?
Schengen needs ~₹700/day covered. For a 10-day trip, minimum ₹70,000 stable balance.
How many years of Income Tax Returns (ITR) can you show?
What are your strongest ties to India (return-intent)?
Embassies want evidence you'll come back — not overstay.
Who are you travelling with?
Indicative only — final decision is always with the Embassy.
Frequently asked
The Ministry of Culture of Bulgaria, OR the mayor of the respective municipality. Letters from private cultural organisations alone are insufficient.
The respective sports federation AND/OR sports club in Bulgaria. The federation's letterhead and authorised signature are required.
Universities, schools, or other Bulgarian legal persons. Plus the Exchange Agreement / Exchange Programme document for the current academic exchange.
Up to 15 calendar days from Embassy receipt. May extend to 30-60 days if scrutiny needed. Apply 4+ weeks before the event start date.
Members of EU / EEA / Swiss Confederation citizens' families are exempt from presenting proof of subsistence/accommodation/transportation. Holders of service and diplomatic passports are similarly exempt.
Yes. We coordinate with Indian institutions (IMPPA, sports bodies, universities) and Bulgarian counterparts to ensure the invitation letters meet Embassy standards. Book a ₹499 consultation.
A consultant at our licensed firm replies today
Reviewed by Sherbir Singh Grewal, SureshotVisa — a government-licensed consultancy (Licence 849/DC/PTA/PLA/LC-3/2024). Verify us.
A strong Bulgaria file clearly explains your travel purpose, funds, and ties to India. We structure and submit everything properly — so your case is presented clearly and professionally.
Our professional fee · GST included
₹4,999GST included
File-ready in 3–5 working days after documents
5★ · 110+ reviews · reply in 5 min
Everything below — included, nothing extra
Not included in our fee: a flight reservation (from ₹708) and a confirmed hotel booking (₹590 per hotel). Book them separately, only if your visa needs them:
Not sure you qualify? Start with a refundable ₹499 possibility report — an honest Yes / Maybe / No, credited to this fee.
Price is for our consultancy service only and includes 18% GST. No agency can guarantee a visa — the final decision rests with the visa authority.
Your fee, in one glance
Government, VFS, insurance, ticket and hotel costs are separate and charged at cost. Read what each item means, in full.
Before you file
Filed on a guessed checklist, the government fee is gone on a refusal and the refusal follows every future application. Filed after a consultant at our licensed firm has read the papers against each other, the file answers the officer's questions before they are asked. Same Bulgaria rules, different outcome. How we do that is written once, in full, on the method page rather than repeated here.
A consultant at our licensed firm replies today
Source & Disclaimer
Data on this page is sourced from the official VFS Global Bulgaria website and Embassy of Bulgaria. Last verified 2026-04-29. Always verify with the official embassy before applying — fees and requirements change without notice.
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