When I tell people in the UK that I’m calling from Bulgaria they’re usually surprised to say the least! They often reply with something like “where did you say you’re calling from, Bulgaria?!” I can understand the reaction as it does seem odd that an English girl is calling to sell them something from Eastern Europe, however, having a business based in Bulgaria is actually very sensible in my opinion.
The cost of living in Bulgaria is substantially lower than most other places in Europe. Your home and business premises will cost less to rent and your salary costs and expenses will be lower. Now, I’m not suggesting exploiting local talent by paying poor salaries, this simply means you can hire locally or internationally and still be in a position to pay your staff a salary that they will be very happy with.
As an example, a net salary of £2000 per month in the UK is considered quite reasonable but doesn’t give the employee a particularly great quality of life, especially if they live in central London. Now, compare that to the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, where you can pay the same employee €1500 (EURO) and they will be earning around 4 times the national average. Also, the income tax is lower at just 10%.
Of course this can only work for businesses that sell and operate mostly online, however today that accounts for many more than it would have done a few years ago and this will continue to rise.
Even an online business shouldn’t forget the importance of face to face meetings but this is not a problem either as there are so many low cost airlines operating here. I’ve joked with my clients that I can fly to the UK for a meeting faster than I could have travelled from the South of England to the North and probably cheaper too going by the UK fuel prices!
Many people in Bulgaria speak perfect English and you can easily find an accountant or lawyer who will translate for you. The only thing that some people may still be concerned about when considering Bulgaria is corruption, and rightly so. Bulgaria is now part of the EU and the presence of corruption is less than ever before. To say it doesn’t exist would be a lie and there are still some problems but then to be honest I’m not sure I could say corruption doesn’t exist at all in any country in some way.
What’s important is that the people of Bulgaria want to see a change for the better and they will continue to strive for that. As far as I can see, if you’re involved in an honest business and follow all the rules you will not have any problems
So to sum it up, if you have an online business and would like to be based somewhere not only cheaper than most of Europe, but also more beautiful, then I suggest you consider doing business in Bulgaria! The cost of registering your new business can be less than €400!
If you have any questions about starting a business in Bulgaria and what is required to do so, please get in touch, we’ll be happy to assist you and put you in touch with a reliable lawyer!
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