Social Security and Tax for a Russian Federation Citizen Freelancing in Bulgaria

The person is a self-insured person under Art. 4, para. 3, item 1 of the Social Insurance Code (SIC) and files declaration OKd-5, in which the scope of the insurance is chosen: only for invalidity due to general illness, old age and death, or additionally for general illness and maternity. The choice may be changed only as of 1 January, by a declaration filed between 1 and 31 January. Contributions are paid monthly in advance on an elected income between the minimum and the maximum insurable income, with an annual reconciliation through Tables 1 and 2 to the annual tax return. Declaration form 1 is filed monthly (by the 25th day of the following month) and declaration form 6 — by 30.04 of the following year.

Compulsorily insured with the National Health Insurance Fund are foreign nationals holding a long-term (5 years) or permanent residence permit (Art. 33, para. 1, item 3 of the Health Insurance Act, HIA), and the obligation arises from the date the permit is received (Art. 34, para. 1, item 2 HIA). For short-term (up to 90 days) and continuous (up to 1 year) residence, no health insurance contributions are due. In the present case the residence is continuous, which is why the person is not subject to compulsory health insurance and cannot insure voluntarily under the HIA — cover is provided by private medical insurance, which is itself a condition for the residence.

The person determines and pays the advance tax themselves. To that end, on the first payment they notify the payers in writing — enterprises and self-insured persons — that they are a self-insured person, so that no tax is withheld from them (Art. 43, para. 5 and 6 of the Personal Income Taxes Act, PITA).

Taxable income is formed by reducing the income received by 25% statutory recognised expenses (Art. 29, para. 1, item 3 PITA). The advance tax base is the taxable income reduced by the insurance contributions payable at the person's own expense, and the rate is 10% (Art. 43 PITA). Advance tax is due for the first three quarters, with the declaring and the payment made through a return under Art. 55, para. 1 PITA by the end of the month following the quarter: 30 April, 31 July and 31 October. On income received during the fourth quarter no advance tax is paid (Art. 67, para. 2 PITA) — it is taxed through the annual tax return under Art. 50 PITA, which is filed by 30.04 of the following year, and for self-insured persons the filing is only by electronic means.