From field to building plot: how to change the designation of agricultural land in Bulgaria, what the fee is in 2026 and when the decision expires

Many "plots" on the edge of Sofia and around villages are in fact agricultural land — a field, meadow or orchard. No dwelling can be built on such land until its designation is changed under the Agricultural Land Protection Act (ЗОЗЗ). The Act allows a change only as an exception, where the need is proven (Art. 2(3)).

Our guide to buying a plot summarised the procedure briefly. Here we go into detail: who decides, what it costs under the new euro tariff, and which deadlines can cost you money already paid.

First: is it agricultural land at all?

Land inside urbanised areas defined by a detailed development plan is not agricultural land in the legal sense. So the first check is at the municipality and on the cadastral sketch: what the permanent land use is and whether the plot lies within the building limits.

• If the plot was brought into the building limits by plans approved before 1973, no ЗОЗЗ procedure is needed (Art. 37(1) of the Implementing Regulation).
• If it was included by a later plan but the ЗОЗЗ procedure was never completed, the committee decides the change without site approval, and the fee is payable at the single rate (Art. 37(2)).
• If it lies outside the building limits, the full procedure below applies.

Who decides

The decision is taken by a committee (Art. 17(1)):

• The committee at the Regional Agriculture Directorate (ОДЗ) — for plots up to 50 decares, category V to X and non-irrigated, in that province. This covers most single-house plots.
• The Agricultural Land Committee at the Ministry of Agriculture — for everything else: larger areas, category I to IV land and irrigated land.

The steps

1. Site approval. The owner (or a buyer holding a preliminary contract for a building right — Art. 30(2) of the Regulation) files an application with a sketch or draft sketch, the land-category certificate, an irrigation certificate, the environmental inspectorate's opinion under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Acts (Natura 2000), proof of title and an explanatory note. Land of categories I–VI normally requires two alternative sites (Art. 21(4)), but where an individual or company changes the designation for its own needs, one site is enough regardless of category (Art. 28(7) of the Regulation). The committee decides within one month. If the change is already provided for in an approved general development plan, this step is skipped (Art. 17a(3)).

2. Detailed development plan (ПУП). Once the site decision is in force, permission is sought to prepare a ПУП, which is approved under the Spatial Planning Act. Note: the site decision lapses if you do not apply for the change of designation within one year of the ПУП entering into force (Art. 34(1)).

3. Change-of-designation decision. With the ПУП in force, you file the proposal, adding the ПУП, the order approving it and a health opinion from the regional health inspectorate. The committee decides within 30 days and sets the fee (Art. 24(2); Art. 41 of the Regulation). Decisions can be appealed under the Administrative Procedure Code.

4. Paying the fee. The decision enters into force only once the fee is paid (Art. 24(4)). You have 3 months from notification — otherwise the decision lapses.

5. On to the building permit. A building permit is issued only with a decision in force, after the boundaries are set out on site and the topsoil is removed (Art. 26). The decision is sent to the municipality and the cadastre.

What happens next — from the permit to the certificate of use — is covered in our guide to building your own house.

When the decision expires

This is the most underestimated part. The change-of-designation decision loses legal effect if (Art. 24(5)):

1. the fee is not paid within 3 months of notification;
2. no building permit is requested within 3 years of the decision entering into force;
3. construction has not started within 6 years of it entering into force.

If a seller tells you "the designation has already been changed", ask for the decision and proof that the fee was paid, and work out how much time is left on these clocks.

What the fee costs in 2026

Since 1 January 2026 a new tariff in euro applies (Council of Ministers Decree No. 268/2025, State Gazette 103/2025). It converts fees that were raised substantially in July 2025 (State Gazette 60/2025) — according to the ministry's own reasoning, precisely to reduce the number of change requests.

The fee per decare is calculated by the formula in Art. 5 of the tariff:

T = (SBB × Karea × Ksettlement × Kirrigation) / 1.95583

• SBB — the average soil-quality (bonitet) score for the land category (2.5 for uncategorised land). The category is certified by an act from the ОДЗ (fee €25).
• Karea — by the area needed for the project: 2.40 up to 1 decare, 3.60 over 1 to 5 decares, 4.80 over 5 to 10 decares, and so on up to 6.15. Where one owner files for several plots, the coefficient is based on their combined area.
• Ksettlement — by the category of the settlement, not the land. For a residential building (an Art. 6 project): 13.00 for Sofia Municipality, category I–III towns, national resorts and land along the Black Sea coast; 9.00 for category IV–V settlements; 6.00 for category VI–VIII.
• Kirrigation — 1.30 for irrigated and 1.00 for non-irrigated land.

For a non-irrigated plot of up to 1 decare, that works out at roughly €15.95 per bonitet point per decare in Sofia Municipality, €11.04 in a category IV–V settlement and €7.36 in a category VI–VIII settlement.

Illustrative example with a hypothetical score: if the category's average bonitet score were 40 points, re-designating 0.8 decares of non-irrigated land in Sofia Municipality would cost about 40 × 15.95 × 0.8 ≈ €510, and in a category VI–VIII village about €236. On top comes a one-off €102 fee for reviewing the application (projects up to 50 decares). The real score for your plot is stated in its category act.

There is no exemption for an owner's own home, young families or a "first house" — neither in the Act nor in the tariff. The fee is owed by the owner who requested the change (Art. 30(1)); who bears it between buyer and seller is a matter for your contract.

The fee is only part of the cost. Add preparing the ПУП, survey work, utility companies' opinions and design.

Building without a decision

Building on agricultural land without a change of designation has consequences. If the building is later legalised, a sanction applies plus double the fee (§ 2 of the Act's supplementary provisions).

What to agree when buying

• Check the documents, not the listing. "Plot" in an advert means nothing; what matters is the sketch, the permanent land use and whether a ЗОЗЗ decision is in force.
• If the procedure hasn't started, the price should reflect the risk — a change is an exception and not guaranteed. Consider a conditional preliminary contract: the final deed is signed once the decision is in force, and the buyer can run the procedure as a holder of a building right.
• If the procedure is under way, ask for every decision (site and change) and check the clocks — one year after the ПУП, three months for the fee, three years for the building permit.
• Agree in writing who pays the fee and what happens if the change is refused or lapses.
• The tax position changes. Undeveloped agricultural land is not subject to property tax (Art. 10(3), Local Taxes and Fees Act). Once re-designated, the plot becomes taxable and you must file a declaration with the municipality.

If you want land that stays agricultural — as a holding or to lease out — see our farmland guide.

In short

A field becomes a house plot in several steps: site approval (unless a general plan already provides for it), a detailed development plan, the committee's decision and a paid fee. Since July 2025 the fee is noticeably higher, and the decision has a shelf life — 3 months to pay, 3 years to apply for a building permit, 6 years to start building. Before you pay a building-plot price, make sure you are buying a building plot.

If you are thinking of buying land for a house, give us a call or drop by our office — we will review the plot's documents and tell you exactly where it stands.