Parents would need foreign vaccination records, Bulgarian translations and regional health inspectorate approval because overseas doses cannot currently be entered into Bulgaria’s national health database.
Bulgaria is preparing rules that would make it easier for children vaccinated abroad to enrol in nursery, after officials said the current system leaves families unable to prove immunisation records through the national health database.
The draft changes, published for public consultation on the Health Ministry’s website, would require parents to present three things before a child’s first day in nursery if all compulsory vaccinations and booster doses were given in another country: a copy of the foreign medical document issued by the relevant authority, a Bulgarian translation, and a conclusion from the regional health inspectorate confirming that the child has received the vaccinations required for their age under Bulgarian law.
The ministry says the change is needed because the National Health Information System only records medical activity carried out within Bulgaria’s health system. According to the system’s own guidance, immunisations administered domestically are entered as structured electronic records that include the date, dose sequence and vaccine name, and can be viewed through the eZdrave application. But there is no established way to enter a vaccination given abroad, which the ministry says creates practical problems for children who were born outside Bulgaria or lived overseas and whose records cannot be transferred into the national register in the usual way.
The wider vaccination framework has been tightening. In January 2026, Bulgaria announced that chickenpox vaccination would become mandatory for children born after 1 January 2025, with two doses offered free of charge. The health authorities also introduced an electronic system in 2025 for ordering, distributing and reporting vaccines, designed to improve tracking and reduce paperwork. Together, those steps point to a system that is becoming more digital and more tightly managed, even as it now has to find a workable route for families arriving from abroad.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
