Seeking advice on D Visa/Residency through marriage for US citizen

And big thank you to anyone who reads this and for any guidance you can provide

@PepitoFiesta

Welcome to the expat.com forum and good luck with your marriage and move to Bulgaria!

Your list sounds about right. For official advice, the Bulgarian Embassy in Washington has the following:

https://www.bulgaria-embassy.org/en/consular-services/visa-for-bulgaria/

http://www.bulgaria-embassy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/VISA-TYPE-D-VISA.pdf

For health insurance, DZI is as good as any, but there are many. I use 24ins (dot bg). For immigration you don't need full health insurance, you need a Bulgarian Medical Insurance for Foreigners, and the cost is less than $100 for a year.

You don't mention marriage certificate, but probably that should be there. As should a copy of your wife's ID (to show she's Bulgarian, and named on the marriage certificate). Proof of your prior visits to Bulgaria would help, as would being able to show that you are currently living together, or have previously lived together before/after the marriage. US passports are good for visa-free entry, so you probably don't have any BG visas, but you should have the entry/exit stamps.

Your wife's invitation letter might work, and if that's what you've got, I'd probably try it. But it would probably be safer to get her to write up a declaration by her parents (and owners of the property) that they are allowing you (name) and their daughter (name) to live, rent-free, in their home, indefinitely. It would need a copy of their Notary Act (to show their ownership), and they should get it notarized in Bulgaria (and sent over to you). Here's the official guidance: "when applying for D visa, a notarized lease agreement and notarized consent/declaration from the owner, stating that he/she agrees that the applicant will be registered on this address are both requested".

Proof of financial means is demonstrating that you have funds NOW (at the time of your visa application) sufficient for your needs in Bulgaria. The minimum salary in Bulgaria is roughly 400 euros per month, and your D visa would normally be issued for 6 months (plenty of time to enter and get your residence permit). 6 x 400 = 2,400 euros, or just under $2,600. So that's the bare minimum. I'd guess they'd expect an American to be wealthier than that, and to be able to pay for more than 6 months, and support his poor Bulgarian wife too. So the more the better! My guess is that you don't plan to live with the in-laws for long and you probably have a nice chunk of money set aside for buying a property, so I'd show the statement for that. (If you have passive income such as rent, dividends, or pensions then that's good too.)

I suggest providing a recent statement (less than 3 months) for your checking, savings, or brokerage account. Ideally, it's a bank-issued statement, but they might accept one that you printed from your online banking.

@gwynj thank you so much for your detailed response!

We are currently looking into the FBI background check and have another question - after it is issues and apostilled, does it need to be translated to bulgarian before we submit it to the embassy?

Thank you!