Bulgaria: Regime of cargo transportation in terms of COVID-19 as of 16 March 2020

From 00:00 on March 20, 2020 to April 17, 2020, citizens of all third countries (non-EU countries) are temporarily banned from entering the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria through all border crossing points by all means of transport, with the exception of personnel associated with the carriage of goods.

The entry ban for the EU citizens from Italy, Spain, France, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, and the relevant measures for drivers from these countries remain in force.

Bulgarian citizens, as well as persons with long or permanent residence in Bulgaria, and their families, are exempted from entry ban, but will be subjected to 14-day quarantine.

Freight transport

There are no restrictions for cargo transportation, including transit and transport operations.

At border crossings passengers and drivers arriving from the most affected countries (China, South Korea, Iran and Italy) are spot-checked.

There is a special mode for truck drivers:

- Bulgarian truck drivers are subject to the 14-day quarantine;

- Drivers of other countries can load and unload cargo, after which they should immediately leave the territory of Bulgaria. In case of transit traffic, the transit operation must be completed within 24 hours;

- transit of trucks registered and arriving from the Islamic Republic of Iran is temporarily prohibited.

The Bulgarian Government has also provided temporary relief in respect of driving requirements and rest times for drivers as provided in the EU rules 561-2006 for domestic and international transport of goods. The following exceptions are applied from March 19 to April 16, 2020:

- increase in the maximum daily driving limit from 9 hours to 11 hours;

- replacing the minimum requirements for daily breaks by establishing a break of 45 minutes in five and a half hours;

- reduction of the regular weekly rest period from 45 to 24 hours.

More detailed information can be found at   https://www.mtitc.government.bg/en and https://www.aebtri.com/