Unlawful dismissal in Bulgaria: how to challenge it and what you can claim

Iva Petkova, attorney · Updated 17 October 2026 · 6 min

If you believe your employer dismissed you unlawfully, you have only two months to go to court. We explain when a dismissal can be annulled, what you can ask the court for and what to do straight away.

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Dismissal is one of the few situations where Bulgarian law gives the employee a short deadline and strict rules, but also strong protection. The employer needs a lawful ground, must follow a set procedure and, in some cases, must obtain prior permission. If it does not, the court annuls the dismissal. This guide explains how to assess whether your dismissal was lawful and what to do. It covers employees on an employment contract; different rules apply to civil servants.

Grounds on which you can be dismissed

The Labour Code lists exhaustively the cases in which an employer may terminate an employment contract. The most common are:

• with notice (Art. 328): for example, closure of the business or part of it, redundancy (abolition of the position), reduced workload, lack of the qualities needed to do the job effectively, or lack of the required education;
• without notice, as a disciplinary dismissal (Art. 330(2)(6)), where the employer alleges a serious breach of work discipline;
• without notice in other expressly listed cases, for example where you lose the right to practise your profession (Art. 330).

The notice period for an open-ended contract is 30 days, unless a longer period was agreed, but no more than three months (Art. 326(2)). If the employer does not wait for the notice to run, it owes compensation equal to your gross pay for the unexpired part of the notice period (Art. 220(1)).

When a dismissal is unlawful

A dismissal is unlawful if the ground stated in the order does not exist, or if the employer did not follow the procedure required by law. In practice, courts most often annul dismissals where:

• the contract was not terminated in writing (Art. 335(1)), or the order does not make clear what exactly you are accused of;
• in a redundancy, your position was not actually abolished, or the employer did not carry out a selection when it was required to;
• in a disciplinary dismissal, the employer did not hear you or accept your written explanations before imposing the penalty; the court then annuls the dismissal without examining the merits (Art. 193(2));
• the disciplinary penalty was imposed out of time: no later than two months after the breach was discovered and no later than one year after it was committed (Art. 194(1));
• the disciplinary dismissal order gives no reasons and does not state the breach and when it was committed (Art. 195(1)).

Special protection: when permission is required

Some employees can be dismissed on the most commonly used grounds (redundancy, reduced workload, lack of qualities, disciplinary dismissal) only with the prior permission of the labour inspectorate in each individual case (Art. 333(1)). This applies, for example, to a mother of a child under three, an employee reassigned to suitable work on medical grounds, an employee suffering from an illness listed in a regulation, and an employee who has started leave granted to them.

A pregnant employee, or one at an advanced stage of IVF treatment, may be dismissed only on expressly listed grounds, and a disciplinary dismissal again requires the labour inspectorate's permission (Art. 333(5)). If permission was required but was not sought or not given before the dismissal, the court annuls the order on that ground alone (Art. 344(3)).

What you can ask the court for

An employee may challenge a dismissal before the employer or before the court and ask for (Art. 344(1)):

1. a finding that the dismissal was unlawful and its annulment;
2. reinstatement in the previous job;
3. compensation for the period of unemployment caused by the dismissal;
4. correction of the ground for dismissal recorded in the single electronic employment record or other documents.

Compensation for the time without work equals your gross pay, for no more than six months (Art. 225(1)). If in the meantime you worked in a lower-paid job, you are entitled to the difference (Art. 225(2)). It is therefore sensible to register with the labour office and keep documents proving that you were out of work.

The employer may itself revoke the dismissal order until you file a claim. Once the case is filed, it can revoke the order only with your written consent (Art. 344(2)).

The time limit: two months

A claim to annul a dismissal, and the related claims, must be filed within two months (Art. 358(1)(2)). The period runs from the day the employment relationship ended (Art. 358(2)(1)). For a dismissal without notice, that is the day you received the written order; for a dismissal with notice, the day the notice period expires (Art. 335(2)).

The period is short and cannot be extended. If it expires, the court will dismiss the claim without looking at whether the dismissal was lawful. Do not wait for replies to letters to your employer: file the case in time.

How the case proceeds

The case is brought before the district court. Employees pay no court fees or costs up front in claims arising from employment (Art. 83(1)(1) of the Civil Procedure Code). If the claim is dismissed, however, the court may order the employee to pay the employer's costs, including its lawyer's fee (Art. 78(3) CPC). Claims for annulment, reinstatement, compensation and correction of the ground are heard under the accelerated procedure (Art. 310(1)(1) CPC), and the law requires the district court to hear the case within three months, and the regional court within one month of receiving an appeal (Art. 344(4) Labour Code).

In court, the employer has to prove that the dismissal was lawful: that the ground existed and that it followed the procedure. It is therefore important to set out every defect you see already in the statement of claim, and to ask the court to order the employer to produce the documents it holds.

After the judgment: going back to work

If the court reinstates you, you may take up your previous position provided you report for work within two weeks of receiving notice of the reinstatement, unless you miss that period for good reason (Art. 345(1)). If the employer does not let you work, it and the officers responsible owe you your gross pay from the day you reported until you are actually allowed to work (Art. 225(3)).

Payments due even after a lawful dismissal

Whether or not you challenge the dismissal, check that the employer has paid the compensation the law provides. For example, after closure of the business, redundancy or reduced workload, you are entitled to your gross pay for the time without work, for no more than one month (Art. 222(1)). On termination after you have acquired the right to a retirement pension, the compensation is two months' gross pay, or six months' gross pay if you worked for the same employer for ten years during the last twenty (Art. 222(3)).

You have been dismissed: a short checklist

1. Note the date you received the order or the date your notice expires. The two-month period runs from it.
2. Do not sign anything agreeing to the dismissal before reading carefully what you are signing.
3. Gather your employment contract, any amendments, your job description, the dismissal order, any requests for explanations and your replies.
4. Keep your correspondence with the employer, including emails and messages.
5. Register with the labour office if you are out of work.
6. Check whether you are among the protected employees under Article 333 of the Labour Code.
7. Contact a lawyer as early as possible, so there is time to prepare the claim.

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