Many people in Bulgaria own properties as an inheritance from their parents/grandparents. When it comes to inherited land properties with existing massive buildings constructed in the 20th century, a common hypothesis (especially in the smaller towns and villages) is that the buildings in question formally have an illegal status.
What does it mean for a building to have an illegal status?
Buildings that are constructed without approved architectural projects and/or a valid building permit are illegal structures according to the Bulgarian law.
IMPORTANT! The presence of a building in the cadaster does not change its illegal status. The fact that your building has been entered in the cadastral map and cadastral registers and has a separate identifier does not make it legal. Having an opened tax lot for a building in the municipality does not change its illegal status, as well. Even if you pay local taxes to the municipality, this fact does not make the building legal.
What negative consequences can arise from owning an illegal building?
There could be various negative consequences arising from the fact that one building is illegal.
Impossibility for transferring the ownership of the building to a third party.
First of all, illegal buildings cannot be transferred to third parties, regardless of the type of transaction (sale, donation, partition, exchange, etc.). Notaries are not allowed to execute notary deeds with such buildings.
Impossibility to obtain compensation in case of alienation.
There are legal hypotheses under which the state/municipality may alienate private land for the implementation of public interest events. In these cases, the alienated property is evaluated at its market value and the owner is paid an equivalent compensation. However, this does not apply regarding illegal buildings. No compensation is paid for the alienation of such buildings.
Risk of forced removal of the building.
When there is an illegal building, the construction control officials could issue orders for the removal/demolition of the latter entirely at the owner’s expense, as well as impose a fine/penalty.
What the tolerance certificate represents?
The tolerance certificate is an individual administrative act that transforms an “illegal construction” into a “tolerable construction” if the latter meets certain regulatory requirements, which will be discussed below in the article.
IMPORTANT! It should be made clear that the “tolerable status” acquired by virtue of a tolerance certificate does not mean “legalization” of the building. The current Bulgarian legislation does not allow legalization of illegal buildings.
What are the benefits from obtaining a tolerance certificate?
Obtaining a tolerance certificate eliminates the negative consequences typical for illegal constructions that we have described in the article above. In particular: you will now be able to dispose with the tolerable building as you see fit (sell, donate, divide and replace it); you will be able to obtain compensation for the building in the event of alienation of the land plot on which it was built; and, as long as the tolerance certificate is in force, you will have the security and the peace of mind that your building will not be subject to forceable removal by the building control authorities.
What conditions does my building have to meet to get a tolerable status?
There are several basic requirements that must be present at the same time in order a certificate of tolerance to be issued, in particular:
– the building must have been built by 31.03.2001 at the latest;
– the building must not be subject of a forceable removal procedure;
– your building must have been permissible according to the plans, rules and regulations at the time of its construction or according to the current building requirements in the Spatial Development Act and its implementing regulations.
The procedure for obtaining a certificate of tolerance is complex and multi-layered, requiring the obtaining of number of different types of documents. In case you are interested in carrying out such a procedure regarding an illegal building that you own, you can contact Atty. Dilyan Kolev for providing you the needed legal assistance.