Category: blog

Romania and Bulgaria postponed for entering the Schengen area

Mina Boycheva 20/12/2013

The Interior Minister of Germany declared that now it is not the right time for Romania and Bulgaria to become part of the travel free zone of Schengen. Mr. Hans-Peter Friedrich confirmed that the two countries are making progress, but the situation is such that the border controls for the two countries should still remain. According to the Interior Minister, the progress of Romania and Bulgaria as far as the Schengen application is concerned is appreciated but still not sufficient so that to meet all legal conditions that should be applied and that which allow for Romania and Bulgaria to enter the Schengen visa free travel area.

The Interior Minister of Germany declared that now it is not the right time for Romania and Bulgaria to become part of the travel free zone of Schengen. Mr. Hans-Peter Friedrich confirmed that the two countries are making progress, but the situation is such that the border controls for the two countries should still remain.

At the same time the official representative of Germany stated that he is not in the position of estimating how much more time would Romania and Bulgaria need and when will be the right and good moment for the Romania and Bulgaria to join the Schengen zone. The two countries are waiting to join the passport free no border area of Schengen after being members of the European Union for seven years already. Until now the joining of the two countries have been blocked at several occasions by different member states of the European Union.

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Sofia office market revived by the outsourcing and IT companies

Mina Boycheva 16/12/2013

For two years in a row the Sofia office market is driven by the companies from the IT sphere and the outsourcing area. These are the main companies that show interest in the office premises in Sofia and have rented the largest number of offices in the first three quarters of year 2013. The country and especially its capital Sofia is attracting the attention of the international companies which are oriented towards customer support and business processes. These companies open offices in Sofia as they are tempted by the low levels of expenses for labor, taxes and rental prices. This is good for Bulgaria, since these companies are hiring local people and are offering good working conditions.

For two years in a row the Sofia office market is driven by the companies from the IT sphere and the outsourcing area. These are the main companies that show interest in the office premises in Sofia and have rented the largest number of offices in the first three quarters of year 2013.

In the recent years however, the construction of offices of class A has decreased and the number of new luxurious offices that are completed has dropped. At the same time, this brought to an investment activity. The ten office projects of the highest class in Sofia are attracting the attention of the greatest number of the companies which are looking for an office to rent. That is why the available office premises in this ten office buildings in Sofia is decreasing and the available office premise there is just 12 %. Hopefully, the construction companies will take note of that and will start new business projects for construction of Sofia offices of the highest class.

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Bulgaria will cooperate with Romania over Schengen

Mina Boycheva 16/12/2013

The speaker of the Bulgarian parliament and the Chamber of Deputies President has agreed on a parliamentary cooperation between Bulgaria and Romania concerning the issues of Schengen accession of the two countries. This cooperation process includes meetings on a regular basis of the committees that are in charge of the Schengen accession which will be in charge of presenting clear and common statements that concern the application of the two countries to enter the visa free travel area of Schengen. According to the speaker of the Bulgarian parliament and the Prime Minister of Romania, the bilateral cooperation is a necessity that will add to the governmental partnership process between the two countries.

The speaker of the Bulgarian parliament and the Chamber of Deputies President has agreed on a parliamentary cooperation between Bulgaria and Romania concerning the issues of Schengen accession of the two countries.

The two representatives of the Bulgarian and the Romanian authorities stated that the two countries have fulfilled the technical criteria as requested and have implemented the required commitments that concern the border control and the security of the two countries. According to the Prime Minister of Romania the process of postponing the entry of Romania and Bulgaria in the Schengen agreement zone is humiliating and unacceptable. The speaker of the Bulgarian parliament further spoke about the upcoming meeting and police cooperation between the Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia – a step that will be approved by the European Commission as a declaration for the strict security processes in the three countries and in the European Union in general. Romania and Bulgaria hope to enter the Schengen agreement in 2014, since they will join efforts and will not allow being opposed to one another as until that moment.

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Sofia offices: from July to September

Mina Boycheva 10/12/2013

The trend of activity on the office market in Sofia that was valid for the first six months of the year, continued during the third quarter of 2013 as well. At the end of September, the number of the deals and contracts that were signed reached the total number of all rental office deals for the previous year. The tendency with the rental of offices is for larger number of deals for a smaller amount of money. The total amount of the recently rented offices from class A and B in the third quarter of the year have reached 16 500 sq.m., which is a decrease of 15 % compared to the second quarter. The total amount of all Sofia office premises of class A and class B for the first nine months of 2013 reached almost 50 000 sq.m.

In the first six months of the year the number of the available office premises from class A in Sofia that correspond to the requirements and the international qualifications have dropped from 21% to 14%.

In the first six months of the year the number of the available office premises from class A in Sofia that correspond to the requirements and the international qualifications have dropped from 21% to 14%. As there is a significant interest towards this type of office premises, it is expected the number of the available office premises of class A to drop even further by the end of the year. The major international companies that are opening offices in Sofia show interest towards the areas around Bulgaria Blvd. and Tsarigradsko Schousse Blvd., Sofia Airport region and the ring road. The average rental levels in the office market segment remain stable and this tendency is expected to proceed.

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Bulgaria into Schengen is not a priority for the Greek EU presidency

Mina Boycheva 10/12/2013

The Greek Ambassador in the European Union, Mr. Teodoris Sotiropoulos informed the media in Bulgaria that the inclusion of Romania and Bulgaria and thus the enlargement of the Schengen Area will not be among the priority task during the upcoming presidency of Greece of the European Union. The Greek Ambassador further stated that the two countries should not expect for common measures to be introduced that concern the limitation of the access to the labor markets in the European Union.

The Greek Ambassador in the European Union, Mr. Teodoris Sotiropoulos informed the media in Bulgaria that the inclusion of Romania and Bulgaria and thus the enlargement of the Schengen Area will not be among the priority task during the upcoming presidency of Greece of the European Union.

Mr. Teodoris Sotiropoulos further stated that he hopes that soon the member countries of the Schengen area will reach an agreement for the enlargement of the travel free zone and that they will set up a plan for this to happen. In 2012 several countries opposed to the expansion of the Schengen area and inclusion of the two new countries – Bulgaria and Romania, even after it was proven that they are technically ready to enter the passport free area. Among these countries were France and the Netherlands. At the same time some Bulgaria analysts comment that the crises with the great number of refugees currently in the country will decrease the chance of Bulgaria to enter the Schengen travel zone.

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Sofia offices: from January to June

Mina Boycheva 02/12/2013

During the first six months of year 2013, the office market in Sofia showed a slight increase and the total area of office premises that were offered almost reached 1 700 000 sq.m. The completed office buildings in Sofia during 2013 added approximately 35 000 sq.m more, most of which being placed in the outskirts of the Bulgarian capital. The greatest number of modern office premises of class A is to be found in the southeastern part of the capital, near the ring road, followed by the downtown and then by the central city zone. During the first six months of the year is registered an increased activity in the office rental practices. The office premises that have been rented cover approximately 76 000 sq.m, which is up with 45 % compared to the figures at the end of the previous year.

The office market in Sofia is driven by the new companies that are emerging on the market and the expansion of the activities of the existing companies which are already operating in Bulgaria.

The office market in Sofia is driven by the new companies that are emerging on the market and the expansion of the activities of the existing companies which are already operating in Bulgaria. The most active are the companies from the spheres that were not that affected by the financial situation in the past few years including companies working in the spheres of trade, software production and pharmacy. The companies are mainly interested in large office premises with reasonable monthly rentals and functional distribution of the interior area. Great attention is also paid to the good transport connections. Currently, the city of Sofia features 18 projects of class A, which are completed and correspond to the requirements of the international qualifications for office buildings of the highest class A. The highest percentage of rented offices in these buildings, testify for potential shortage of that type of office space in the near future.

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EC confirms Bulgaria will not join Schengen in January 2014

Mina Boycheva 02/12/2013

The president of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso declared that the passport-free travel area of Schengen will not open for Bulgaria and Romania in January 2014. In his interview for the television station TF1 in France in the mid November, Jose Barroso stated the expansion of the Schengen no visa area will be postponed as the issue was intermingled with various other issues concerning the immigration. Barroso confirmed that Romania and Bulgaria have fulfilled the technical criteria required but are still outside the Schengen zone as some of the EU member states opposed to that expansion of the Schengen zone and there was no unanimity among the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council members. Romania and Bulgaria have undergone the seven year transitional period after joining the European Union.

The president of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso declared that the passport-free travel area of Schengen will not open for Bulgaria and Romania in January 2014.

He further expressed a fear that the situation is such that the authorities of all countries should be careful not to provoke extremist movements. According to the president of the European Commission, the membership of Bulgaria in the European Union helped the country into setting various important reforms. Jose Manuel Barroso further confirmed that with the start of year 2014 and according to the European Union accession treaties and laws, the labor market in Europe will have to open for the citizens of Bulgaria and Romania as well.

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The foreign service call centers activate the office market in Sofia

Mina Boycheva 28/11/2013

The office market in Sofia is driven by the foreign call centers that have relocated to the Bulgarian capital. These investors and owners of these call centers are interested in high-quality office buildings in good areas of the city with fast and easy access. The rental levels vary from 8 to 12 Euro/sq.m, mainly depending on the location and the number of the available amenities. The rental market of Sofia offices is powered by the interest of the different foreign companies as well as several large domestic companies. The key clients on the Sofia office market horizon are the business process outsourcing companies and the stable and well-developing IT companies. Even so, the interest towards available Sofia premises remains below the levels before the crises.

During the third quarter of 2013 in Sofia city were rented more than 20 000 sq.m of office premises, which marks an increase of 13% compared to the same period last year.

During the third quarter of 2013 in Sofia city were rented more than 20 000 sq.m of office premises, which marks an increase of 13% compared to the same period last year. Since there are a few office rental deals that are currently being arranged, it is possible that the total number of the rented office premises for 2013 to be more than 100 000 sq.m. More than 80% of all offices that have been rented were actually taken by companies which are increasing their business. The most serious rental deal for an office in Sofia during the last three months was the one with the technology company Comverse. This company rented an office of 2500 sq,m placed in Serdika Offices building. However, this is an exclusive deal, since most of the companies are renting office of 600 – 700 sq.m. of area.

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The Foreign Minister of Bulgaria confirms Bulgaria is ready for Schengen

Mina Boycheva 28/11/2013

During a meeting in Paris, the Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, Mr. Kristian Vigenin, confirmed in front of his French colleague Laurent Fabius that his country Bulgaria is ready to join the passport-free Schengen area. He claimed that Bulgaria has fulfilled all requirements in the proper way. At the same time, the Foreign Minister of France expressed the reluctance of his country to accept Romania and Bulgaria as part of the visa free zone.

Mr. Kristian Vigenin stated that his country has put a lot of efforts into integrating its Roma population and showed eagerness to work together with France in order to solve the problem with the population of Bulgarian Roma in France. The Foreign Minister of Bulgaria confirmed that the government is willing to have a strategic partnership with France including trade and French investments in Bulgaria. He also stated that Bulgaria is in need of support from France in order to deal with the refugee wave that is coming from Syria. At the same time the French Minister showed his positive attitude towards the invitation that was given to him and to the President of France Francois Hollande to visit Bulgaria for the 135th anniversary marking the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

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Sofia office rental prices remain the same

Mina Boycheva 21/11/2013

The number of the available Sofia offices is decreasing but even so the available office premises in the Bulgarian capital are still around 15 %. That is why the rental levels remain stable and vary between 9 and 12 Euro/sq.m depending on the exact location and level of facilities in the office building. Sofia city has a quickly developing office market and the prognoses are that soon the percentage of the available office premises will drop, if the political and economic situation in the country remains stable.

The real estate specialists think that Bulgaria has released only half of its potential for new office premises.

The real estate specialists think that Bulgaria has released only half of its potential for new office premises. This, however, does not mean that there is room for any large office projects to be constructed in Sofia in the next few years. At the same time, the office market during the last two years in Sofia was driven by large international companies which are looking to outsource their business in Bulgaria and especially in Sofia. These companies are interested in modern office buildings in Sofia with good location, parking zone and easy access via the public transport system of the city. Offices in Sofia, which are placed in areas that are not appealing and with fast and convenient access, are not in the focus of the foreign companies that are outsourcing their business in the country.

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