Issuing authority and document: Bulgaria is not a party to the Strasbourg Agreement on the Transfer of Corpses, so Bulgarian rules apply. According to a Bulgarian public-consultation document (a draft), the permit to take remains or an urn out of the country is issued by the Regional Health Inspectorates (RZI); the mortuary passport is, as a rule, issued by an embassy or consulate of the Republic of Moldova.
Transport: By air or by road. The mode of transport and the handover point in Moldova are agreed with the family case by case, depending on the city, the documents and the route.
Timing: We confirm the timeline once we have the documents. It depends on the local authorities, the Moldovan consulate where it is involved, and the transport available.
Price: Body (repatriation of remains): from 700 €
Ashes (urn): from 700 €

Country status under the 1973 Strasbourg Agreement on the Transfer of Corpses: per the Council of Europe list (archived 20.05.2014) and the Netherlands treaty database; checked 11.10.2026.

Procedure

Bulgaria does not appear among the parties to the Strasbourg Agreement, neither in the Council of Europe table (status of 2014) nor in the Dutch treaty database. A single laissez-passer is therefore not enough: Bulgarian rules and Moldovan requirements apply together.

A Bulgarian public-consultation document on Ordinance No. 2 of 2011 states that the permit to take remains or an urn out of the country is issued by the Regional Health Inspectorate (RZI). It is a draft, so in each case we confirm the competent office and the current list. The mortuary passport is, as a rule, issued by the Moldovan embassy in Sofia. We coordinate the offices, so that you do not have to go through them one by one.

Required documents

Usually needed: the Bulgarian death certificate, the identity document of the deceased, the documents of the person applying, the health inspectorate permit and the certificates of the funeral service. Bulgaria is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, and it is not on the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs list (last updated in 2017) of states whose documents are accepted without an apostille, so Bulgarian documents are, as a rule, submitted with an apostille. We check each document.

Specifics

If the family chooses cremation: UK government guidance of November 2024 says the only crematorium in Bulgaria is in Sofia, and we confirm the current situation before planning the route. For an urn the rules differ from those for a body, and the Strasbourg Agreement does not apply to ashes. The Moldovan embassy in Sofia handles consular matters; we agree the details together.

Frequently asked questions

Who issues the permit to take the body out of Bulgaria?

According to a public-consultation document on Ordinance No. 2 of 2011, the Regional Health Inspectorates (RZI). It is a draft, so in each case we check the competent office and the current list.

Do Bulgarian documents need an apostille for Moldova?

As a rule, yes. Bulgaria is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, and the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs list (last updated in 2017) does not place it among the states whose documents are accepted without one. The list is old, so we check each document.

Is Bulgaria a party to the Strasbourg Agreement?

We did not find it among the parties, neither in the Council of Europe table (status of 2014) nor in the Dutch treaty database (checked in October 2026). Bulgarian rules therefore apply, and the mortuary passport is, as a rule, issued by the Moldovan embassy.

Can cremation take place in Bulgaria and the urn be brought to Moldova?

Yes, if the family chooses cremation. UK government guidance of November 2024 names a single crematorium in Bulgaria, in Sofia, and we confirm the current situation. For an urn the rules differ from those for a body, and we confirm the documents for your case.

Other countries

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Repatriation from Bulgaria to Moldova