Bulgarian President Vetoes Amendments to Agricultural Land Act

Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev has returned to Parliament a set of amendments to the Agricultural Land Ownership and Use Act due to clashes with the Constitution and EU law.

The amendments provide that property rights over agricultural land can be obtained by natural or legal persons that have resided or have been registered in Bulgaria for a period of over 5 years, according to the press office of the government.

The legal changes initially envisaged a 3-year period of residence but it was extended to 5 years between the first and second reading stages.

Plevneliev opposes the recent practice of submitting bills without providing an analysis of their compliance with the Bulgarian Constitution and EU law, according to a media statement.

Plevneliev points out that the Constitution envisages different regimes for acquiring title depending on the citizenship of the buyer.

He underscores that the proposed set of amendments replaces the constitutionally-enshrined citizenship requirement with the requirement for a period of residence of 5+ years for acquiring ownership of agricultural land.

Bulgaria's President says that the legal changes introduce an unconstitutional ban preventing Bulgarian citizens from buying agricultural land unless they have resided in Bulgaria for more than 5 years.

"The President cannot possibly agree to the Parliament introducing a ban on Bulgarian citizens acquiring ownership of agricultural land," Plevneliev says, adding that the measure will render over 2 million Bulgarian citizens living abroad unable to acquire title.

The President accuses lawmakers of introducing bans instead of creating conditions which encourage Bulgarians living abroad to...