Police Questioning in Bulgaria: Your Rights and What to Do
If the police ask you to attend a police station in Bulgaria, first establish why you are being called and in what capacity you will be questioned. A witness and an accused person do not have the same obligations. A police summons by itself does not mean that you have been charged.
If there is any realistic possibility that the questions concern your own conduct, do not treat your procedural status as a technical detail. Ask whether you are being questioned as a witness or as an accused person, keep the summons or other document, and consider speaking to a Bulgarian criminal defence lawyer before giving a detailed account or signing an interview record.
What should you check before going to the police?
- Who has contacted you? Note the police authority, investigator or prosecutor named in the document or call.
- Why are you being asked to attend? Look for a case number and, most importantly, the capacity in which you are being summoned.
- When and where must you attend? Keep the original summons and note the date, time and address.
- Is questioning expected? If so, find out whether you are being treated as a witness or as an accused person.
- Do you need an interpreter? If you cannot follow Bulgarian accurately, say so before substantive questioning begins.
Does a police summons mean you have been accused of a crime?
No. Being summoned to a police station does not by itself make you an accused person. You may be called as a witness because the authorities believe you know something relevant to an investigation. You may also be asked to attend in connection with another procedural step.
However, a summons should not be treated casually. If you have been formally summoned as a witness, Article 120 of the Bulgarian Criminal Procedure Code generally requires you to attend and give truthful evidence, subject to the statutory exceptions. Failure to attend without a valid reason can lead to a fine and compulsory attendance.
The practical point is this: do not try to work out your legal position merely from the fact that “the police want to speak to you”. Ask in what capacity you are being called and what procedure the interview is part of.
Witness
You are generally required to attend when formally summoned and to answer truthfully, but you have specific protections, including against self-incrimination.
Accused person
You have a right to a defence lawyer and may refuse to answer questions or give an account of the allegation.
What are your rights if you are questioned as a witness?
A witness does not have to face a Bulgarian police interview without legal assistance. Under Article 122(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code, a witness has the right to attend questioning with a lawyer. A witness may also ask to consult a lawyer where answering a question could affect the protection against self-incrimination in Article 121.
A witness is normally required to tell the truth and answer relevant questions. That does not mean you should guess. If you do not remember, say that you do not remember. If you are not certain, make that clear. Distinguish what you personally saw or heard from what somebody else later told you.
Some close relatives of the accused — including a spouse, ascendants, descendants, brothers and sisters, and a person living with the accused as a partner — may refuse to testify under Article 119.
What if a question could incriminate you?
A witness is not required to answer a question if the answer could incriminate the witness or certain close family members in a criminal offence. That protection is in Article 121. It is not a general right for every witness to refuse the whole interview, but it is a very important limit on the duty to answer questions.
New safeguard since June 2026
Bulgarian law now deals expressly with the situation in which a person starts an interview as a witness but their answers begin to incriminate them personally. Since the amendments published in State Gazette No. 59 of 30 June 2026, Article 139 requires the authority conducting the interview to stop the questioning when this happens and explain the relevant rights.
The witness must be told, in understandable language, that the evidence being given is incriminating them in a specific offence. The authority must explain the protection against self-incrimination, the right to a lawyer, the possibility of legal aid and the right to interpretation and translation where the witness does not speak Bulgarian.
If the witness exercises the relevant right to legal assistance, the lawyer may meet the witness privately and, in the circumstances set out in Article 139, may ask questions, seek clarification and make requests, comments and objections. The procedural steps must be recorded in the interview record.
For an English-speaking client, the practical message is straightforward: if a witness interview turns into questions about your own possible criminal conduct, do not assume that you must simply continue answering because you originally entered the room as a witness.
What changes if you are questioned as an accused person?
If you are formally an accused person, you may refuse to answer questions about the allegation. Exercising the right to remain silent is not an admission of guilt.
Before questioning, you should know the accusation you are facing and have the opportunity to exercise your defence rights. You may speak privately with your lawyer. If you choose to give an account, your lawyer can advise you about the allegation and participate in the procedural action in accordance with the Code.
There is no sensible universal rule that an accused person should always speak immediately or should always remain silent. The decision depends on the charge, what evidence is known, what documents have been served and what the defence needs to achieve at that stage.
For the procedure after a formal charge, see Criminal Charges in Bulgaria: What Happens Next.
Can a lawyer attend police questioning in Bulgaria?
Yes, but the legal basis depends on your status.
An accused person has the right to a defence lawyer and to private communication with that lawyer. If the person has been detained, access to legal assistance arises from the outset of the detention procedure.
A witness also has an express right under Article 122(2) to attend questioning with a lawyer. Where self-incrimination becomes an issue, the 2026 rules strengthen the safeguards further and give the lawyer an active role in the circumstances described above.
If you want legal assistance, say so before substantive questioning begins. If you have been contacted at short notice, you do not need to obtain the whole case file before speaking to a lawyer; the summons, the authority involved and the reason given for the interview are enough for an initial assessment.
What if you do not speak Bulgarian?
Do not try to manage a formal criminal-procedure interview through guesswork or conversational Bulgarian if you cannot understand the questions and record accurately.
Under Article 142, a witness who does not speak Bulgarian is questioned with an interpreter. An accused person who does not understand Bulgarian also has rights to interpretation and, for specified important documents, written translation under Article 55.
An English-speaking lawyer and an interpreter perform different roles. Your lawyer advises and represents you; the interpreter enables communication with the authority. Speaking English with your lawyer does not remove your right to an interpreter where the law provides one.
What should you check before signing the interview record?
Read the record before you sign it. The important question is not whether it is “mostly correct”, but whether it accurately records the substance of what you said.
- Check names, dates, places, times and figures.
- Make sure qualifications such as “I do not remember” or “I am not certain” have not disappeared.
- Check whether a long answer has been shortened in a way that changes its meaning.
- Ask for inaccuracies or omissions to be corrected before signing.
- If you do not read Bulgarian, make sure you understand the document through the proper interpretation or translation arrangements before confirming it.
A signature confirming the contents of an interview record can matter later. Do not sign merely because somebody tells you that it is a routine formality.
What about an “informal” conversation with the police?
The word “informal” does not itself tell you the legal significance of the conversation. A casual exchange is not automatically the same thing as a formal witness interview or the questioning of an accused person, but you should not assume that anything said to the police is irrelevant simply because no formal interview record has yet been placed in front of you.
If the conversation moves from basic identification or practical arrangements to detailed questions about conduct that could expose you to criminal liability, clarify your status and consider obtaining legal advice before continuing.
If you have already been detained, the position is more urgent because detention brings additional safeguards and deadlines. Start from the English-language criminal-law page at Criminal Lawyer in Sofia, Bulgaria – Legal Assistance in English.
If the questioning concerns drink or drug driving, see Drink and Drug Driving in Bulgaria: Tests, Charges and Legal Consequences.
Frequently asked questions
Does a police summons mean I have been charged?
No. You may be called as a witness or for another procedural reason. A summons does not by itself give you the formal status of an accused person. Establish your capacity before substantive questioning begins.
Do I have to attend if I am summoned as a witness?
As a general rule, yes. Article 120 requires a witness to attend when formally summoned. Failure to attend without a valid reason can lead to a fine and compulsory attendance. The duty to attend does not remove the witness's separate rights, including the protection against self-incrimination.
Can a witness take a lawyer to the police interview?
Yes. Article 122(2) expressly allows a witness to attend questioning with a lawyer. A witness may also consult a lawyer where answering a question may engage the protection against self-incrimination.
Can a witness refuse a self-incriminating question?
Yes. Article 121 provides that a witness is not required to answer questions where the answer could incriminate the witness or specified close family members in a criminal offence. That is different from a general right to refuse every question.
What happens if I start incriminating myself while being questioned as a witness?
Since the 2026 amendments, Article 139 requires the authority to stop the questioning and explain the relevant rights if a witness begins giving evidence that incriminates them in a specific offence. Those safeguards include the protection against self-incrimination and rights concerning a lawyer, legal aid and language assistance.
Can I remain silent if I am an accused person?
Yes. An accused person may refuse to answer questions or give an account of the allegation. Silence is not an admission of guilt. You should still comply with lawful summonses and other valid procedural requirements.
Will I get an interpreter if I do not speak Bulgarian?
A witness who does not speak Bulgarian is questioned with an interpreter under Article 142. An accused person who does not understand Bulgarian also has rights to interpretation and, for specified important documents, written translation.
Should I sign the interview record if I do not understand it?
Do not confirm a record whose contents you do not understand. Make sure the document has been properly explained or translated, check that it accurately reflects what you said and raise corrections before signing.
Legal sources and scope of review
Legal review updated on .
- Bulgarian Criminal Procedure Code — official text: Articles 55, 115, 119–123, 139–142 and 219.
- State Gazette No. 59 of 30 June 2026 — amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code: new safeguards where a witness begins to incriminate themselves during questioning.
Legal note: This guide explains the ordinary position for police questioning within Bulgarian criminal proceedings. The correct advice depends on why you have been called, your procedural status, whether you have been detained or formally charged, the document served on you, the questions being asked and the stage of the investigation.