Bulgarian Foreign Ministry: Bulgaria and the US establish enhanced partnership in border security

Bulgaria and the US are establishing an enhanced partnership in the field of border security - an important step towards Bulgaria's inclusion in the US Visa Waiver Programme, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said.

Caretaker Foreign Minister, Ivan Kondov, met with U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria Kenneth Merten at the MFA today. Ambassador Merten conveyed congratulations from the U.S. Embassy and personally on the successful completion of Bulgaria’s full integration into the Schengen Area. Merten presented gifts from the village of Schengen in Luxembourg to Minister Kondov.

The Bulgarian Foreign Minister expressed his gratitude for the congratulations and used the occasion to present the US Ambassador with a diplomatic note informing him that the Bulgarian Government has approved the establishment of an enhanced partnership in the field of border security between Bulgaria and the United States. This step fulfills one of the most important technical conditions for Bulgaria’s inclusion in the U.S. Visa Waiver Programme and completes the legal framework necessary for future inclusion.

This is the lowest level in the last 18 years and, together with the enhanced partnership, represents a major achievement for Bulgaria and an important indicator of the progress in the work of Bulgarian institutions to meet the criteria for inclusion in the US Visa Waiver Program.

The establishment of a strengthened partnership in the field of border security between Bulgaria and the US comes just days after the U.S. State Department released data for fiscal year 2024, showing that the refusal rate for Bulgarian tourist visas dropped to 6.02%, down from 11.61% in 2023. This is the lowest rate in the past 18 years and, along with the enhanced partnership, represents a major achievement for Bulgaria and an important indicator of the progress in the work of Bulgarian institutions to meet the criteria for inclusion in the US Visa Waiver Programme.

In this process,a few additional technical criteria remain to be met, including reducing the visa refusal rate for Bulgarian tourists to below 3% by 2025.