Travel & Visa Info

There are many different requirements to obtain a Visa to enter a country. Most embassies may request an 'Invitation Letter' from the Conference Organizing Committee to verify that the exact person is going to participate in that specific conference (That is why, please DO NOT forget to write down your exact Passport number while filling out your PROFILE). It may also be necessary to verify that the requester has paid the registration fee in full. Therefore there are some requirements for providing an 'Invitation Letter' to be used for visa application.

'Invitation letters' should only be issued to:

• Attendees who have made their complete Registration at the conference website and paid their Registration fee in full;
• Committee members.

Visa applications are currently subject to a greater degree of scrutiny than in the past. Many applicants may be required to appear in person for an interview as a part of the visa process. Applicants affected by these procedures are informed of the need for additional screening at the time they submit their application and are advised to expect delays. Therefore, attendees should be advised to apply no later than 1 month prior to the conference.

All questions concerning your visa application status should be pointed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the respective Bulgarian Embassy in your country or/and to the Bulgarian Diplomatic Missions Abroad /more info here/

There are 5 international airports in Bulgaria and two of them are very close to the SGEM Conference Center.
The biggest Bulgarian airport is Sofia Airport and the closest is Varna Airport.

The international airports of Varna and Bourgas are used for international flights, as well as for local flights from Sofia and for charter flights during the summer, serving the beach resorts on the Black Sea coast.

• Sofia (capital city) the biggest airport - www.sofia-airport.bg
  phone: +359 2/ 937 22 11
  +359 2/ 937 22 12
  +359 2/ 937 22 13
• Varna airport (the nearest airport to the Conference SGEM venue) - www.varna-airport.bg
  phone: +359 52/ 57 33 23
• Bourgas airport - www.bourgas-airport.com
  phone: +359 56/ 84 26 31

BORDER CROSSING POINTS YOU CAN USE FOR ENTERING IN BULGARIA BY CAR
Bulgarian - Serbian Border, Kalotina - Motorway E-6, Vrushka Chuka - Belgrad-Zajcar-Koulata-Sofia Motorway, Strejimirovci - Tran-Silistra E-6, Otomansi;
Bulgarian - Macedonian Border, Gyueshevo - Sofia-Kyustendil-Skopje Motorway, Stanke Lisichkovo - Stip-Delchevo-Blagoevgrad-Sofia Motorway, Zlatarevo - Strumica-Petrich-Sofia Motorway;
Bulgarian - Greek Border, Koulata - Motorway E-20, Novo Selo - Motorway E-80;
Bulgarian - Turkish Border, Kapitan Andreevo - Motorway E-5, Malko Turnovo - Motorway E-95;
Bulgarian - Romanian Border, Rousse - Motorway E-97, Kardam - Constanta-Dobrich-Kula Motorway 14, Durankulak - Motorway E-95, Silistra – Motorway 7.