A sale, a court hearing, a document from an institution, a company registration, an inheritance file. All of it can be done by someone acting for you, provided the power of attorney is right. The emphasis is on right.
Most powers of attorney sent from abroad do not work. Not because people are careless, but because nobody told them what is actually required.
What this covers
Power of attorney from abroad. Drafting the wording for the specific act you need carried out, and telling you in advance where to have it certified and what else it needs.
Legalisation. Apostille or consular certification, and translation by a sworn translator.
Administration. Dealing with the notary, the courts, the municipality, the Registry Agency, the tax authority and banks.
Documents from a distance. Certificates, searches, and reissuing birth, marriage and death records drawn up abroad.
Personal number for foreigners. Without it, a large part of Bulgarian administration is simply closed to you.
When to instruct a lawyer
Before you go to a notary where you live. Not after.
The usual sequence is the reverse. Someone signs a power of attorney in their own country, sends it, and finds out it cannot be used. Everything then starts again, with a second cost and several weeks lost.
The four reasons a power of attorney fails
Only the signature was certified, while transactions involving property and companies require the content to be certified as well. The apostille or consular certification is missing. The translation was not done by a sworn translator. Or the wording is general and does not cover the specific act.
One thing people get wrong
They assume a broader power of attorney is more convenient.
The opposite is true. A document that grants authority over everything is accepted more reluctantly by institutions and leaves you with no protection. A proper power of attorney is narrow: this act, this property, this period.
If someone has asked you for a general power of attorney covering everything, ask them why.
What you should expect back
You should know, in writing, what has been done at each stage, what comes next, and what is waiting on you. Acting through a representative should not mean losing sight of your own matter.