In 2016, a legislative change was adopted in the Law on Special Pledges (LSP) of the Republic of Bulgaria, according to which the Central Register of Special Pledges (CRSP) was transferred to the Registry Agency, a structure that reports to the Minister of Justice. Until that moment, the CRSP was headed by a director appointed by the Minister of Justice.
The legislative changes, which state that the CRSP is managed by the Registry Agency, are regulated in Chapter V of the LSP. This part of the normative act regulates: the initiation of proceedings; verification of the application; registration; erasure; refusal of entry; appeal against the refusal, etc. It is planned that the CRSP is kept as an electronic database in the Registry Agency.
The change is essential for the organization and work of the CRSP. Modernization and improvement of the information system in the direction of its complete electronification aiming for access to electronic administrative services, including an electronic declaration of submission. The centralization of information about traders and their established chattels and receivables will enable the provision of an extremely wide range of one-stop services to consumers, while also creating guarantees for a secure and transparent contracting environment and performance of credit-related contracts and their collateralization.
In this regard, the Minister of Justice has issued an Ordinance on the maintenance, storage, and access to the CRSP. The regulation defines the content and form of applications and requests for entries and announcements; formats for submitting electronic documents electronically; obligations of the Registry Agency regarding the receipt of electronic applications; providing access to the register, etc. The Ordinance regulates that for each pledger: a buyer under a contract of sale with retention of title until the price is paid; a user under a lease contract; a person on whose property a lien has been imposed – a personal electronic lot is opened containing circumstances and acts entered or announced according to requirements of LSP. A case is conducted on the lot in electronic form, in which applications, documents certifying the entered circumstances, announced acts, decreed refusals and other documents that may also contain personal data are attached. The Registry Agency provides registered access to the mortgagor's file. Access can be granted in the territorial units of the agency after presenting a request and an identity document. The person who requests access electronically should be identified by an electronic signature or by a digital certificate issued by the agency.
The amendments to the LSP provide that public access to the information in the CRSP, via the Internet, will be free of charge, and only for the written inquiries and issuance of certificates made by an employee of the Registry Agency, a state fee will be due. The CRSP is supposed to start functioning under the Registry Agency as of 1 July 2023.