Bulgaria on a Brazilian Licence — IDP Recommended + a Mandatory Vignette

For a Brazilian driver, Bulgaria flips one rule you are strict about and adds an administrative step you would not meet at home — neither is difficult once you know it is coming.

Can you drive here on a Brazilian licence? Yes. Your licence is accepted, and because Brazil is outside the EU an International Driving Permit is recommended to accompany it as a recognised translation. Carry the IDP with your Brazilian licence and passport. There is no side switch to learn — Bulgaria drives on the right, the same as Brazil.

The first thing to plan is the vignette. Bulgaria runs an e-vignette system for its motorways and main roads — there is no toll booth and nothing to stick on the windscreen, but you must buy one online or at the border before you drive on a tolled road. It is tied to your number plate, so keep the purchase confirmation. Using a motorway without a valid vignette risks a fine, and it is an easy thing to forget if you are used to open roads at home.

The second is alcohol, and here the change runs the other way. Bulgaria allows 0.05 BAC, looser than Brazil’s effectively zero Lei Seca. That extra margin is not an invitation — enforcement is active and the safest line is still zero before driving.

Speed limits are 50 km/h in towns, 90 on rural roads and a fast 140 on motorways, well above the 110 you may be used to in Brazil. Infrastructure is improving, but rural roads can still be rough, so let the surface, not the sign, set your pace. A speeding penalty around 10 km/h over costs about EUR 25.56 (around EUR 25).

Fuel is roughly $1.32 a litre and the emergency number is 112.

Read the full rules in our Bulgaria driving guide, get the toll question straight with our vignette countries guide, and confirm your paperwork with the Driving Permit Checker.

Bulgaria adopted the euro on 1 January 2026. Figures previously published in leva were converted at the fixed statutory rate of 1.95583 leva to the euro.00 to the euro.