Perpetum vs Deel vs Remote vs Oyster: EOR Comparison for Bulgaria

Year-one figures are 12 × the published monthly fee, excluding salary and the 18.92% employer social contributions, which every provider bills at cost. “Prices on request” means the vendor’s page offers the item without publishing a price. Bulgaria adopted the euro on 1 January 2026. The maximum monthly insurable income rose to €2,300 on 1 August 2026.

Before you sign with any provider, us included, ask for these in writing: the exit fee, how long a deposit takes to come back, what it costs to move your employee to your own entity or another provider, and whether the contract terms can be changed.

Sources, checked 26 October 2026: Deel pricing, Deel Bulgaria page, Remote pricing, Remote Bulgaria page, Oyster pricing, Oyster Bulgaria guide, Perpetum Employer of Record.

What does an employer of record in Bulgaria really cost?

Price alone won’t settle an EOR Bulgaria comparison, but it matters. Take five employees for a year, fees only. Perpetum Core is $23,940 (€20,940). Perpetum Plus is $32,340 (€28,740), with private health insurance, a Sports and Wellness access card and life and disability insurance already included. Deel is $35,940 before any benefits. Remote is $41,940 on monthly billing or $35,940 on annual billing, and Oyster is $41,940, both before benefits.

That excludes salary and statutory costs, which are the same whoever employs your team member: employer contributions of 18.92% for most office roles, capped at €2,300 of monthly salary since 1 August 2026, and a 10% flat income tax. Bulgarian employers also pay for occupational health, a risk assessment and labour-safety insurance. Perpetum includes these in both tiers; Deel lists them as estimated costs on top. Our Bulgaria payroll costs guide has the line-by-line maths.

Where do global platforms win?

On coverage and software. Deel lists EOR in 130+ countries, Oyster in 120+ and Remote in 90+. All three offer a platform and an API, and Remote and Oyster list HRIS integrations such as HiBob and BambooHR. Remote and Oyster both state they own a legal entity in Bulgaria. If you’re hiring in five countries this year, one contract and one dashboard will serve you better than a set of local providers.

Where does Perpetum win, and where doesn’t it?

We win on Bulgaria. Both our tiers cost less than the global platforms’ base fee, and Plus includes the benefits they sell as extras. Our payroll and legal team sits in Sofia and works only on Bulgarian employment, so the contribution cap, the minimum wage and the euro switch are current on day one. Your team member gets local help too: employment certificates for a bank or a loan, documents for school and kindergarten, child tax-relief paperwork.

You get a named account manager with a direct line, and on Plus, priority same-day handling. Our MSA and SOW go to your legal team for comments before you sign. You can leave with 30 days’ notice and no exit fee, and we move your employee to your own entity or another provider at no cost. We’ve run our own Bulgarian entity, South Gate Tech EOOD, since 2018, hiring and employing people for US, UK and EU clients.

We lose on software and reach. There’s no client platform, so you get contracts, payslips and a person, not a dashboard. Outside Bulgaria, delivery runs through partners. If you need HRIS sync or one contract for many countries, choose a global platform.

Looking for a Deel alternative in Bulgaria?

Deel is a sensible default: broad, month-to-month, platform-rich. The case for a Deel alternative in Bulgaria is specific. You’re hiring in one country, you want benefits priced into the fee rather than quoted on request, you want a named person who knows Bulgarian payroll, and your lawyer wants to comment on the contract. Ask any provider, us included, to name the Bulgarian employing entity in writing before you sign.

So which EOR fits your Bulgaria hire?

• Hiring in many countries, or need HRIS sync: Deel, Remote or Oyster.
• One Bulgarian team member or a growing team, and you want benefits included: Perpetum EOR Plus, with private health insurance, a Sports and Wellness access card and life and disability insurance in the fee.
• You need the search as well: Perpetum’s Turnkey EOR, which adds Recruitment to either EOR tier.
• Freelancers, not employees: compare contractor management. Perpetum is €49 per month, Deel $49 and Remote $29. Deel’s and Remote’s higher-priced Contractor of Record plans shift liability, so they aren’t like-for-like. See Contractor of Record.
• A team you’ll want to own later: Build-Operate-Transfer. We build and run the team first, then help you open your Bulgarian entity, set up legal operations, make your first key hires and find an office, and transfer the team to you.

Choose Deel, Remote or Oyster if you hire in many countries, need HRIS sync or want one dashboard. You’re paying for reach and software. Choose Perpetum if your team is in Bulgaria: a lower flat fee on both tiers, benefits included in Plus, payroll and legal in Sofia, a named account manager, contract terms you can comment on, and our own Bulgarian entity, South Gate Tech EOOD. The trade-off is plain: no client platform, and partner delivery outside Bulgaria.

Whoever you shortlist, get the Bulgarian employing entity’s name, the full fee list and the exit and transfer terms in writing before you sign. See our Bulgaria hiring guide for the local detail, or talk to Perpetum about Employer of Record in Bulgaria. If a global platform fits you better, we’ll tell you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a legal entity to hire in Bulgaria?

No. You can hire employees without a local entity through an employer of record, which employs them on its own Bulgarian entity and handles the contract, payroll and compliance while you direct the work. Perpetum uses South Gate Tech EOOD.

How much does an EOR cost in Bulgaria?

Published fees run from €349 / $399 per employee per month (Perpetum Core) to $699 (Remote and Oyster on monthly billing). Perpetum Plus is €479 / $539 with private health insurance, a Sports and Wellness access card and life and disability insurance included. Deel is $599, and Remote is $599 on annual billing, with benefits extra. Salary and employer contributions of 18.92% for most office roles, capped at €2,300 of monthly salary, come on top at every provider.

What’s the difference between EOR and Contractor of Record?

An EOR makes the person an employee with a local employment contract. A Contractor of Record engages and pays a freelancer under a compliant contract. Use Contractor of Record for freelancers and EOR for employees.

Can an EOR also recruit for me?

Some can. Perpetum runs recruitment and employment under one agreement through Turnkey EOR. Deel sells separate hiring software, Remote has a separate Recruit product, and Oyster’s pricing page lists no recruiting product.

Who pays Bulgarian taxes and social contributions?

The EOR calculates, files and pays them, then bills you. Expect employer contributions of 18.92% for most office and IT roles, on salary up to the €2,300 monthly cap, plus the employee’s 10% flat income tax, which is withheld from their pay.

Are there hidden EOR fees?

Check deposits, provisions, statutory extras, currency conversion and exit costs. Deel’s Bulgaria page lists estimated extras such as a 0.60% employer liability fee and a USD 80 wet-ink contract fee. Oyster asks for a refundable deposit, and Remote collects reserves only in rare high-risk cases. Perpetum takes no deposit and includes occupational health, risk assessment and labour-safety insurance in the fee. It collects a refundable severance provision of one month’s gross salary, upfront when the contract has no probation period or phased over the first months when it has one, plus a leave provision.

Can I leave an EOR easily?

Perpetum has no minimum term, requires 30 days’ notice and charges no exit fee. It moves your employee and their records to your own entity or another provider at no cost. Deel is month-to-month, and Oyster charges no termination fees. Remote’s pricing page doesn’t state exit terms, and none of the three publish transfer costs, so ask. Bulgarian labour law still governs how any employment ends.

Is a global platform better for a small team?

Only if you’ll hire in other countries soon. For a single Bulgarian team, one agreement covering the search and the employment often matters more than country count.

Is private health insurance included in an EOR fee in Bulgaria?

Not at the global platforms we checked. Deel and Remote offer private health insurance in Bulgaria as an optional extra, priced on request. Perpetum EOR Plus includes it in the €479 / $539 monthly fee, together with a Sports and Wellness access card and life and disability insurance.

Can I negotiate EOR contract terms?

With Perpetum, yes. We send the MSA and SOW to your legal team for review and comments, and align the terms before you sign. Deel, Remote and Oyster don’t publish whether custom terms are available, so ask before you commit.

Will an EOR help my Bulgarian employee with local paperwork?

At Perpetum, our Sofia admin team handles it on both tiers: employment certificates for bank and loan applications, documents for schools and kindergartens, and paperwork for child tax relief.