Document Translation for Bulgarian, Moldovan and Romanian Citizenship - Odesa and Bessarabia

Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania: what differs for the documents

These are three separate procedures with their own document packages, but the preparation logic is similar: your Ukrainian certificates and extracts must be translated into the destination language and, as a rule, legalized with an apostille. For Bulgarian, Moldovan and Romanian citizenship an apostille on Ukrainian civil-status documents is commonly required - plan for it in advance. In rare cases an apostille may not be needed (for example, under specific provisions of mutual legal-aid treaties), but these are narrow, case-dependent exceptions - we confirm the exact requirements for your country and your basis.

What differs most is the language and the form of certification. For Bulgaria documents are translated into Bulgarian, and the Bulgarian side often requires translation by a licensed (sworn) translator specifically. For Moldova and Romania the translation is into Romanian/Moldovan. So we first establish your country and your basis (repatriation, restoration, by descent), and only then draw up the precise list: what to translate, what to certify by a notary or a sworn translator, and what to apostille.

Which documents we translate for citizenship by descent

The base package consists of the applicant's and the ancestors' personal documents: birth, marriage, name-change and death certificates, plus passports and Soviet-era documents (USSR-pattern certificates, military IDs, work record books).

The separate and most demanding block is proving the chain of kinship up to parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. This is where archive and parish-register extracts come in: entries from church metric (parish) books, extracts from civil-status records, and certificates from state archives. For Bessarabia this is especially relevant - many records are held in the State Archive of Odesa Oblast and in the district archives of Izmail and Bolhrad. Old documents are often handwritten, bilingual or in difficult script; our translators have hands-on experience with exactly this kind of archive material.

Soviet-era and archive documents: why they are a distinct competence

Soviet certificates, metric-book entries and archive references are not an "ordinary" translation. They contain obsolete place names, Romanian/Moldovan Latin script next to Cyrillic, stamps that must be described correctly, ambiguous dates, and surname transliteration that has to match the rest of the package.

A single wrong letter in an ancestor's surname or a village name can halt the entire case at the consulate. That is why we cross-check the spelling of names across the whole package, keep a single consistent transliteration and, where needed, add a translator's note. Old handwritten text we decipher by hand. That is the difference between a box-ticking translation and one accepted on the first try.

Apostille for citizenship: how it works via Kyiv

In Ukraine an apostille depends on the document type: civil-registry certificates and notarial documents - exactly what we prepare for citizenship cases - have been apostilled since 1 February 2026 by any registry office, a notary or the Diia app, not only by Minjust in Kyiv; educational documents stay with MON and a range of references with MZS, and both of those still work only out of Kyiv. For Bulgarian, Moldovan and Romanian citizenship an apostille on Ukrainian civil documents is usually required, so plan this step as mandatory until we confirm otherwise for your specific case.

Apostilles on certificates and archive documents can now be issued locally in Odesa too - at the city's own justice department, any registry office or via Diia - so you still do not have to travel anywhere: we handle the filing remotely, pay the state fee on your side (670 UAH for individuals) and return the finished apostilled original. The order of steps (apostille on the original first, then translation, or vice versa) depends on the country and document type - we determine it before starting so nothing has to be redone.

Consulates in Odesa: where the whole south files documents

Odesa is the consular hub of southern Ukraine. The consulates of Bulgaria, Moldova and Greece operate here, serving not only the city but also the Odesa, Mykolaiv and Kherson oblasts and neighbouring regions, so applicants from across Budjak turn to them. Specific addresses and hours change from time to time, so check them on the consulates' official websites before any visit.

We do not file documents at the consulate for you and we do not handle the citizenship application itself - that is done by you or your lawyer. Our job is to prepare the translation part of the package so the consulate accepts it: the right language, the right certification and, where required, an apostille.

How a Budjak resident does it all remotely

Etalon has no physical office in Odesa, and we say so honestly: you do not need to travel anywhere. You photograph or scan your documents and send them to us via Telegram, Viber or WhatsApp - from Izmail, Bolhrad, Reni, Kiliia, Artsyz or any village in Budjak.

We translate, certify by a notary or produce a sworn translation as needed, and when an apostille is required we handle it for you: civil and archival documents via any registry office or Diia, educational ones via MON in Kyiv. The finished original with its wet stamp goes out by Nova Poshta to the nearest branch in Odesa Oblast. No in-person visits - everything by correspondence and courier.

How we work

1. 1Send the scansPhotograph the certificates, Soviet-era and archive documents and send them via Telegram, Viber or WhatsApp. We confirm the country (Bulgaria / Moldova / Romania) and your basis, then quote scope, price and timeline for free.
2. 2We translate and certifyWe translate into Bulgarian, Romanian/Moldovan or the required language, keep a single surname transliteration, and certify by a notary or a sworn translator according to the consulate's requirements.
3. 3We arrange the apostilleFor Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania an apostille is usually required - civil and archival documents via any registry office or Diia, educational ones via MON in Kyiv, and we always pay the state fee on your side.
4. 4Ship via Nova PoshtaThe finished apostilled, stamped original is sent by Nova Poshta to your branch in Odesa, Izmail, Bolhrad or anywhere in the oblast.

Prices

• Notarized translation of a document per documentfrom UAH 250
• Translation into Bulgarian per pagefrom UAH 265
• Translation into Romanian / Moldovan per pagefrom UAH 270
• Translation of an archive / parish-register extract difficult handwriting - individual quotefrom UAH 300
• Sworn translation per pagefrom UAH 400
• Apostille (Minjust / MZS / MON) + state feefrom UAH 850
• Rush translation on top of the base price+30-50%

Prices are indicative ("from"), per page or document and excluding the state fee. Apostille is paid separately plus the government fee. Archive and handwritten extracts are quoted individually by complexity. Rush work is usually +30-50%. We confirm the exact total for free after reviewing your scans.

FAQ