Ship Arrest in Bulgaria

Ship arrest is a protective measure by which a court detains a vessel in port as security for a maritime claim. For a claimant, arrest is often the only realistic way to secure a claim against a debtor whose main asset trades worldwide and may be in another jurisdiction within days. Bunker suppliers, ship repairers, cargo interests, insurers and crews with unpaid wages all rely on it. For an owner or charterer, an arrested vessel means interrupted employment, exposure under charterparties and costs that grow by the hour.

That is why timing matters in ship arrest more than in almost any other legal procedure. A vessel calls at a Bulgarian port for days, sometimes only hours. Whether you need to arrest a vessel in Bulgaria or to obtain the release of your own ship, the outcome largely depends on how quickly and how precisely the application is prepared.

Vessel arrest in the ports of Varna and Burgas

Varna and Burgas are Bulgaria’s two principal commercial sea ports on the Black Sea, and vessels calling there fall within the reach of the Bulgarian courts. An application for vessel arrest is filed with the competent district court, in practice the court for the region where the port is located. Arrest may be sought before proceedings on the merits are commenced, as security for a future claim, or in support of pending litigation or arbitration.

The legal framework is set by the Bulgarian Merchant Shipping Code and by the International Convention Relating to the Arrest of Sea-Going Ships of 1952, to which Bulgaria is a party. The 1952 Arrest Convention defines the maritime claims for which a ship may be arrested, including claims for bunkers and supplies, ship repair, salvage, collision damage, carriage of goods and unpaid crew wages. In certain circumstances a claimant may arrest not only the ship to which the claim relates but also another ship in the same ownership.

The court examines whether the applicant presents a plausible maritime claim and whether security is genuinely needed. Preparation, however, is as much practical as legal: verifying the vessel’s ownership and flag, tracking her expected time in port, assembling evidence of the claim and coordinating with the harbour master’s office. A gap in any of these steps may mean the vessel sails before the order is granted.

Release of an arrested vessel

For shipowners and their P&I clubs the priority is the opposite: getting the vessel back to sea as quickly as possible. Every day under arrest generates losses, claims under charterparties, crew and port costs, and risk to the cargo. Release is normally obtained against adequate security, without any admission of the underlying claim.

In practice, release against security takes the form of a cash deposit, a bank guarantee or a letter of undertaking issued by the owner’s P&I club. We work closely with P&I clubs and their local correspondents to negotiate security acceptable to the claimant and to the court, so that the vessel can resume her schedule. Where arrest was granted before proceedings on the merits, the court sets a deadline for the claimant to bring the claim, and if no claim is brought, the measure is lifted.

We also act for owners challenging an arrest obtained without proper grounds or an excessive amount of security, and advise on the owner’s position where an arrest proves unjustified.

Ship arrest lawyers in Varna, Bulgaria

SIMEONOV LAW FIRM is a Bulgarian law firm with an office in Varna, minutes from the port, and a second office in Sofia. Maritime law is our core practice, and ship arrest is the type of work where proximity to the ports of Varna and Burgas and the ability to act immediately matter most. Our attorneys represent shipowners, charterers, P&I clubs and their correspondents, cargo interests and ship suppliers, and we coordinate with foreign counsel where a dispute spans several jurisdictions. We work in English daily, and members of the team have completed postgraduate studies in maritime law at the World Maritime University.

If you need to arrest a vessel in Bulgaria, or to secure the release of an arrested ship, contact us without delay. You can read more about our shipping practice on the Maritime Law page and about crew claims on the Seafarers’ Rights page.