Finding a children's doctor in Bulgaria
The official way to find a doctor for your child in Bulgaria is to choose a general practitioner (ОПЛ) among the contracted partners of the National Health Insurance Fund (НЗОК) and register the choice with a registration form or online. The fund's pages we read give no separate rule on choosing a paediatrician, so this article describes the process and the tools and tells you to confirm with the fund whether your child will be registered with a paediatrician or a general practitioner.
Healthcare · Last reviewed: 2026-10-07
The logic of the system: a personal doctor and the fund
The НЗОК page for general practitioners shows that ОПЛ provide primary care in the fund's system and that there is a registration form through which insured people register with their chosen doctor. The fund also mentions group practices and the distribution of capitation payment by age group. For your child to enter the system, the child must be health-insured; see the separate article on insurance.
How to find and choose a doctor
Check the health insurance status
The НЗОК e-services page lists a service for checking health insurance status (through the tax agency portal). Do not move on to choosing until you are sure the child is insured.Search for a contracted doctor
The same page has a service for searching contracted partners and activities; with it you find doctors who have a contract with the fund. Pick a practice close to home and suited to your child's age.Register the choice
The fund publishes three registration forms: for an initial choice, a permanent choice and a temporary choice. Online choice of a personal doctor is also among the e-services. Choosing for a child for the first time and changing an existing choice may go through different forms; confirm the right one with the helpline.Tell the practice your language need in advance
Whether a doctor speaks Turkish or another language varies by doctor; call the practice before registering. For Turkish-speaking doctors see the related article.
What is missing from what we read: confirm with the fund
The selection-forms page does not explain the required documents, the time limit for a change or special rules for children; there is also no detail about a paediatrician. Rather than guess, call the fund's citizen information line: the page gives the number 0800 14 800 as the citizen line. It can tell you about registering with a doctor, the documents and the options for your child.
- The child's ID or personal number and the parents' documents: confirm exactly which are asked for from the form and the line.
- The child's vaccination and examination records: bring the records from the previous doctor to the new one.
- Emergency: if life is at risk, do not wait for choosing a doctor; call 112.
The limit of this article
Frequently asked questions
Where do I find a doctor for my child in Bulgaria?
With the service for searching contracted partners and activities in the НЗОК e-services you can look up doctors contracted with the fund, then register the choice with a registration form or the online choice of a personal doctor.
Must my child be with a paediatrician?
The fund pages we read do not explain this. Confirm which kind of doctor the child can be registered with through the fund's citizen line (the page gives the number 0800 14 800).
Can I make the choice online?
The НЗОК e-services list an online choice of personal doctor; the page does not say what sign-in method it requires. Find out from the line or from the system.
Sources
The information on this page is based on the official sources listed below. Legislation changes — open the links and verify the current position.
- Национална здравноосигурителна каса (НЗОК) — Регистрационни форми за избор на общопрактикуващ лекар — https://www.nhif.bg/bg/people/request_opl · 2026-10-07
- НЗОК — Е-услуги за здравноосигурени лица — https://www.nhif.bg/bg/people/e-services · 2026-10-07
- НЗОК — За общопрактикуващите лекари (ОПЛ) — https://www.nhif.bg/bg/outpatient/gp · 2026-10-07
- НЗОК — Търсене на договорни партньори — https://reports.nhif.bg/nhif_reports/nhif_partners/ · 2026-10-07
Related topics
Registering with a GP in Bulgaria
How to find a contracted doctor, what the registration form contains, which documents to bring and when a change of GP is possible — the administrative process step by step.
Finding a Turkish-speaking doctor in Bulgaria
Where Turkish is widely spoken, how to search the contracted-doctor list, what to ask when booking and when an interpreter becomes the real answer.
Bulgaria's compulsory health insurance: who is covered
Who must be insured, when the obligation starts for a foreign resident, what the basic package means and how to verify your status — explained institution by institution.
Emergency number 112 in Bulgaria: how to call
In an emergency in Bulgaria, call 112: a free, round-the-clock national system with six regional centres, language routing and eCall after vehicle crashes.