Client story
Client's Story
Where they started
The client was building an IT business and increasingly encountered limitations not related to the product or team, but to his passport. CIS citizenship created friction where EU passport holders faced none: difficulty entering certain contracts, integrating payment systems, and establishing relationships with European partners.
Why the standard route did not work
In IT, these frictions are costly. Payment providers are cautious with founders from certain jurisdictions, some contracts and platforms favor EU residents and citizens, and relocating and hiring teams in Europe faces visa and status barriers. The founder's passport became an invisible brake on growth.
What BRIDGES had to solve
The client had Bulgarian heritage—a strategic solution. Bulgarian citizenship by descent meant an EU passport, through which the founder gained access to European business infrastructure on different terms: as an EU citizen, not an entrepreneur from a third country. Many barriers tied to a CIS passport were removed.
Why a standard answer would not do
The client came to BRIDGES to leverage heritage for business growth: obtain a Bulgarian passport by descent and through it remove status barriers hindering his IT company.
My CIS passport became a brake on business: contracts were harder in some cases, payment systems were cautious, bringing a team to Europe was a hassle. Dmitry showed me that my Bulgarian heritage was the solution: an EU passport changes the rules for a founder. We obtained citizenship by descent, and many barriers simply disappeared—for partners and systems, I'm now an EU citizen. A passport through heritage truly became a business boost, not just a second document.
