Can I film in public and film a police officer?
Yes — including a police officer carrying out their duties. Bulgarian law contains no provision prohibiting filming in a public place. The copyright act allows an image to be made and used without consent where it is taken in the course of the public activity of the person shown, or in a public place — where the person is merely a detail in a shot depicting an assembly, a procession or a landscape. Officers carrying out their official duties are engaged in exactly that kind of public activity — it is not their private life. Filming for an editorial purpose is likewise permitted: presenting to the public events of public interest. Note: filming and publishing are different questions, assessed separately.
📋 The rules
- There is no statutory ban on filming in a public place
- Permitted during the public activity of the person filmed
- Permitted where the person is a detail in a procession or landscape
- An officer's official acts are not private life
- Publishing is assessed separately from filming
🔓 Exceptions
- On private property the owner may set their own rules about filming
- Commercial use of a recognisable image generally requires consent
- Filming children and vulnerable people calls for particular care
⚠️ Penalties & fines
An officer cannot require you to delete footage, nor seize your phone without a legal basis — seizure of an item follows a set procedure and requires a written record. If it happens anyway, note the officer's number and file a complaint internally and with the prosecution service. The risk to you arises at the point of publication: circulating a recognisable image for a commercial purpose, or in a way that damages someone's dignity, can lead to a claim for damages and a GDPR complaint. The rule: filming a public event is free; using a particular individual as advertising is not.
📎 Official sources
- lex.bg · Copyright and Related Rights Act →
- Commission for Personal Data Protection →
- GDPR · Regulation (EU) 2016/679 →
❓ Frequently asked
Can I film a police officer?
Yes. Nothing in the law prohibits filming an officer carrying out their duties in a public place — that is public activity, not their private life.
Can they make me delete the footage?
No. An officer has no power to compel you to delete a recording, nor to take your phone without a legal basis — seizure follows a set procedure and requires a written record.
What if someone is clearly recognisable?
Filming is still permitted where the person is a detail in a shot of an assembly, procession or landscape, or is engaged in their public activity. Publishing is assessed separately.
Can I publish the photo?
It depends on the purpose. Editorial use for events of public interest is permitted. Commercial use of a recognisable image generally requires the person's consent.
What about in a shop or on private property?
The owner may set their own rules about filming on their property and ask you to stop. That is a right over the property, not a statutory ban on photography.
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