Projects are welcome in all disciplines, as well as those with an interdisciplinary focus. Proposals should reflect topics which would benefit from a global perspective and clearly demonstrate a need to spend time in each of the proposed countries. The minimum length of the total grant is three months and the maximum is six months. Grant segments may be conducted within one academic year or spread over two or three consecutive years.

• U.S. citizenship – permanent residence is not sufficient.
• Grants shall not authorize engagement in pastoral, missionary, or other professional religious activities, or those for which a license to practice medicine or nursing is required.
• As of academic year 2014-15, there are no lifetime limits on Fulbright Scholar grants. In addition, there is no required waiting period between Fulbright Scholar grants. Candidates who previously held a Fulbright Scholar grant should be aware that, as a general matter, preference is given to candidates who have not previously received a Scholar grant. Therefore, previous Fulbright Scholar grantees are expected to make a strong justification in their application for a repeat Fulbright grant.
• Candidates who have resided abroad for five or more consecutive years in the six-year period preceding the date of application are ineligible. In this case, a period of nine months or more during a calendar year is considered to constitute a full year abroad.
• Employees and their immediate families (i.e. spouses and dependent children) of the U.S. Department of State and of public or private organizations under contract to the U.S. Department of State are ineligible to apply for a Fulbright grant until one year after termination of such employment.

Scholars are encouraged to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host community, in addition to their primary activities‎. While a letter of invitation is optional, applicants are encouraged to reach out to local institutions and try to obtain one. The Bulgarian-American Fulbright Commission can assist in identifying prospective host institutions, and in providing relevant contact information. In some fields, such as pure and applied sciences, a letter of invitation is preferred due to the limited number of host institutions where the Scholar can teach or conduct research. Candidates should begin contacting potential hosts as early as possible (May-June) as most academic institutions are difficult to reach during the summer months. Applicants can indicate preferences for affiliation if invitation is not available. Final assignment is coordinated with the Bulgarian Fulbright Commission.

• Travel allowance to cover round-trip international travel of $1,700 for grantee. For grants of four months or longer, relocation allowance of $1,300 for grantee and dependent travel allowance of $1,500 for one dependent and $3,000 for two or more dependents. For Flex grants: travel allowance of $ 4000 total for all segments of the grant. Dependent travel will not be provided.
• Basic housing allowance of $600 per month; additional housing allowance of $100 per month for one dependent / $200 per month for two or more dependents. For Flex awards housing allowance is $600 per month. Additional housing allowance for dependents is not provided.
• Health benefit plan provided for grantees only.