Bulgaria's Tourism Act requires everyone who provides accommodation to register their guests in the national tourist information system, ESTI. For a short-term rental that means copying names, dates of birth, nationalities and document numbers after every check-in.
Smarthoster-bg hands that work to the guests themselves: each one fills in their details on their phone before arrival, and you download a ready file and upload it to ESTI.
How it works
- The booking comes in automatically from Airbnb or Booking.com, or you add it yourself.
- 3 days before check-in each guest has a personal registration link. Send it however you already message guests: Airbnb, WhatsApp, Viber or email.
- The guest photographs their ID card, passport or driving licence. The details are read in their phone's browser; they check them and send. No app to install.
- When you're ready, download a file for any date range and upload it to esti.tourism.government.bg.
Both formats ESTI accepts
The CSV file is for ESTI's text import, with the columns in exactly the order the system expects. The xls register ("Регистър за настанени туристи") follows the official template, one file per property.
If a booking changes after export (dates, room, price) or is cancelled, the next export includes it automatically as an update or a cancellation, so the records in ESTI stay correct.
Personal data security
- The document is read on the guest's phone. Only the fields they checked are sent to us, not the photo.
- Identity data is stored encrypted (AES-256-GCM).
- You can switch on automatic deletion 1 to 30 days after export.
- Every export is logged with the email of the team member who made it.
What stays with you
Uploading to ESTI is yours to do: the app prepares the file but doesn't submit it for you. That way you always see what is sent and in whose name.
Price
The first 6 months are free. After that it's €0.30 per completed registration, with no monthly fee.
Frequently asked questions
Does the guest need to install an app?
No. Registration opens from a link in the phone's browser, with no account and no password.
Which documents can be used?
ID card, passport and driving licence. Bulgarian citizens also give their personal number (ЕГН), as ESTI requires.
Does Smarthoster-bg submit the data to ESTI automatically?
No. The app builds a ready CSV file or xls register and you upload it to ESTI. Automatic submission isn't offered.
What if a booking changes after export?
The booking is flagged for an update and goes into the next export as a correction, or as a cancelled registration if it was cancelled.
How long is guest data kept?
As long as you decide: you can switch on automatic deletion 1 to 30 days after the ESTI export.