A significant portion of the buildings in Bulgaria was constructed under the conditions of relaxed requirements for seismic resistance. Effective seismic risk reduction through building retrofitting is successfully achieved when a strategy based on well-defined criteria based on reliable results from seismic vulnerability assessment is applied. The study provides a brief overview of the estimated seismic risk for Bulgaria based on the data that is currently accessible and presumed by experts regarding building vulnerability. Approaches and criteria for the selection of target buildings for aseismic rehabilitation in order to realistically provide noticeable outcomes are discussed.