Bulgaria Gets Green Light for Eurozone

[polonieth]

Bulgaria has officially received the green light to adopt the euro on January 1, 2026, according to the latest ECB Convergence Report (2025).


The ECB and European Commission concluded that Bulgaria now meets all convergence criteria:

• Inflation: 2.7% (below 2.8% threshold)
  
• Budget deficit: 3.0% of GDP (meets the limit)
  
• Public debt: 24.1% of GDP (way under 60% limit)
  
• Interest rates: Averaged 3.9% (under 5.1% threshold)
  
• Currency: Stable in ERM II since 2023, fixed rate maintained
  
• Legal alignment: Bulgarian laws now comply with EU treaties
  

Cooking the books of course, but Bulgaria is in good shape regarding debt to GDP ratio due to the currency board. The Eurozone means that it goes, so it is open season for politicians lining their pockets.

I hope Bulgarians resoundingly reject this; it's worthy of a revolution. The Eurozone is like the Hotel California, you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave. It will be a disaster for the country. Sad to see, to be honest, as it's a great place.

 

[Aetherial]

We've seen what happened to Croatia, life became way more expensive. I wish them good‌ luck.

 

[marioIT]

R.I.P. , not going to be a cheap and reasonably free country anymore 😉 european entrepreneurs‌ will have to move further east to find cheap countries to run and grow their‍ businesses...
there are still ways to make money even on news like this, but ultimately⁠ it destroys any advantages it had till now.

 

[Alonzo]

Bulgarians have no clue that life will be a lot more expensive with the euro‌ currency…

 

[polonieth]

Oh they do, the majority of the population are‍ against it. Which is why they want a referendum.

Yet the govenrment thinks that a⁠ referendum is "unconstituional"

Like I say, it needs a revolution.

 

[Alonzo]

I thought most of them were europhiles…‍ let’s hope that the citizens have a say otherwise Romania will be left being the⁠ cheapest and low tax EU country

 

[polonieth]

You would get that impression from Reddit for sure. The European Union is popular amongst‌ the Sofia IT crowd, which mainly consists of quad-vaxxed 20s and 30s men who spend‍ their days coding and wanking themselves into oblivion via their favourite OnlyFans girls. They buy⁠ most state-led propaganda due to testosterone deficiency

But amongst the working people, they don't want⁤ the Euro.

 

[AtlasShrugged]

Certainly the cheapest, but it's not a low tax country any longer. The‌ government there change the tax codes every single year, and not for the better obviously.‍

 

[Steve3000]

I have to admit that I've never visited Romania or Bulgaria, but⁠ I know Poland well. Is Poland considered expensive among the eastern countries? They don't have⁤ the euro and their economy seems to be doing well. Although it's become far more⁣ expensive now!

 

[jesuschrist]

The Bulgarian Lev is fixed for like 30 years, first to Deutsche Mark then to Euro,⁠ the country has no monetary policy since forever now.
This is not another Greece or⁤ Croatia, this will literally change nothing for them...

 

[polonieth]

Completely wrong, and as usual, it ignores the role of the currency board.

Bulgaria can only⁠ issue as much money as it has in foreign currency reserves. That acts as a⁤ strict limit on the amount of debt the government can take on. Any new borrowing⁣ adds to the money supply, so the board forces discipline.

That’s precisely why Bulgaria has⁢ one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios in the EU today.

But if they adopt the︀ euro, those limits disappear. With the euro, the government can borrow far more, as long︁ as it can manage the repayments, at least in the short term. Where that borrowed︂ money goes is up to the government. Banks are usually happy to lend because they︃ know the ECB has stepped in to rescue them during every crisis so far.

But all that extra money entering the system without a matching increase in productivity leads to︄ price inflation. And if most of the money is used inefficiently, the debt becomes harder︅ to manage. Do you really think Bulgarian politicians are going to use this money productively?︆ Or will it be stolen?

That’s how countries like Greece, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal ended︇ up in crisis, with the ECB stepping in and austerity imposed from above.

 

[no1d]

In Romania we buy expensive items in Euros, cars, property etc. Most landlords also charge‌ rent in euros. Adopting Euro will make their lives easier, transactions faster, and now that‍ we are all in Schengen they wont have to change currency which is stupid.

 

[polonieth]

Why don't you ask some Croatians how much easier their lives⁤ got adopting the Euro...

Transactions faster? Give us some real world examples...

Schengen has nothing⁣ to do with changing currency, but how is this easier? Most people are using Wise,⁢ Revolut anyway. But changing money was never difficult in the first place.

These fringe benefits︀ are never going to outweigh the negatives the Euro brings, and you have 5+ case︁ studies of negative consequences of adopting it, most of which were in countries in better︂ shape than Bulgaria.

I dunno how people can be so blind to the obvious. I︃ guess it's a bit like that video clip in a car park somewhere, where all︄ the NPCs are queuing for a dose of the gene therapy. One guy walks out︅ and instantly collapses and needs to be taken away in an ambulance. However, everyone remains︆ in the queue as normal, awaiting instructions on what to do next.

You have a︇ trail of destruction in these other countries, with their citizens actively telling Bulgarians that taking︈ the euro is a bad idea, and yet still get some people who are like︉ "well the government told me it's a good idea and will make our lives easier,︊ so I'm all for it" Yet they're lives have only got worse under the same︋ people telling them it's a good idea lol.

 

[JosephLL]

Economics arguments are not needed here. You have NO soveregnity without the prerogative of money‌ issuance. EU "states" are just another non-bank entities.

 

[HardRJones]

Unless Bulgaria’s economy matches that of those who set monetary policy for the Euro (effectively,‌ Germany and France), adoption of a currency with a misaligned monetary policy will cause distortions‍ in the Bulgarian economy that will cause stagnation and give incentive to increase national debt,⁠ as mentioned, just like it did for the PIIGS.

 

[polonieth]

Yup, the Euro = germany

And that is going really well: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...ly driven,March, triggered by fiscal⁤ concerns.

 

[Alonzo]

I might have spoken too fast…

They announced an increase from 10‍ to 16% dividend tax starting 2026 and VAT will be 21% this August

 

[dany]

Interesting development 😵
I've actually been considering Bulgaria as a base︄ for a while, mainly because of the flat 10% corporate tax and relatively low cost︅ of living. If the Eurozone accession goes through in the next year or so, that︆ could really change the playing field, especially in terms of banking.

Right now, the banking︇ system is decent but not always ideal for international use.
Full integration into the Eurozone︈ could make cross border payments smoother and possibly improve the country’s perception for compliance heavy︉ partners like Stripe, Wise, etc.

That said, I’m curious how this will affect the local︊ advantages, will the 10% tax rate remain, or will Brussels start pushing for alignment?
Same goes for company registration: will it become more regulated, or stay as friendly as it︋ is now?

Would be great to hear from anyone on the ground or already using︌ a Bulgarian setup, what’s the general mood?

 

[Milei]

Company registration⁠ is not very friendly for foreigners. You will need to open a Bulgarian corporate bank⁤ account to deposit the capital (even if it's only 2 BGN). You cannot use a⁣ foreign bank for that (even after EUR adoption). For the account opening, you will likely⁢ need a Bulgarian facilitator with a contact address in Bulgaria (even if you, as a︀ director, have your residency there). However, you can use foreign banks for anything else than︁ the capital deposit and tax payments in BGN. There's no privacy; all company financials, including︂ your private address, are visible online to anyone.

There are lots of language barriers, lack︃ of competent and reliable accountants and unclear accounting rules for non-standard business cases. Invoices from︄ abroad need to be translated into Bulgarian and are often not accepted by the tax︅ office, so that in some cases, you end up being taxed 10% on turnover, not︆ profit. Everything usually goes smoothly until the tax office decides to do an audit some︇ years later. I don't think Bulgarian companies are optimal for conducting international business.

 

[Aetherial]

I don't think their corporate tax rates will change drastically in the near future. However,‌ that's just guessing on my behalf.

But anyone who has visited Bulgaria can see it‍ is still pretty much a developing nation. Places like the Baltics or other places in⁠ Europe are better off, that tells you a lot. And stated in the post before⁤ me living there comes with hurdles. They need to have something going for themselves to⁣ make it somewhat attractive for foreigners to come visit, thus their low corporate tax rates.⁢

I've lived there for a year and pulled the plug. Life was okay there but︀ it wasn't for me. It's a relaxed place (seaside) but I never felt at ease︁ somehow. I read on this forum that if you earn a significant amount of money︂ you need to be cautious. And however I don't know if it's outdated info or︃ entirely true, I understand where it's coming from.

Life is cheap, especially rent (although that︄ might change with the introduction of the euro), and there's plenty of restaurants and cafés,︅ Bulgarians like to spend their time there. Besides that there's not a whole lot else︆ to do.

I agree it's hard to find a good and reliable accountant. Lawyers aren't︇ very competent and make up prices on the spot which aren't cheap. Money goes a︈ long way there though, a lot can be done with money.

Most Bulgarians are friendly︉ and relaxed people. I think it's a good place to start.

If you have some︊ more money to spare I think Cyprus is a better place.