24-Hour Vignette for Vehicles Up To 3.5 Tonnes Will Be Introduced in Bulgaria

The Council of Ministers has approved amendments to the Regulation on the conditions, procedures, and rules for establishing and operating a mixed tolling system for different categories of road vehicles, based on time and distance travelled. This regulatory act aligns national legislation with Directive (EU) 2022/362 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 February 2022 on the charging of vehicles for the use of certain infrastructure, the requirements of which have been introduced into national law through amendments to the Roads Act.

A 24-hour electronic vignette will be introduced for vehicles weighing up to 3.5 tonnes, valid from the start date and time of validity. Vehicles using the toll sections of the national road network without a purchased vignette will be required to pay a minimum toll equivalent to the cost of a one-day vignette.

For distance-based tolls for heavy goods vehicles and buses weighing over 3.5 tonnes, an environmental component will be included by introducing a charge for external CO₂ emissions costs attributable to traffic. Toll rates will be determined based on the technical characteristics of the road or section travelled, the distance covered, the vehicle category, the number of axles, the maximum permissible weight, the EURO environmental category, and the CO₂ emissions class and specific CO₂ emissions of the vehicle. The aim is to encourage the use of more environmentally friendly vehicles through financial incentives, with higher charges for higher-polluting vehicles in accordance with the “polluter pays” principle.

Vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonnes will be classified into one of five CO₂ emission classes. For example, Class 4 will include vehicles with low emissions, while Class 5 will cover zero-emission vehicles. The classification of vehicles into CO₂ emission Classes 2 or 3 will be reassessed every six years from the date of first registration.

The regulation also specifies that revenues from the environmental component will be used to invest in low-carbon transport, improve road infrastructure, finance climate and environmental measures, and other related purposes.

A new section in Chapter 3 of the regulation establishes the conditions and procedures under which the Road Infrastructure Agency will provide access to the Electronic Toll Collection System data to the National Revenue Agency and the Customs Agency.