Deputy PM Tomislav Donchev::'Social Dialogue Restored, Broad Agreement Reached on Bulgaria’s 2026 Budget Draft'

Following a meeting of the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation (NSTC) on December 8, Deputy Prime Minister, Tomislav Donchev, announced that social dialogue has been restored and that wide agreement has been reached between the state, business, and trade unions on all major budgetary issues, although some parties abstained on specific points.

“Social dialogue has been restored, we had a successful meeting of the NSTC,” Donchev said.

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He summed up what had been achieved on the three agenda items. The Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) budget received support from all organisations, with representatives from the Bulgarian Industrial Association (AIBG) and the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) abstaining. Full, unanimous support was reached on the Social Security Budget (SSB).

“Regarding the state budget, all social partners supported the draft, with colleagues from AIBG abstaining. I thank everyone for the constructive tone,” Donchev emphasised.

He noted that it is normal for the state, unions, and business not always to agree, but what matters is constructive interaction. He highlighted two areas where a clear consensus was reached:

"From the beginning of next year, payments in the public sector should be decoupled from the average wage, with a smarter approach to distributing salaries. Bulgaria must take steps in the coming months to demonstrate a new developmental direction. For five years, Bulgaria has maintained a budget deficit; this must be reversed. Over the coming years, this means a gradual reduction of the deficit," the Deputy Prime Minister said.

Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, for her part, thanked partners for the constructive and restored dialogue and noted that Bulgaria’s 2026 draft budget has now received almost full support from both employers and trade unions.

“In this version of the state budget, the increase in pension contributions from 1 January 2026 has been excluded, the rise in dividend tax from 5% to 10% has been dropped, and the introduction of the so-called SUPTO system has been postponed. We have agreed with our social partners and based on government analysis, that permanently vacant posts in the state administration will be reduced after assessment for 2026–2028, so that the administration can be optimised and operate more efficiently,” the Finance Minister explained.

The Social Policy Minister noted after the meeting that dialogue proved to be the key factor. The unanimous approval of the State Social Security demonstrates that it is indeed socially focused.

"We made sure that, after a three-year freeze, maternity benefits in the second year will increase from 780 to 900 leva,” he said.

An allocation of €30 million has also been planned to establish a programme supporting trainee doctors, Petkova added.