Finance Ministry Published Draft State Budget for 2025 with Mid-Term Forecasts for 2025-2028

Late last night, February 18, the Ministry of Finance published the draft state budget for 2025, which projects a deficit to range between 2.2% and 3% until 2028. Expected expenditures will reach up to 40% of the country’s GDP in the coming years.

One of the key changes in the budget is the reduction of the planned salary increase in the state administration from 10% to 5%. Exceptions will be made for employees in the Ministry of Interior (MVR), the military, and education.

Additionally, the proposal includes an increase in the pension insurance contribution by 1 percentage point starting from 2027, with a further increase expected in 2028. For this year and the next, the contribution will remain unchanged.

Expenditures in the consolidated fiscal program for 2025 are projected to be 96.7 billion BGN, or 44.9% of GDP. The budget deficit for 2025 is set at 6.4 billion BGN, or exactly 3% of GDP, which is one of the criteria required for Bulgaria to apply for membership in the Eurozone.