More Support for Mothers and Pensioners as NSSI Approves Draft Public Insurance Budget

More money for mothers and pensioners – the National Social Security Institute (NSSI) has approved the draft budget of the State Social Security system.

Maternity pay for the second year of parental leave will rise from 780 to 900 BGN.

Pensions will be updated from 1 July under the Swiss formula, by between 7% and 8%, but social security contributions will increase by two percentage points.

Social Affairs Minister Borislav Gutsanov expressed satisfaction with the increase in second-year maternity benefits – from 780 to 900 BGN – which has not been done for three years.

The NSSI Supervisory Board also approved planned incentives from next year to encourage mothers to return to work earlier.

“Until now, 50% of the benefit was retained if a mother returned to work in the second year. Now 75% will be retained, which means the amount in the second year increases by more than two-thirds. This helps mothers, motivates them to return to the economy, and at the same time enables them to look after their children,” said Labour and Social Policy Minister Borislav Gutsanov.

Minister Gutsanov noted that the decision to raise pension contributions by two percentage points next year – around 8% – came from the Ministry of Finance.

“Just under 25 billion BGN goes to pensions, and a large sum – just over 11 billion – comes directly from the state budget. I continue to believe that the biggest reserve in our country is tackling the grey economy, and you will see the next actions from our ministry within a month,” Gutsanov added.

According to the Social Affairs Minister, everything is a matter of dialogue. This was his response when asked why the government’s initial proposal for the minimum wage was 605 euros, but now, calculated under the Labour Code formula, it stands at 620.20 euros.

Trade unions declined to comment, promising to do so during the tripartite council meeting. Some employers, however, opposed the planned changes.

“We do not agree with increasing the social security burden, with raising pension fund contributions by two percentage points, nor with increasing the maximum contributory income. These proposals widen the budget deficit and are not aligned with our economic capacity,” said Dobrin Ivanov of the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association (BICA).

By the end of the week, the State Social Security draft budget must be reviewed by the National Tripartite Council, then approved by the government and submitted to Parliament for final consideration.