The Ministry of Finance publishes for public discussion the draft law on the introduction of the euro in the Republic of Bulgaria. It is currently in a special procedure, and the deadline for receiving opinions is April 24, 2024. The draft contains information about the euro and how it will be processed, as well as how it affects other acts and regulations. However, there is still no official date when the euro will become a legal tender in Bulgaria. The date of our accession to the Eurozone and the exchange rate of the BGN to the Euro will be determined by the Council of the European Union with a unanimous decision of the Member States whose currency is the Euro and the Republic of Bulgaria.
The draft law on the introduction of the euro in Bulgaria has been published for public discussion
Public
Bulgaria
Author: Kristina Dosen
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Fiscal subject related
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1557
Content accuracy validation date:
28.03.2024
Content accuracy validation time:
10:48h
The draft law on the introduction of the euro in the Republic of Bulgaria was developed by a specially created interdepartmental working group at the Ministry of Finance, in which the Bulgarian National Bank, all ministries and interested institutions and organisations, representatives of business, and the academic community participated. The draft law has been agreed upon with the European Commission, which gave its positive opinion on it, while its agreement with the European Central Bank is pending.
The proposed project regulates the principles, rules, and procedures for the introduction of the euro as the monetary unit of the Republic of Bulgaria. The commitment of the Bulgarian authorities for our country to join the eurozone with the current fixed exchange rate has been confirmed both in the National Plan for the introduction of the euro in the Republic of Bulgaria and in the Decision of the National Assembly of October 2022, with which the Bulgarian institutions were assigned to accelerate the consultations and the continuation of the technical preparation for the adoption of the euro in the country.
The draft law regulates the methods of rounding after the revaluation of the values of goods and services, bank accounts, debt securities, government securities, government and government-guaranteed loans, securities, remunerations, pensions, social benefits, etc.
The draft law stipulates that the Bulgarian National Bank, from the day of the introduction of the euro, will exchange banknotes and coins from Leva into euros for free, in an unlimited quantity and without a time limit, at the official exchange rate. According to the project, during the first 6 months after the introduction of the euro, banknotes and coins will be able to be exchanged free of charge from levs to euros in credit institutions (banks), as well as in some branches of "Bulgarian Post" EAD.
The prices of goods and services will be indicated simultaneously in BGN and EUR from the first month after the Council Decision on the adoption of the euro until 12 months after the date of introduction of the euro in the Republic of Bulgaria. The bill proposes that both prices be written clearly, legibly, unambiguously, and easily understood, with the same font size, in a way that does not mislead consumers. They must be placed together and will be accompanied by a distinctive sign or abbreviation, allowing them to be easily recognized. The final amount to be paid by the user must also be presented in both currencies. During one month from the actual entry of Bulgaria into the Eurozone, there will be a period of double circulation of the leva and the euro, in which people will be able to pay in both currencies. During this period, merchants will be required to return change in euros unless they have sufficient current availability. After the expiration of this period, the levy will cease to be legal tender.
From the fiscalization perspective, we are still waiting for more rules and changes in regulations, especially Ordinance No. 18, which refers to fiscalization. More information will be published soon.
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