Bulgaria and the euro: Mandatory dual pricing comes into effect
As provided for in law, in Bulgaria the mandatory display of prices of goods and services in both leva and euro takes effect on August 8 2025 and remains in effect for a year.
As The Sofia Globe reported, Bulgaria’s Parliament voted on July 30 to approve the second and final reading of amendments to the Euro Adoption Act.
The legislation concerns steps to be taken in the run-up to and after Bulgaria’s adoption of the euro as its currency as of January 1 2026.
The law requires that the labels must be written clearly, legibly, in the same size, colour and font, showing both prices – both in leva and in euro, converted at the official exchange rate – 1.95583. Merchants are given a two-month grace period to bring their cash register software into compliance.
The law makes an exception for taxi services, cigarettes, and fuel. Persons providing taxi transportation of passengers must comply with the obligation to dually display prices from October 31 2025.
The dual indication of the selling price of books, textbooks, teaching aids and other printed works, including educational books and learning sets, children’s books with illustrations, for drawing or colouring, printed or handwritten sheet music editions begins on January 1, 2026, according to the legal changes.
Some aspects of the amendments to the Euro Adoption Act have been sharply criticised by leading economists and the private sector, such as it conferring on the Cabinet wide powers – without the government requiring the consent of Parliament – to take steps in the event of unjustified increases in prices.
In addition, traders with the highest turnover will have to publish prices on a daily basis, and the control authorities have extraordinary powers until August 8 next year to fine them for “unjustified” price increases.
Although prices are listed in both currencies , payments in euro in Bulgaria will start from January 1 2026. From that date, the euro will become the official currency and will be used for all payments.
In January 2026, there will be a period of parallel circulation of the lev and the euro, and it will be possible to pay in both currencies during that month, with the merchant returning change in euro.
(Photo: Clive Leviev-Sawyer)
