site.bta2026 Budget Bills on Public Social Insurance, National Health Insurance Fund Enter First-Reading Debate in Plenary

The Bulgarian Parliament is scheduled to debate the Public Social Insurance Budget Bill and National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) Budget Bill for 2026 on Thursday. These are the first budgets drafted in euro.
 
The Public Social Insurance Budget Bill sets the minimum wage at EUR 620.20 and the maximum contributory income at EUR 2,352. The social insurance contribution rises by 2 percentage points in 2026. The minimum pension for contributory income and old age increases from EUR 322.37 in 2025 to EUR 346.87 in 2026 for people with a full social insurance record. From July 1, 2026, all pensions granted by the end of 2025 will be adjusted by between 7% and 8%. Pensions are capped at EUR 1,738.40 as in 2025.

The poverty line for 2026 is BGN 764 per month, up by 19.7% from BGN 638 now.

The NHIF revenues and expenditures for 2026 are both increasing by 15% from this year, up by EUR 727,652,900. The health insurance contribution is unchanged at 8%. A new item is a EUR 260 million transfer from the central government budget, allocated for the salaries of medical staff in healthcare facilities.