Bulgaria's budget deficit hit 3.075 billion euros by 31 August, or 2.4% of forecast GDP, the finance ministry says. A month earlier the gap stood at 2.2 billion euros, or 1.8% of forecast GDP — so the shortfall widened by about 900 million euros in a single month.
The ministry blames the jump on a pile-up of big payments for investments under the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Until the fifth payment from the European Commission comes through, these costs will keep pushing the deficit higher.
Bulgaria filed a request today for its fifth payment, worth 1.82 billion euros, and the Commission now has two months to review it. In August, the budget also received 109.2 million euros from the third payment request — money that had been held up over the reform tied to the chief prosecutor. The figures reported match the preliminary estimates from early September.
Revenue, grants and donations for the eight months came to 30.117 billion euros, covering 60.7% of the annual target. That's 3.192 billion euros, or 11.9%, more than in the same period in 2025. Tax and social security revenue rose by 10%, or 2.212 billion euros. Grants and donations — mostly from EU programmes and funds — jumped by 1.510 billion euros to 2.415 billion euros.
Taxes and social security contributions alone brought in 24.260 billion euros, or 80.6% of all revenue, reaching 63.1% of the yearly plan. Non-tax revenue came to 3.441 billion euros, or 59.5% of what was planned. That figure fell by 530.4 million euros because state-owned companies paid smaller dividends, after an interim dividend for the same financial year had already been paid in 2025.
Spending, including Bulgaria's contribution to the EU budget, reached 33.193 billion euros, or 58.4% of the annual plan, up from 29.591 billion euros a year earlier. Non-interest spending came to 31.775 billion euros, up 3.244 billion euros, or 11.4%, made up of 27.679 billion euros in current spending and 4.073 billion euros in capital spending. Transfers abroad totalled 22.7 million euros, while interest payments rose by 271.5 million euros to 661.3 million euros.
The finance ministry says the rise comes mainly from social security and health insurance payments, including pensions, along with wage costs and investment. Pensions went up under the Swiss rule from 1 July 2025 and will rise again from 1 July 2026. The minimum wage went up in January 2026, and from that same month wages rose in line with 2025's accumulated inflation. Capital spending jumped because of the Recovery and Resilience Plan and the municipal investment programme.
The fiscal reserve stood at 7.780 billion euros at the end of August. Of that, 7.532 billion euros is held as deposits at the Bulgarian National Bank and other banks, while 248.7 million euros is money still owed from EU funds.
Central government debt stood at 37.087 billion euros, or 28.4% of GDP — 553.1 million euros more than at the end of July. The rise came from a sale of government securities on the domestic market and an advance payment drawn from a loan under the EU's SAFE instrument.