MPs have given final approval to zero excise duty on natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) used as car fuel. The change will run from October 1 to December 31, 2026. The amendments to the Excise Duties and Tax Warehouses Act passed on first and second reading at the same sitting.
The bill was put forward by Stefan Belchev of Progressive Bulgaria along with a group of MPs, and the change is added through amendments to the law's transitional and final provisions.
The MPs behind the bill say the measure is temporary. They point to high fuel prices and problems getting oil, oil products and natural gas, caused by the situation in the Middle East and shaky global energy markets. They say expensive fuel hits households directly and adds to company costs, so cutting the tax to zero will take that part out of the price. Over the three months the rule applies, the treasury expects to collect around 20 million euros less in revenue.
Deputy finance minister Lyudmila Petkova said the EU directive on taxing energy products allows exactly this kind of cut and zero rate, and that Bulgaria will tell the European Commission about the change.
During the debate, Dimo Drenchev of Revival said his party will back the measure, even though they see it as limited, because he said it will help transport in big cities. His Revival colleague Petar Petrov said the three-month zero duty on LPG will have little effect. He said drivers would see a cut of around 10 euro cents a liter, and only if sellers pass it on in the price. Petrov said about 394,000 cars in Bulgaria run on LPG. That's about 12% of the country's cars, while the other roughly 2.5 million won't feel anything. He said there's no way to stop the price rising again, and no one has said how the law will be checked.
Stefan Belchev, one of the MPs who put forward the bill, replied that no excise change spells out in detail who exactly will check it's followed. On LPG, he said that, based on figures he found online, 75% of the amount used in Bulgaria is imported, so the price depends on importers.
Martin Dimitrov of Democratic Bulgaria noted that this week the European Commission said Bulgaria has the highest fuel price rise in the EU. He said Democratic Bulgaria sees the measure as limited in scope but will still back it. Dimitrov said the cut on natural gas is 2 euro cents a kilogram, affecting between 65,000 and 70,000 cars, and called the effect symbolic. He said compensation is being handed out piecemeal, while high prices are holding back economic growth and hitting every Bulgarian's pocket. He called for real checks, with the National Revenue Agency making sure the law is followed.
Temenuzhka Petkova of GERB-SDS said her group will abstain, because they believe the measure is not aimed the right way and won't get the result wanted. She said the money saved from zero duty on LPG and natural gas will be symbolic. If the real goal is to fight fuel prices, she said, the approach needs to be different. Petkova pointed to Croatia as an example, which got EU approval to cut excise duty not just on gas but also on petrol and diesel, below the EU's minimum levels. Alexander Ivanov, from the same parliamentary group, said a better step against high prices would be for Bulgaria, through the Bulgarian Energy Holding, to stay involved in exploring the Han Asparuh field in the Black Sea.
Slavi Vasilev of Progressive Bulgaria said this law cuts excise duty on the fuel used by Bulgaria's most vulnerable people. He called the government's move a reflection of the country's budget reality and the need for careful decisions to help people on the lowest incomes. Vasilev added that whatever changes the government can afford now are tightly limited by the financial legacy it inherited. On checks, he said there are clear ways to verify compliance, such as declarations of conformity, and gave assurance that the state will collect the taxes set out in law.