Bulgaria's customs agency took in more than 6.116 billion euros in the first nine months of 2026 — the most ever for that period, the agency said in preliminary figures.

That's 790.5 million euros more than the same nine months of 2025, up 14.8%.

Revenue rose across the board. Import VAT in September was the highest for that month in the agency's history, and every summer month in 2026 beat the same month in past years.

More than 704 million euros came in from the second half of May through the end of September, the agency said — nearly 90% of the whole year's rise, and it came right after prime minister Rumen Radev's cabinet took office.

Deputy prime minister and finance minister Galab Donev made revenue collection a top priority as soon as he took over the finance ministry. He said at the time that the tax agency and customs would get full oversight and digital tracking, so every euro coming in could be watched in real time.

"There won't be strict checks for some taxpayers and a free pass for others," Donev said in May, right after taking over at the finance ministry.