Six business sectors will pay more into the state budget to cut the country's large deficit, instead of raising taxes on households, deputy prime minister Atanas Pekanov said on BNT's "The Day Begins".

The extra tax will mostly hit foreign-owned companies, mainly in services, he said. It won't touch manufacturers, startups or firms still growing their business. Pekanov said these companies' profits show up in their exports every year, and there's nothing wrong with them operating in Bulgaria — but after years of big profits, they should pay more.

The tax and revenue changes are planned for 2027. Companies that buy artificial intelligence, servers and computer equipment will be able to write them off in one year instead of two. The government has also found a way to avoid raising the waste-collection fee for now.

Parents will be able to deduct up to 2,000 euros from their taxable income for courses, private lessons and training for their children. For parents with one, two, three or more children, the threshold for this relief rises from 6,000 levs to 5,000 euros.

The tax law changes will bring the state 1.4 billion euros more, deputy finance minister Lyudmila Petkova said at a briefing a few days ago. She said the aim is a lasting rise in budget revenue, partly by collecting taxes better and shrinking the shadow economy.

There will be no cap on fuel prices — help for drivers will stay targeted instead. "We're not setting a cap, because that's not the best way to do this," Pekanov said. A price cap, he explained, pushes people to use more of the very thing the government wants to limit. He added that it's not clear whether the fuel situation could get worse in the coming months, and if it does, the government will widen its support.

The day before the interview, Bulgaria handed in its paperwork for the fifth payment under the EU recovery plan. "We've done everything that was required, and now we're waiting for the European Commission's assessment," the deputy prime minister said. He expects only minor comments from the Commission on technical details, with most of the money still to come.

Exactly how much of the funds will be approved should become clear in November or early December. Pekanov said results in some sectors are very positive and encouraging, and the payoff from the investments will last for years — though part of that is still hard to measure.

The National STEM Center has already opened at Sofia Tech Park. Teachers from across the country will come there together with their students.