The Association of the Organizations of the Bulgarian Employers (AOBE) urged on Monday that plans to raise taxes and social security contributions in the draft State Budget Act of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2026 be abandoned and called for public consultations before the bill’s submission to the National Assembly.
The Association addressed its call to Minister of Innovation and Growth Tomislav Donchev and Minister of Finance Temenuzhka Petkova, in a letter shared on its website.
The employer organizations called on the ruling majority and all stakeholders to restore social dialogue and pursue solutions through reforms and increased efficiency, rather than by imposing new tax and social security burdens on business and citizens.
Employers argue that the country needs predictability, stability and partnership, not impulsive decisions taken behind closed doors.
AOBE expressed firm disagreement with the practice of sending draft state budgets for comment at the last minute, with just hours allowed for positions rather than reasonable timeframes. They specified that, in this case, they received the draft State Budget Act of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2026 and the Updated Medium-Term Budget Forecast for 2026–2028 only late on November 3, saying this did not represent statesmanlike behaviour, but demonstrated disregard for social dialogue and the role of socio-economic partners.
The letter concluded that the extremely short deadlines, less than 24 hours for a session of the Budget Policy Committee of the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation and barely a day before the NCTC session, were not a technical oversight but a deliberate attempt to bypass public debate. "Only broad transparency and genuine public discussion can ensure even an attempt at consensus on issues affecting Bulgarian business and citizens," AOBE said.
At the same time, AOBE strongly objected to the absence of reforms and measures to improve the efficiency of public spending, and the departure from the previously stated commitment not to alter the tax and social security system.
AOBE called both the proposed 2-percentage-point rise in social security contributions, which would result in a more than 10% increase in Pensions Fund costs, and the doubling of dividend tax rates "utterly unacceptable". The Association warned that these measures would deter investment, expand the shadow economy, reduce competitiveness, accelerate inflation, and slow economic growth.
Earlier on Monday, the Ministry of Finance published the draft State Budget Act for 2026 and the Updated Medium-Term Budget Forecast for 2026-2028 on its website. With the introduction of the euro from January 1, 2026, all budget-related information and documents are being prepared in euro at the official exchange rate, according to Petkova’s report.
