Bulgaria to adopt the euro from 1 January 2026: final green light, it is the twenty-first country

ROME – Bulgaria will adopt the euro from 1 January 2026. The country's approval process in the Eurozone comes to an end with the final green light from the 20 European countries that already use the single currency. The EU Council today adopted the last three necessary legal acts, one of which sets the conversion rate at 1.95583 levs for 1 euro .

Bulgaria in the Euro, the approval process

On Tuesday 8 July, the European Parliament gave a favourable opinion on Sofia's accession, adopting a report confirming the country's compliance with the adoption criteria with 531 votes in favour, 69 against and 79 abstentions.

"I would like to congratulate our Bulgarian friends on joining the euro. It was a decision taken today" at the EU Ecofin Council. "This is great news for Bulgaria and for Europe," said Danish Economy Minister Stephanie Lose, who holds the rotating EU presidency. Already at the beginning of June, the European Commission considered that Bulgaria met all the necessary conditions to adopt the euro. As did the European Central Bank (ECB), which expressed a positive opinion.

Bulgaria in the Euro, Pros and Cons

In Bulgaria, an EU member since 2007, the prospect of abandoning the national currency, the lev, is far from unanimous. In recent weeks, several thousand protesters , brandishing " No to the Euro " signs, have gathered on the streets of the capital Sofia to voice their opposition to the plan. Many fear that the currency change will fuel a surge in prices, which in turn could fuel anger among europhobes.

According to recent polls, nearly half of respondents are against the country joining the eurozone next year. On the contrary, supporters of the euro see it as an important step, which would strengthen Bulgaria's Western geopolitical anchor . And protect it from the Kremlin's influence.