From the start of next year, Bulgaria will become the 21st member of the eurozone, with the switch designed to cut transaction costs, reduce currency risk and anchor the country more firmly within the EU’s capital markets. For companies and accountants, however, it marks a complex year of dual-currency reporting, recalibrated systems, training and new compliance rules.
‘The transition period will be a challenge for accountants,’ says Milena Rangelova FCCA, deputy chair of the management board of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Bulgaria. She explains that accountants are having to communicate with clients about rounding rules (€1 equals BGN1.95583, under a fixed rate since 1999), reviewing contracts and internal rules on currency conversion, updating financial reporting software and preparing fiscal devices for the changeover.
‘These are surmountable challenges’
Accountants in Bulgaria will also face an added task when reconciling receivables and payables on an ongoing basis as account balances on 1 January 2026 will not yet be final. The process of verifying and adjusting these open positions will continue through the annual financial close, meaning that until mid-2026, extra recalculations will be needed to ensure that all commercial relationships and balances are accurately reflected.
Intense workload
Raya Petrova, management board chair of Bulgaria’s Association of Accountants and Accounting Companies, highlights that software updates are still in progress, including new interfaces for submitting declarations in euro. She also expects that the first months of 2026 will see the most intense workload, with training already under way and businesses currently focusing on ensuring cash registers display correct amounts. The initial focus is on commercial outlets, but by the New Year attention will shift to intermediate and annual financial statements, official reporting in both currencies and payroll, which requires particular software attention.
Rangelova says that accounting systems across reporting, warehousing, payroll and fiscal devices will need major updates. Firms must enforce rounding rules, manage cut-off periods and adapt templates to handle dual-currency data, while the risk of technical errors will remain heightened.
From 1 February 2026 the lev will cease to be legal tender
Overall, Rangelova warns that the switch will increase reporting complexity and require extra time and staff. ‘These are surmountable challenges involving additional time, increased attention and additional control procedures in the finance and accounting departments. Company managers should be aware that, regardless of the fixed exchange rate of the lev to the euro, accountants and auditors will spend significantly more time and effort on their usual work over the next year,’ she adds. For accounting firms, failure to negotiate higher fees with clients could turn this transition period into a phase of financial strain.
A process of intensive familiarisation with legislative requirements and guidelines from the finance ministry, the National Revenue Agency, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) and professional organisations is already under way. The central bank has laid out a tight timetable for the cash transition; a spokesperson explained to AB that the euro and lev will circulate in parallel during January 2026, but from 1 February 2026 the lev will cease to be legal tender.
The exchange of levs into euros will, however, be handled by the BNB indefinitely, free of charge and without quantitative restrictions. In addition, commercial banks and postal operator Bulgarian Posts will also exchange levs into euros within 12 months of the introduction, with the service being free for the first six months.
Significant payoffs
Despite a wave of protests in June and July – fuelled largely by anti-EU politicians and fears of speculation and economic hardship – the payoff for many businesses is expected to be significant. Georgi Metodiev, a spokesperson for the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, referred to a June 2025 report by thinktank the Fiscal Council of Bulgaria, Sectors Most Benefited by Joining the Eurozone, which suggests that banking and finance, industry, tourism, energy, information technology and public administration could benefit the most from euro adoption.
‘In the transition, the financial and administrative burden will weigh more heavily on SMEs’
The report argues that export-oriented sectors that already trade in euros will benefit first. The financial sector (commercial banks, leasing and insurance) will gain from more predictable and harmonised borrowing costs given that both public and private lenders will see common interest rates, as loans denominated in euros will align closely with European Central Bank rates. Metodiev quotes Emil Kalchev, chief economist of the United Bulgarian Bank, who estimates that annual national transaction costs of BGN500m (€255.6m) to BGN1bn (€511m) will disappear. He adds that euro adoption will attract more foreign investment, ease access to working capital, boost tourism through lower exchange costs and improve IT competitiveness by aligning invoicing with euro-based billing.
Staying ahead
Alexander Milev, managing director of Proxiad Bulgaria, an IT company providing software mainly for banks and healthcare organisations, says that his sector is ‘two steps ahead’ of many others. Having billed clients in euros for nearly 20 years, Milev sees adoption as a chance to streamline crossborder operations, particularly with Bulgaria now fully in the Schengen zone since January and fully applying EU data protection rules since 2018. Proxiad’s immediate priority now is ensuring employees are clearly informed in advance about how their salaries will be converted to euros.
The strain will be felt most by SMEs, which face upfront costs for new software, training and additional staff time. ‘In the transition, the financial and administrative burden will weigh more heavily on SMEs,’ says Rangelova, although she adds that they will benefit in the long term from the elimination of currency differences, easier access to financing, lower transaction costs and deeper integration with European partners. She notes, too, that with ACCA membership well recognised and valued in Bulgaria, euro adoption may further boost interest in the qualification among professionals, given its international recognition.
