At its regular meeting, the government approved the 2026–2028 Public Debt Management Strategy, under which outstanding debt due for refinancing amounts to EUR 1.41 billion in 2026, EUR 1.8 billion in 2027, and EUR 2.6 billion in 2028, the government information service said on Wednesday.
The remaining portion of the planned new debt financing is justified by the need to finance the projected state budget deficits, including pre-financing under Bulgaria’s Recovery and Resilience Plan and liquidity support, including ensuring the ability to incur debt for specific programmes to capitalize state-owned companies in the water and sanitation, agriculture, regional development, sports, healthcare, energy, economy, industry, and innovation sectors, as well as for other financing operations.
The Public Debt Management Strategy, prepared in accordance with the Government Debt Act and the Public Finance Act, sets out the key principles and policy guidelines for managing government debt over the next three years. It also outlines the indicative measures and instruments to be used to achieve the strategy’s objectives.
The strategy is based on assumptions regarding the government’s borrowing needs and public debt parameters under which the draft 2026 State Budget and the Updated Medium-Term Budget Forecast for 2026–2028 were worked out. The government said this is intended to ensure consistency and alignment between the various fiscal policy documents with respect to public debt management.
The primary objective of the debt management policy is to secure the funding needed to refinance outstanding debt, finance the planned state budget deficit, cover Bulgaria’s national co-financing contribution to projects supported by European Union funds, and maintain adequate government liquidity.
In a separate decision, the government approved the funding standards for state-delegated activities for 2026, based on physical and financial performance indicators. The standards were prepared in line with existing legislation and the key assumptions and parameters of the draft 2026 budget.
They also incorporate an increase in the minimum monthly wage to EUR 620.20 from January 1, 2026, for employees paid at the minimum wage, the government information service said.
