(SOFIA) - Bulgaria's customs agency said Wednesday it would close all duty-free shops and petrol stations along its borders with Serbia, Turkey and Macedonia at midnight in a bid to stamp out smuggling.

"At midnight (2100 GMT), Bulgaria will close down all duty-free shops and petrol stations along its land borders with non-EU member states," an agency spokeswoman told AFP.

Different statutes applied to duty-free outlets at Bulgarian airports and Black sea ports, so those would remain in operation, the spokeswoman added.

The Bulgarian parliament voted in May to close down duty-free outlets along its border with the three countries, after the EU identified them as key centres for corruption and smuggling.

All duty-free shops on the border with Romania and Greece were already shut down when Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007.

But Bulgaria had so far failed to close down those on its borders with Serbia, Turkey and Macedonia, with critics citing corruption among high-ranking officials as the reason.

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