Bulgaria has met the criteria to join the euro zone on 1 January 2026, the European Commission concludes in its 2025 Convergence Report, marking a historic step on Bulgaria’s journey towards euro adoption.
“Today’s announcement is the culmination of a five-year journey, since it entered ERM II in 2020,” said Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis: “The euro will bring tangible benefits for Bulgarian citizens and businesses: stable prices, lower transaction costs, protected savings, more investment, and increased trade.”
The Report finds that Bulgaria fulfils the four nominal convergence criteria, which are intended to ensure that a country is ready to adopt the euro and that its economy is sufficiently prepared to do so. The Member State’s legislation is also found to be compatible with the requirements of the Treaty and the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank (ECB). The Commission’s assessment also considers additional factors relevant to economic integration and convergence, including balance of payments developments and the integration of product, labour and financial markets.
This assessment is complemented by the ECB’s own Convergence Report, also published today.
As a result of this assessment, the Commission has also adopted proposals for a Council Decision and a Council Regulation on euro introduction in Bulgaria on 1 January 2026.
It will be for the Council of the EU to take the final decisions on Bulgaria’s euro adoption, following discussions in the Eurogroup and the European Council, and after the European Parliament and the ECB have delivered their opinions.
Questions and answers: Convergence Report 2025 on Bulgaria
