Bulgaria’s Constitutional Court strikes down provisions of 2026 State Budget

Bulgaria’s Constitutional Court has declared several provisions of the adopted 2026 state budget unconstitutional. The judges struck down amendments to the Labour Code and the Judicial System Act that had been introduced through the budget’s transitional and final provisions, the court’s press office announced.

The court annulled provisions related to the freezing of the minimum wage, changes to the calculation of length of service, and a new formula for the salaries of junior magistrates that links their pay to that of members of parliament.

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However, the court rejected the request to declare the entire state budget unconstitutional, the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) reported.

Former Minister of Finance and current GERB-SDS MP Temenuzhka Petkova strongly criticized the Constitutional Court’s decision. According to Petkova, allowing a budget with a deficit of 5.7% of GDP sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the principles of the rule of law, BGNES reported.

Edited by Ivo Ivanov

Translated by Kostadin Atanasov