site.btaFinance Ministry Publishes Midterm Budget Forecast in 2019-2021

Sofia, April 5 (BTA) - The Finance Ministry has published for a public debate a draft mid-term budget forecast for the 2019-2021 period.

Under the Consolidated Fiscal Programme, 2019 is projected to see a deficit of 0.5 per cent of GDP. In 2020 and 2021 the budget will be balanced.

With regards to tax policies, rates for direct taxes will remain low, with a broad tax base and few tax breaks.

In the midterm, revenues will decrease from 36.9 per cent of GDP in 2019 to 36.1 per cent of GDP in 2021, mainly due to projected revenues from EU funds.

Gross expenditures under the Consolidated Fiscal Programme will decrease from 37.4 per cent of GDP in 2019 to 36.1 per cent of GDP in 2021. Under the 2019-2021 midterm budget programme the minimum working wage will increase from 510 leva to 560 leva in 2019, 610 leva in 2020 and 650 leva in 2021.

In the field of education, the wages of teaching staff will continue to increase until they double by 2021.

In the field of defence there will be enough funds to maintain and develop the national defence capabilities related to collective defence. Expenditures for defence will be no less than the approved minimum for the sector in line with the programme for development of the defence capabilities of the Bulgarian armed forces by 2020.

In 2019 a mixed toll system will begin to operate: electronic vignette stickers for cars and toll tax for trucks.

Hand-in-hand with maintenance of the road infrastructure between 2019 and 2021 the government's policies will be directed towards providing financial resources for the construction of the large infrastructure projects: Hemus motorway, Kalotina motorway, Rousse-Veliko Turnovo motorway and Vidin-Botevgrad express way, Strouma motorway (Krupink-Kresna section).

Between 2019 and 2021 the sovereign debt will drop to 22.7 per cent by the end of 2021, or 18.2 per cent of the projected GDP.