site.btaEuropean Commission Warns Bulgaria May Face Suspension of Second Payment under Recovery and Resilience Facility

The European Commission has adopted a preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s second payment request under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, submitted on October 7, 2023, the Bulgarian Finance Ministry reported on Friday. The Commission says that out of 62 milestones and targets under the national Recovery and Resilience Plan relevant to the second payment request, 53 have been achieved, and eight milestones and one target have not been satisfactorily fulfilled at this stage, which could lead to a significant suspension of the payment in line with the Commission's methodology.

Most of the outstanding commitments concern key reforms addressing challenges identified in country-specific recommendations to Bulgaria and were critical for the approval of Bulgaria's original Recovery and Resilience Plan. As per Regulation (EU) 2021/241, in case of non-fulfilment of commitments taken under the national Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Commission can propose to suspend all or part of the payment. This procedure gives member states additional time to fulfill outstanding milestones or targets.

This means that Bulgaria has until December 29 to set forth its comments and arguments. The Commission will make its final decision within four weeks after the Bulgarian response. If the Commission’s preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s second payment request is confirmed, the country will have six months to honour its outstanding commitments related to the second payment. At the end of this period, the Commission will assess the implementation of the last eight milestones and one target, and if this second assessment is positive, it will lift the suspension and proceed with the payment of the suspended amount.

The Commission finds that it is ever more important for Bulgaria to intensify its efforts and fulfill the outstanding commitments, in order to make the best use of its allocated funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. The Commission remains committed to supporting Bulgaria in the successful implementation of its Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Finance Ministry said in its press release.