Welcome Bulgaria into the Eurozone

The European Commission and European Central Bank’s recommendations for Bulgaria to join the Eurozone as the 21st member state by 1 January 2026 have been welcomed by leading EPP Group MEPs. “We support Bulgaria’s entry in the Eurozone and expect our potential new member to contribute to the success of the common European currency,” said Eva Maydell MEP and Markus Ferber MEP.

“I welcome the positive assessment of the Convergence Reports. This is not a sudden move – it reaffirms that Bulgaria fulfils all the legal and technical criteria for joining the single currency. Bulgaria’s entry into the Eurozone on 1st January 2026 will be a carefully considered step that strengthens economic stability, reinforces trust in our common currency, and secures Bulgaria’s place at the heart of the European project,” said Maydell, the Parliament's Chief Negotiator on the accession of Bulgaria to the Eurozone.

“Bulgaria has gone a long way, showed continued and firm commitment to be part of the Eurozone and is fulfilling all necessary technical criteria to join the common currency”, confirmed Ferber, the EPP Group’s Spokesman in the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee. “Of course, we have to be fully aware that the introduction of the Euro requires a stable political and societal support”, emphasised Ferber. “If you force Bulgaria into the Euro against the will of a majority of the population, more people might turn away from Europe and towards Russia. Therefore, it would be important if the government invested effort now to convince the Bulgarians about the advantages of joining the Euro.”