Bulgaria's National Recovery and Resilience Plan: Latest state of play

Under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the EU response to the crisis triggered by COVID-19, Bulgaria was initially allocated €6 267.3 million in grants. In line with the RRF Regulation, the European Commission in 2022 recalculated the maximum grant amounts for all Member States, resulting in a cut for Bulgaria to a new total of €5 688.8 million. To factor this in (and the impact of inflation), Bulgaria in 2023 submitted a modified national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP). In July 2025, the Council approved a further update with a new REPowerEU chapter and other changes. The plan′s total RRF allocation is €6 174.1 million, of which €479.3 million is from REPowerEU grants and €6 million from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve; any financing above this is to be topped up with national (and private) co-financing. Bulgaria's NRRP ranks eighth as a share of grants relative to gross domestic product (GDP): 10.1 % of its 2019 GDP (the RRF amounts to 5.2 % of EU-27 2019 GDP). RRF funds have to be paid out by end-2026. Bulgaria has so far received one payment of €1 369 million in December 2022 and submitted a second payment request in July 2025. Compared with the 55.6 % EU average, it has absorbed 22.2 %. The Bulgarian plan aims to address the main challenges and systemic weaknesses of Bulgaria's economy and builds on the national development programme BULGARIA 2030. The latter proposes solutions for medium-term growth by setting strategic objectives (e.g. accelerated economic development, demographic upswing and reduced inequalities). The NRRP extends the scope of reforms and investment while ensuring coherence with measures under EU cohesion policy. Bulgaria is one of the main beneficiaries of EU funds (as a share of GDP) over the 2021 2027 financing period, and complementarity with RRF resources is relevant in several fields. The amended plan supports climate objectives with 49.9 % of the total RRF funds (and 99.5 % of the proposed REPowerEU measures), while 20.6 % goes to digital objectives. Both green and digital spending targets have thus been exceeded. The European Parliament participates in interinstitutional forums for cooperation and discussion on the implementation of the RRF, and scrutinises the Commission's work. This briefing is one in a series covering all EU Member States. Fourth edition. The 'NGEU delivery' briefings are updated at key stages throughout the lifecycle of the plans.