Hungary to approve Bulgaria's Schengen entry
Hungary looks set to withdraw its veto on Bulgaria's Schengen entry, according to GERB leader Boyko Borissov: "The Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban and I concluded that all issues in our bilateral relations have been cleared up and Hungary will continue to categorically support Bulgaria on its way to Schengen," said Borissov. He added that any obstacles had been resolved after Bulgaria removed the Russian gas transmission tariff through a parliamentary vote.
Hungarian news agency MTI also quoted Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjártó today as saying that as soon as the Bulgarian decision on the fee becomes official (for this to happen it must be signed by President Rumen Radev and published in the State Gazette), he will instruct Hungary's permanent representative to the European Union to withdraw the country's veto against Bulgaria's Schengen membership.
Parliament officially hikes insurance income
Parliament finally adopted the law on the budget of the State Social Security for 2024 but without a debate and only with the votes of MP's from the ruling majority of GERB, WCC-DB and MRF due to an opposition boycott.
Among the most important measures is raising the maximum insurance income from 3,400 levs to 3,750 levs. The IT sector, which is one of the most affected by the measure, opposed the change.
The majority also voted to increase the minimum insurance income for the self-insured to the amount of the minimum salary for next year - 933 levs.
E-sales surge
In 2023, Internet sales in Bulgaria increased by 19% and exceeded 1.95 billion euros. For comparison - in 2019, the volume of the online market was 0.9 billion euros, i.e. in four years it has doubled. The data is prepared by the Bulgarian E-commerce Association.
Nearly 95% of online users bought goods from Bulgarian stores, 32% - from stores in EC countries, and 18% - from platforms outside the European Union.
Hungary to approve Bulgaria's Schengen entry
Hungary looks set to withdraw its veto on Bulgaria's Schengen entry, according to GERB leader Boyko Borissov: "The Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban and I concluded that all issues in our bilateral relations have been cleared up and Hungary will continue to categorically support Bulgaria on its way to Schengen," said Borissov. He added that any obstacles had been resolved after Bulgaria removed the Russian gas transmission tariff through a parliamentary vote.
