On 25 October, Decree No 359 of the Council of Ministers on setting the minimum wage in the country was promulgated in the State Gazette. According to it, as of the new calendar year the minimum wage ("MW") shall be increased to BGN 1,077 per full working month per employee.

Currently, the minimum wage in the country is BGN 933, as the increase is nearly 15.4 % compared to the current year 2024, equivalent to BGN 144 increase.

The legal basis for the adoption of the decree on the determination of the minimum wage is Article 244 of the Labour Code ("LC"). The minimum wage for 2025 is set in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Code, according to which the minimum wage for the country for the next calendar year is set at 50% of the average gross wage for the last two quarters of the previous year and the first two quarters of the current year.

The increase in the minimum wage also leads to a raise of the minimum hourly wage, which will be increased from BGN 5,58 in 2024 to BGN 6,49 in 2025, with normal working hours duration - 8 hours within a 5-day working week.

Naturally, the change of the minimum wage should be taken into account by employers in their relations with employees, including as regards the amount of social security contributions.