Debate over Bulgaria’s flat tax system has intensified following a European Commission recommendation that the country consider moving toward a more progressive taxation model, reigniting long-running political and economic disagreements over fiscal policy direction.
Economist and former Deputy Prime Minister Prof. Rumen Gechev argued that Bulgaria should overhaul its tax framework to align more closely with most EU and global practices. Speaking to Bulgarian National Radio, he said, “Bulgaria should change its tax system, make it European, follow the practice of the vast majority of countries around the world.” He described the Commission’s recommendation as significant, though not binding, and said most countries apply progressive taxation rather than flat rates.
Gechev further claimed that international experience shows no example of a country transitioning from developing to developed status using a flat tax system. He insisted that shifting toward progressive taxation would primarily affect higher earners, while lowering the burden on lower-income groups, arguing that fears of middle-class pressure are overstated. “People with low incomes will have their tax payments reduced. Of course, they will increase for the upper middle class and the rich,” he said, adding that such structures are common internationally.
