Dual Price Tagging in Leva and Euro Slowly Taking Hold in Sofia Markets

In two of Sofia’s largest markets - Zhenskia (Kirkov) and Krasno Selo - it was found that only a handful of sellers have started showing prices in both leva and euro, as mandated by Bulgaria’s Law on the Introduction of the Euro. Despite the law’s clear requirement, dual pricing remains scarce among fruit and vegetable vendors at these popular locations.

According to the legislation, traders across Bulgaria must fully adopt dual price labeling, including on cash receipts, by October 8, 2025. The law allows for some exceptions, but these are limited to specific sectors and must end by January 1, 2026 at the latest. Taxi drivers, for instance, are required to display fares in both currencies starting October 31 of this year.

Starting August 8, a new state price monitoring system will be launched to curb unfair price hikes and speculation. This mechanism will remain in place for two years, giving authorities the power to impose substantial fines on businesses that raise prices without justified economic reasons. Penalties for companies and sole proprietors begin at 5,000 leva and can reach up to 100,000 leva for first offenses. Repeat violations carry even steeper fines, ranging from 10,000 to 200,000 leva. For large enterprises with annual turnovers exceeding 50 million leva, sanctions may be calculated as a percentage of turnover - 0.5% for initial breaches and up to 1% for repeated offenses - capped at 1 million leva.

Major retail chains face further obligations. Stores with annual revenues over 10 million leva will have to publish daily price lists on their websites by 7 a.m. These lists must detail product names, brands, net quantities, prices, categories, discount information, promotional terms, reference prices before discounts, and percentage differences.

The law strictly limits price increases to cases where specific, external economic factors are at play. These include verifiable changes in costs related to production, delivery, storage, sales, regulatory adjustments, or extraordinary events such as force majeure, all of which must have a direct and substantial impact on prices.

Certain essential goods and services - like bread, milk, eggs, electricity, water, heating, and prescription medications - receive special attention under the Euro Adoption Act. Should prices for these items rise significantly (though the law does not specify what qualifies as “significant”), the Council of Ministers may intervene temporarily without needing prior approval from the National Assembly, aiming to protect consumers from excessive costs.