Changes from the European Commission’s new directive on minimum excise duties for tobacco will drive up the price on a pack of cigarettes in Bulgaria by 2.40 leva ($1.34) beginning April 1.
According to the draft document, the European Commission’s revised minimum excise duty on cigarettes will double to 180 euros per 1,000 cigarettes or 3.60 euros per pack. The new excise rates will be adjusted based on national price levels, with data from the European Statistical Office showing that tobacco product prices in Bulgaria are 56.6% of the EU average.
The updated minimum excise duty for Bulgaria will be 153.96 euros per 1,000 cigarettes, translating to a tax of 6.02 leva ($3.37) per pack of cigarettes, up from the current 4.05 leva ($2.27) after the application of a 20% VAT on the new duty. The Ministry of Finance is trying to decide whether to raise the prices with a series of three incremental hikes, a sharp one-time raise, or the continuation of the current annual increase schedule.
In addition to the April increase, there will be a further excise tax hike on tobacco products, including cigarettes, on May 1. This increase, included in the 2025 budget, is expected to generate an additional 203 million leva ($113.7 million) in 2025 and a total of 953 million leva ($533.7 million) by 2028.
