Bulgaria net salary calculator 2026 — gross to net

A gross salary of €1,000 a month leaves about €776 net for 2026, after €137.80 in social and health contributions and €86.22 in income tax.

Curious what actually lands in your bank account after tax in Bulgaria? Enter your gross monthly pay below and this calculator shows your 2026 take-home salary — the 13.78% social and health contributions, the flat 10% income tax, and the net figure in both euro and leva.

The figure above is your net monthly salary — what reaches your account after mandatory deductions. It does not include voluntary pension top-ups, union dues, garnishments, or the year-end tax reconciliation that can adjust the total slightly. The employer-cost line shows what your job costs your company, which is your gross plus the employer's own contributions.

Gross monthly salary	Net salary
500	€388
1,000	€776
1,500	€1,164
2,000	€1,552
2,500	€1,988
3,000	€2,438
3,500	€2,888
4,000	€3,338
4,500	€3,788
5,000	€4,238

What changed for 2026

For 2026 the Bulgarian take-home formula is unchanged from 2025: employees still pay 13.78% in social and health contributions and a flat 10% income tax. A proposed two-percentage-point pension-contribution increase in the draft budget was withdrawn after union and employer opposition, so net pay rules stayed the same.

The headline change everyone braced for never happened. The draft 2026 budget floated raising the pension contribution by two points, but the increase was dropped after the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions (КНСБ) and employers pushed back. Several popular calculators still compute with the rejected higher rate and overstate your deductions — this one uses the rates actually in force.

Two things genuinely did change. From 1 January 2026 Bulgaria adopted the euro, so every threshold is now stated in euro at the fixed rate of 1.95583 leva per euro — that is why the tool shows both currencies. And from 1 August 2026 the maximum insurable income rises from 2,111.64 € to 2,300 €, which raises contributions only for high earners above the cap. Choose the August–December period in the calculator to see that effect.

Bulgaria 2026 payroll rates and thresholds

A standard Bulgarian employee pays 13.78% of insurable income in social and health contributions — split across pension, supplementary pension, sickness, unemployment and health funds — plus a flat 10% income tax on the remainder. The employer adds a further 18.52% on top of gross pay.

The table below breaks down every fund for a standard third-category contract (Кодекс за социално осигуряване, чл. 6). The employee column is what comes off your pay; the employer column is paid on top of your salary by your company.

Fund	Employee %	Employer %	Total %
Pension (фонд Пенсии)	6.58	8.22	14.80
Supplementary pension (УПФ/ДЗПО)	2.20	2.80	5.00
Sickness & maternity (ОЗМ)	1.40	2.10	3.50
Unemployment (Безработица)	0.40	0.60	1.00
Work accident (ТЗПБ)	0.00	0.40–1.10	0.40–1.10
Health insurance (ЗОВ)	3.20	4.80	8.00
TOTAL (excl. ТЗПБ)	13.78	18.52	32.30

Two thresholds frame the result. The statutory minimum wage from 1 January 2026 is 620.20 € a month (1,213 BGN), which is also the contribution floor for full-time staff. The maximum monthly insurable income — the ceiling on which contributions are charged — is 2,111.64 € until the end of July 2026 and 2,300 € from August. Earnings above the cap are still taxed at 10%, but they carry no further contributions, per the National Revenue Agency (НАП).

How we calculate net salary

Net salary is gross pay minus 13.78% in employee contributions (charged on income up to the monthly cap), minus a 10% income tax on what remains. The tax is applied to gross pay reduced by those contributions — not to the full gross — under ЗДДФЛ чл. 42.

The order matters. First, contributions are charged on your insurable income, which is your gross capped at the maximum insurable base. Then the 10% tax applies to gross minus those contributions, not to your gross directly (ЗДДФЛ чл. 42, ал. 2). That two-step sequence is why your effective tax rate is below 10% of gross.

A worked example on the minimum wage: a gross of 620.20 € incurs 85.46 € in contributions (13.78% × 620.20). The tax base is 620.20 − 85.46 = 534.74 €, and 10% of that is 53.47 €. Take-home pay is 620.20 − 85.46 − 53.47 = 481.27 €. For a 1,000 € gross the same steps give 137.80 € in contributions, 86.22 € in tax and 775.98 € net — the scenario shown in the calculator's offline summary.

If you claim the child tax relief, each minor child cuts your monthly tax base by 255.65 € (500 BGN), saving roughly 25.56 € in tax per child. New for 2026, you can apply it monthly through your employer rather than waiting for the year-end return (ЗДДФЛ чл. 22в). Open the advanced options to add it.

Ever wondered why your effective tax rate is lower than the headline 10% — and how the order of deductions quietly works in your favour?

Frequently asked questions

How much net salary will I take home in Bulgaria in 2026?

For most employees, net salary is just over 77% of gross. You pay 13.78% in social and health contributions and then 10% income tax on the remainder, so a 1,000 € gross leaves about 776 € net. Enter your own gross above for an exact figure.

What is the income tax rate in Bulgaria?

Bulgaria levies a flat 10% personal income tax on employment income, one of the lowest in the EU. Crucially, the tax base is your gross pay minus your mandatory contributions, not your full gross, under ЗДДФЛ чл. 42 as confirmed by the National Revenue Agency (НАП).

What social security contributions are deducted from my pay?

A standard employee pays 13.78% of insurable income: 6.58% pension, 2.20% supplementary universal pension, 1.40% sickness and maternity, 0.40% unemployment, and 3.20% health insurance. The total is the same whether you were born before or after 1960; only the internal split differs.

Is there a cap on contributions?

Yes. Contributions are charged only on income up to the maximum monthly insurable base — 2,111.64 € from January to July 2026, rising to 2,300 € from 1 August 2026 and frozen there through 2028. Earnings above the cap are taxed at 10% but carry no further contributions.

How did euro adoption change my salary figures?

From 1 January 2026 Bulgaria uses the euro, so all payroll thresholds are stated in euro at the irrevocable fixed rate of 1.95583 leva per euro. Your purchasing power is unchanged; only the unit on your payslip is different. This calculator shows both euro and leva for the transition period.

How much does an employee actually cost the employer?

On top of your gross pay, the employer pays a further 18.52% in contributions (plus a 0.4–1.1% work-accident premium that varies by risk class). So a 1,000 € gross salary costs the company about 1,185 €. The calculator shows this as the total employer cost.

Did the proposed 2026 pension increase take effect?

No. The two-percentage-point pension-contribution rise in the draft 2026 budget was withdrawn after opposition from the КНСБ trade union confederation and employers. Contribution rates for 2026 stayed at their 2025 levels, so any calculator using the higher rate overstates your deductions.