The National Council for Tripartite Cooperation (NCTC) is meeting for a key meeting today, September 14, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. in the Granite Hall of the Council of Ministers. The main focus of the agenda is the proposal of the Ministry of Social Affairs to increase the official poverty line in Bulgaria by 13.4% .
Thus, from January 1, 2027, its size will reach 443 euros compared to the current 390 euros, which is a jump of over 52 euros. The change is tied to the Eurostat income survey, as the monthly benefits of nearly 800 thousand Bulgarians with permanent disabilities and access to family benefits for children depend on the new threshold. Currently, every fifth citizen in our country lives below this threshold.
In parallel with incomes, business and unions will also discuss two controversial bills for radical changes in the Labor Code, submitted by members of parliament. From „Democratic Bulgaria“ insist on easing the employment of minors between 16 and 18 years of age, replacing the current onerous permit regime from the Labor Inspectorate (GIT) with a simple prior notification by the employer.
However, the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy is firmly against it, as it sees a risk of children working in a dangerous environment. The second project is by GERB-SDF and aims at stronger protection of pregnant women and mothers on fixed-term contracts, by proposing that their contracts be automatically extended until the end of maternity leave - a measure against which the social department also expressed disagreement.