The Ministry of Finance stated that the MP from “We Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria“ and former Finance Minister admitted an inaccuracy in his statement regarding revenue data in the department's analysis for the period January-March 2025.
“The budget balance data cited by Vassilev also concern the CFP, not the state budget, which makes them incomparable. Indeed, for January 2023 and 2024. a surplus is reported under the CFP (respectively January 2023 of 460 million leva and January 2024 of 470 million leva), but for both years a deficit is reported under the state budget, respectively, in the amount of 260 million leva for January 2023 and 246 million leva for January 2024“, the announcement adds.
Their statement is in connection with the statements made by Vassilev. “If we look at the revenues from taxes and social security contributions only, nothing else, only taxes and social security contributions, for January 2024 the revenues are 4 billion 435 million, that is, 750 million more than what the Ministry of Finance has just forecast. "Given that we have an increased minimum wage, higher social security contributions, an increase in the VAT rate for restaurants and the VAT rate for bread, why will we collect 750 million less revenue this January than last January," Vassilev pointed out earlier.
“The analysis of the Ministry of Finance for the estimated parameters of revenues, expenditures, transfers and the contribution of the Republic of Bulgaria to the general EU budget and budget balance refers to the state budget, not to a consolidated fiscal program“, the ministry said.
According to the statement, the document aims to assess the estimated parameters in accordance with a requirement in the Public Finance Act. It states that expenditures and transfers under the state budget are made in an amount no greater than their amount for the same period of the previous year, up to the amount of revenues received, taking into account acts of the Council of Ministers and the National Assembly that have entered into force under the conditions of an unadopted Law on the State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2025.
„This is the reason for preparing such an analysis, which outlined a shortage in the implementation of these limits under the state budget and the need to apply the provision of the special Law on the Collection of Revenues and the Execution of Expenditures until the adoption of the 2025 budget,“ the ministry specifies.
„It is precisely for the purposes of ensuring the normal functioning of the budget systems in the conditions of an unadopted budget, that the Council of Ministers considered the report of the Minister of Finance on the estimated estimates under the state budget, and not under the CFP, for the first quarter based on the data on the preliminary forecasts provided by the revenue administrations and the primary budget spending units“, it is further emphasized.
According to the financial specialists, the state budget estimates, including tax revenues, do not include the budgets of the Social Insurance Institution and the National Health Insurance Fund, where the income from insurance comes. “The numbers quoted by Assen Vassilev in his statement of January 28 (4.455 billion leva) represent the tax and insurance revenues under the CFP, which include insurance revenues. That is why the calculation of a decrease of 750 million leva compared to the previous year is not correct“, they noted.