There are less than 15 days left when Bulgaria will officially introduce the euro as its sole legal tender. However, as the date of January 1 approaches, the concerns of the average consumer are also increasing. Dozens of Bulgarians are asking themselves the question: will we be able to shop in stores with another euro that is not Bulgarian? The short answer is: yes, writes Businessnovinite.bg.
The euro is the same everywhere in the eurozone
The euro is a single currency for all countries in the eurozone, including Bulgaria (since 2026) and Greece (a member since 2001). This means that euro banknotes and coins issued by any member state, for example Greece, are fully legal tender wherever the euro is the official currency. Therefore, the Greek euro will be accepted without any problems in Bulgaria, just like all other euro banknotes and coins. And vice versa. Once Bulgaria joins the eurozone, Bulgarian euro coins and banknotes can be used for shopping in all countries participating in the eurozone.
In other words: if you have Greek euros (any coins and banknotes), you can shop with them in Bulgaria after 1 January 2026 without any problems, because they are essentially the same currency. All euro money, whether Greek, German, Spanish or Bulgarian, will be accepted everywhere in Bulgaria.
What does this mean for traders and consumers?
From January 1, 2026, all shops, establishments, services and institutions in Bulgaria will accept only euros as a means of payment, the lev will no longer be legal tender after the end of the dual circulation period, which ends on January 31, 2026.
As the BNB reminds, within one month (January 2026) the two types of money, lev and euro, can be used in parallel, but after that only euro will remain.
Exchanging levs for euros
The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) will exchange levs for euros at the official fixed rate of 1.95583 lev = 1 euro free of charge, in unlimited quantities and without restrictions in time. This means that every citizen can convert their levs into euros without fees directly at the BNB.
Commercial banks and “Bulgarian Posts“ will also exchange levs for euros without fees, but only up to 12 months after the introduction of the euro, after which they may impose restrictions or fees.