Bulgaria cleared to join the euro on January 1

The European Commission says Bulgaria is free to adopt the euro on January 1 next year. 

The decision, announced in the Commission's 2025 Convergence Report on June 4, paves the way for Bulgaria to become the 21st EU member state to join the euro area. 

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, welcomed the move, saying in a statement: "Thanks to the euro, Bulgaria's economy will become stronger, with more trade with euro area partners, foreign direct investment, access to finance, quality jobs and real incomes."

She added: "Bulgaria will take its rightful place in shaping the decisions at the heart of the euro area."

The report, prepared at the request of the Bulgarian government, found that Bulgaria fulfilled the four nominal convergence criteria "intended to ensure that a country is ready to adopt the euro and that its economy is sufficiently prepared to do so."

It showed that "the Member State's legislation is also found to be compatible with the requirements of the Treaty and the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank (ECB)."

Valdis Dombrovskis, EU Commissioner for Economy and Productivity; Implementation and Simplification, called the report "a historic moment for Bulgaria, the euro area and the European Union."

Dombrovskis added: "Today's announcement is the culmination of a five-year journey, since it entered ERM II in 2020…..Following on from Bulgaria becoming a full member of the Schengen Area earlier this year, it brings Bulgaria ever closer to the heart of Europe."

According to the report: "The Council of the EU will take the final decisions on Bulgaria's euro adoption, following discussions in the Eurogroup and the European Council, and after the European Parliament and the ECB have delivered their opinions."

Not everyone in Bulgaria is convinced of the benefits of joining the euro. 

Thousands of people took to the streets in Sofia and other cities last weekend calling on the government to preserve the country's currency, the Bulgarian lev. The demonstrations were organized by the ultranationalist Revival Party.

Some fear that entering the eurozone will cause prices to rise and limit the country's economic sovereignty.

President Rumen Radev has submitted a request to parliament to hold a referendum on accession.

Croatia was the most recent country to adopt the euro as its currency on January 1, 2023. 

The euro was first introduced in January 1999 when it became the official currency of 11 EU member states but it was only three years later that currency notes and coins were introduced. 

It is managed and administered by the European Central Bank and the Eurosystem, which is composed of the central banks of the eurozone countries. The currency is used by around 350 million people.