Bulgaria has used the euro since 1 January 2026, its minimum wage is €620 a month and income tax is a flat 10%. Unemployment fell to 3.5% in 2025, and there are shortages of IT specialists, engineers, nurses, teachers and skilled tradespeople. Find out where to look for a job and what to do in your first weeks.
Bulgaria is a country of 6.4 million people with an employment rate above the EU average: 77.0% of people aged 20–64 have a job (EU: 76.1%).
Unemployment is low and falling: from 4.2% in 2022 to 3.5% in 2025, well below the EU average of 6.0%. Youth unemployment has gone up – from 10.6% in 2022 to 13.1% among people aged 15–24 in 2025 – but it is still below the EU average of 15.2%.
As an EU/EEA or Swiss citizen you do not need a work permit. Since 1 January 2026 Bulgaria uses the euro (€1 = 1.95583 lev) – useful to know when you read older pay figures in leva. For most jobs you need Bulgarian.
Key figures: Eurostat (population on 1 January 2026; unemployment and employment rates 2025; minimum wages July 2026); for the United Kingdom – Office for National Statistics; for Liechtenstein – national statistics. Country information: EURES – Living and working conditions, public employment services and the official government websites listed under each country. Rules, thresholds and amounts can change – check the official sources before you move. Updated: October 2026.
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