Sofia, August 26, 2025 – The Europe Today: Beginning December 1, 2025, commercial banks and post offices across Bulgaria will offer promotional starter sets containing the new euro coins. The coins will feature national symbols and inscriptions on one side, aiming to familiarize citizens with the new currency ahead of its official adoption as Bulgaria’s legal tender on January 1, 2026.
Distribution of euro banknotes and coins to banks and post offices will commence in November, with free exchange from leva to euro available at these institutions for six months following the currency changeover. The minting of Bulgarian euro coins is scheduled to start in August, while production of euro banknotes with Bulgarian-specific designs will begin in 2027, with the initial supply provided by the European Central Bank.
Each starter pack will be priced at BGN 20 and contain coins worth €10.23 at the fixed exchange rate. However, these coins cannot be used for payments until January 1, 2026, nor will they be accepted in other eurozone countries before that date. The Bulgarian National Bank plans to release one million sets, with possible purchase limits per person.
Designs include the Madara Horseman on the 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cent coins, St. Ivan Rilski on the €1 coin, and Paisii Hilendarski on the €2 coin. Companies and legal entities may also purchase larger packs, valued at BGN 200 and containing coins equivalent to €102.26, which will be sold exclusively through banks.
The starter sets are not intended for circulation but are designed to allow citizens and businesses to gradually adjust to the new currency. Similar practices were observed in other eurozone entrants; for example, Croatia made euro starter kits available a month before its official adoption on January 1, 2023, which were quickly purchased by households and companies as keepsakes or symbolic gifts.
