Bulgaria will remain a member of the eurozone indefinitely, EU Council sources told Club Z ahead of the country’s first full participation in the Eurogroup. When asked whether any mechanism exists for Bulgaria to leave the eurozone, officials replied that the country’s inclusion is irreversible.
Until January 1, Bulgaria, like all new EU member states, benefited from a temporary derogation from the obligation to adopt the euro. This transitional arrangement delayed full adoption of the single currency after joining the EU. However, the European Council’s decision to lift the derogation makes Bulgaria’s entry into the eurozone permanent, the officials emphasized.
Bulgaria will participate as a full member for the first time in the Eurogroup meeting on January 19, alongside finance ministers from 21 of the 27 EU countries that use the euro. Outgoing Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova will represent the country at the session.
The upcoming meeting will also be the first chaired by the new Eurogroup president, Greek Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierakakis, who succeeds former Irish minister Paschal Donohoe. Bulgaria’s inclusion marks a historic step as the country formally joins the core group of eurozone decision-makers.