**Summary:**
Council Regulation (EU) 2025/1409, enacted on July 8, 2025, amends Regulation (EC) No. 2866/98 to establish the conversion rate between the euro and the Bulgarian lev. This regulation is a direct consequence of Council Decision (EU) 2025/1407, which determined that Bulgaria fulfills the necessary conditions for adopting the euro on January 1, 2026, thereby abrogating its derogation status.
The key provision of this regulation sets the definitive conversion rate at 1.95583 Bulgarian lev per 1 euro, aligning with the current central rate of the lev within the Exchange Rate Mechanism II (ERM II). This rate is incorporated into Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No. 2866/98. The regulation is binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all member states from January 1, 2026.
Key Entities Referenced
European Union: A political and economic union of member states located primarily in Europe.
Council Regulation (EU) 2025/1409: A legal act of the European Union amending Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 as regards the conversion rate to the euro for Bulgaria.
Regulation (EC) No 2866/98: Council Regulation determining the conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the Member States adopting the euro.
Bulgaria: A Member State of the European Union adopting the euro.
Euro: The single currency of the European Union.
European Central Bank: The central bank of the Eurozone.
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union: One of the primary treaties of the European Union.
Bulgarian lev: The currency of Bulgaria, with a conversion rate to the euro set at 1.95583.
Official Journal EN
of the European Union L series
2025/1409 14.7.2025
COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) 2025/1409
of 8 July 2025
amending Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 as regards the conversion rate to the euro for Bulgaria
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 140(3) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Central Bank(1),
Whereas:
(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 2866/98(2)determines the conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the
Member States adopting the euro as from 1 January 1999.
(2) According to Article 5 of the 2005 Act of Accession(3), Bulgaria is a Member State with a derogation, within the
meaning of Article 139(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
(3) Pursuant to Council Decision (EU) 2025/1407(4)regarding the adoption on 1 January 2026 of the euro by Bulgaria,
Bulgaria fulfils the necessary conditions for the adoption of the euro and the derogation of Bulgaria is abrogated with
effect from 1 January 2026.
(4) The introduction of the euro in Bulgaria requires the adoption of the conversion rate between the euro and the
Bulgarian lev. This conversion rate should be set at 1,95583 lev per 1 euro, which corresponds to the current central
rate of the lev in the exchange rate mechanism (ERM II).
(5) Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 should therefore be amended accordingly,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
In Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 2866/98, the following line is inserted between the conversion rates applicable to the
Belgian franc and the German mark:
‘= 1,95583 Bulgarian lev’.
Article 2
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January 2026.
(1) Opinion of 2 July 2025 (OJ C, C/2025/3948, 10.7.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/3948/oj).
(2) Council Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 of 31 December 1998 on the conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the
Member States adopting the euro (OJ L 359, 31.12.1998, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/1998/2866/oj).
(3) Act concerning the conditions of accession of the Republic of Bulgaria and Romania and the adjustments to the treaties on which
the European Union is founded (OJ L 157, 21.6.2005, p. 203).
(4) Council Decision (EU) 2025/1407 of 8 July 2025 on the adoption by Bulgaria of the euro on 1 January 2026 (OJ L, 2025/1407,
14.7.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2025/1407/oj).
ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/1409/oj 1/2EN
OJ L, 14.7.2025
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 8 July 2025.
For the Council
The President
S. LOSE
2/2 ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/1409/oj