One of the two lawsuits targets EU rules for the internal electricity market, which Bulgaria has not fully written into its own law. The rules are meant to give consumers strong protection and let everyone take an active part in the energy market. The deadline was 31 December 2020. Brussels sent a formal notice in February 2021, followed by a reasoned opinion in April 2023, because some of the rules still had not made it into Bulgarian law.
The European Commission points to several gaps: third-party access to the grid, the permit system for new power plants, and consumers' right to join group schemes for switching suppliers. The Commission also flags the rules on using flexibility in distribution networks. The grid operator has no set tasks for digitalisation, data handling or support services outside frequency control. Bulgaria's energy regulator has no power to oversee investment in generation and storage, or in households' own power production, nor can it approve the methods used for support services. After reviewing Bulgaria's replies, the Commission says the rules still are not being applied.
The other lawsuit concerns rules on hired vehicles, which set minimum standards for trucks hired without drivers to carry goods. The aim is to cut costs and give hauliers more flexibility. EU countries had to bring in the rules by 6 August 2023, but Bulgaria has adopted only one of the required rules — not enough, the Commission says.
On four other matters, the legal process is still running. The Commission wants Bulgaria to change its law on owning and using farmland. Under the law, people and companies can only buy farmland if they have lived or been based in the country for more than five years. The rule has been in place since 2014, and Brussels has asked for it to be scrapped since 2016, but the issue remains unresolved despite talks. The five-year rule unfairly limits the free movement of capital and the right to set up a business in another EU country, the Commission says. On 18 January 2024 the EU Court of Justice ruled that requiring more than five years' residence breaks EU rules on the free movement of capital. If Bulgaria does not change the law within two months, the Commission can take the case to the EU court.
Bulgaria has also received a formal notice over digital services rules. The reason: the Commission for Personal Data Protection and the Council for Electronic Media have not been named and given power as coordinators. After the first letter and the reasoned opinion, Bulgaria passed a law naming only one body as coordinator. The Commission also says fines are not being applied correctly — the law does not always stick to the maximum fine limits and does not ensure all penalties are effective, proportionate and act as a real deterrent, partly because people and companies are treated differently. The Commission raised its concerns in May 2025 and is now giving Bulgaria two months to reply.
Bulgaria, along with the Czech Republic, Spain, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Poland and Romania, has not reported full compliance with rules on waste from electrical and electronic equipment. These rules aim to boost reuse, recycling and recovery, and require manufacturers across the EU to cover the cost of disposing of used solar panels, including panels sold before the rules changed. The deadline was 9 October last year, the warning letter is dated November, and once the two-month reply period ends, the Commission can take the case to the EU court.
Sixteen countries have received a reasoned opinion over rules on consumer credit agreements: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Ireland, Spain, France, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia. The deadline was 20 November last year, the infringement cases opened in January this year, and if the replies due within two months do not satisfy the Commission, it can ask the EU court to impose fines.