The cabinet decided today to cut 35 posts at the Customs Agency and 119 at the National Revenue Agency (NRA), the government press office said.
Ministers approved a decree that changes the Customs Agency's structural rules. The cuts affect vacant posts and jobs that have stood empty for a long time. Some administrative units will be restructured.
At the Central Customs Directorate, the government is closing two departments: "Administrative Services and Communications" and "Post-Clearance Control". Other units in the directorate will take over their work. Some customs offices will also be restructured, and the departments' tasks will be divided up in a new way.
The fight against illegal trafficking in drugs and precursors will be led from the centre. Customs will also have its own representative at Europol, the EU's law enforcement cooperation agency. The government says this will strengthen operational cooperation and information sharing with EU and non-EU agencies.
The press office says the cuts will not stop customs officers from doing the work the law gives them. According to the cabinet, the new structure matches the sharp rise in online trade and the major overhaul of customs laws. It must also cope with growing international trade and more vehicles and goods passing through Bulgaria since it joined the Schengen area.
The government expects the staff changes at national and local level to bring in more revenue and improve internal control. It says they will also allow a more sensible choice of businesses and taxpayers to check, with transparency, fairness and accountability.
The NRA cuts will be made by amending decree No. 215 of 1999. The decree sets total staff numbers in bodies whose heads are secondary budget holders under the finance ministry's budget. The government says the aim is to bring staff numbers closer to the work the agency actually does.
In the draft 2027 state budget law, the government plans to cut more than 5,000 posts, BTA recalls.