For students in the new 2026/2027 academic year, two extended breaks are ahead in the spring, which will allow for a better balance between classes and time for quality rest. This is outlined in the official school schedule, which has already been approved and published by the Ministry of Education and Science (MES). The first break lasts nine days at the beginning of April (from April 3 to April 11), and the second spans ten days around Easter and St. George's Day (from April 30 to May 9).
The final document is the result of a broad public discussion involving teachers, parents, and other stakeholders. During the preparation process, the MES considered numerous proposals and alternatives, with final adjustments made based on the feedback received. The primary goal of these changes is to eliminate interruptions in the educational process and facilitate the bridging of days off around holiday periods. In this regard, it has been decided that May 5 and May 7 will be non-school days for students from first to 11th grade, ensuring a longer break around the celebrations of Easter and the Day of Bravery.
A special regime is set for 12th-grade high school seniors, for whom the spring break is scheduled from April 8 to April 11. For them, May 5 and May 7 remain days of in-person classes. The MES notes that this is essential, as the school year for twelfth-graders ends earlier (on May 13). Maintaining every school day is necessary for finalizing grades in the final year of high school and for the timely preparation of students for the upcoming state matriculation exams.
The schedule for the remainder of the year includes the following key parameters:
- Traditionally, May 25 will be a non-school day—the day after the celebration of the holiday of the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, of the Bulgarian alphabet, education and culture, and of Slavic literature. This creates another four-day break from classes.
- To meet the legal requirement regarding the total number of school days, the end of the year has been shifted: students from first to third grade will finish on June 2 (Wednesday) instead of May 31 (Monday), those from fourth to sixth grade on June 16 (Wednesday) instead of June 14 (Monday), and students from seventh to 11th grade will finish on July 2 (Friday) instead of June 30 (Wednesday).
- To achieve a better balance for exams, the national external assessment in Bulgarian language and literature (BEL) at the end of the seventh and tenth grades has been moved to June 18 (Friday) instead of the initially planned June 16 (Wednesday). The mathematics exam is moved to Monday (June 21) instead of June 18. These dates are non-school days for other grades, and the change provides a greater interval between the two exams.
The remaining breaks and important dates remain unchanged from the schedule proposed in July. The school year begins on September 15; the autumn break will run from October 31, 2026, to November 2, 2026; and the Christmas break will be from December 24, 2026, to January 3, 2027. The mid-year break is planned from January 30, 2027, to February 2, 2027, and the dates for the state matriculation exams remain May 19 and May 21.
Confirmation of the start date of the school year was provided by the Minister of Education and Science, Prof. Dr. Georgi Valchev, on August 25 during a meeting of the Committee on Education and Science in the National Assembly. The preparation of this schedule went through a one-month period of public discussion, which began in July, during which opinions from all stakeholders were collected before its final adoption.