Finance
Factbox-Criteria to adopt the euro currency
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 16, 2024
2 min readLast updated: January 27, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 16, 2024
2 min readLast updated: January 27, 2026
Bulgaria may join the euro zone by 2026 if it meets EU criteria in inflation, public finances, exchange rates, and borrowing costs.
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Bulgaria might enter the euro zone and become the bloc's 21st member on January 1, 2026, if it receives a green light from the European Commission and the European Central Bank in 2025.
European Union countries aspiring to adopt the single currency need to fulfill criteria in four areas: inflation, public finances, the exchange rate and long-term borrowing costs.
INFLATION
* Inflation in the candidate country needs to be close to that in the three best performing EU members for a period of one year before examination of the country's bid. The upper limit for inflation is calculated as the average of the three best performers, plus 1.5 percentage point.
DEFICIT/DEBT
* A country's budget deficit must be below the European Union's limit of 3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in a sustainable way.
EXCHANGE RATE
* A candidate country's currency must remain relatively stable against the euro over two years, in what is called the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM-2). The currency can appreciate, but should not devalue in a significant way.
LONG-TERM BORROWING COSTS
* Yields on long-term government bonds issued by the candidate country should not be more than 2 percentage points above the average of the three European Union countries with the lowest inflation, which were used for setting the price stability criterion.
(Reporting by Jan Strupczewski)
The article discusses the criteria EU countries must meet to adopt the euro currency, focusing on inflation, public finances, exchange rates, and borrowing costs.
Inflation must be close to that of the three best performing EU members, with an upper limit of their average plus 1.5 percentage points.
ERM-2 is the Exchange Rate Mechanism where a candidate country's currency must remain stable against the euro for two years.
Explore more articles in the Finance category
