NextGenerationEU: European Commission endorses positive preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s request for €1.37 billion disbursement under the Recovery and Resilience Facility

Today, the European Commission has endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s payment request for €1.37 billion of grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the key instrument at the heart of NextGenerationEU. On 31 August 2022, Bulgaria submitted to the Commission a payment request based on the achievement of the 22 milestones and targets selected in the Council Implementing Decision. They cover reforms and investments in the areas of education, smart industry, climate neutrality, digital connectivity, sustainable transport and road safety, justice, anti-money laundering, social inclusion, healthcare, and audit and control. With their request, the Bulgarian authorities provided detailed and comprehensive evidence demonstrating the fulfilment of the 22 milestones and targets. The Commission has now sent its positive preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s fulfilment of the milestones and targets required for this payment to the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC), asking for its opinion. Following the EFC’s opinion, the Commission will adopt the final decision on the disbursement of the financial contribution, after which the disbursement to Bulgaria will take place. More information is available in a press release and Q&A online. You can find the video message by President von der Leyen here.