Bulgaria’s government has put forward a significant package of gambling reforms for public consultation, targeting advertising, taxation, and financial transparency.
Among the most striking proposals is a complete ban on gambling advertising across the country, representing one of the most restrictive measures of its kind in Europe.
Authorities have framed the advertising ban primarily as a consumer protection measure, with officials placing particular emphasis on shielding children and young people from aggressive promotional campaigns.
The proposed amendments to Bulgaria’s gambling act also include stricter financial reporting requirements, designed to strengthen anti-money laundering processes and crack down on tax evasion.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev has publicly stated that the goal of the reforms is to achieve “greater transparency, fairer taxation, and above all, curbing gambling addiction.”
The government has pointed to a pattern of behaviour by certain international operators who have reportedly been moving funds through and out of Bulgaria that should have been registered with customs authorities.
Radev further stated that the provisions being proposed “strike deep into one of organised crime’s most lucrative sectors: the movement of goods across the EU’s external borders to the detriment of European and national finances.”
The reforms are expected to significantly tighten the consequences for customs violations, which are set to be reclassified as criminal offences rather than minor administrative infractions.
This reclassification represents a substantial escalation in how Bulgarian authorities intend to pursue and punish financial misconduct connected to the gambling industry.
The full package of proposed changes is currently undergoing public consultation, meaning operators, industry bodies, and citizens still have an opportunity to formally respond before any legislation is finalised.
If passed in their current form, the reforms would mark one of the most dramatic reshaping of Bulgaria’s gambling regulatory framework in recent memory, touching everything from advertising rules to criminal liability.
The proposals signal a broader European trend of governments moving to assert greater control over the gambling sector, particularly around consumer protections and the financial flows that pass through licensed operators.
