Bulgaria has a full social security system that protects people and families whether they are having financial or personal problems, including as unemployed, sick, pregnant, disabled, or elderly. The National Social Security Institute (NSSI) runs the social security system and pays for it via mandated payments from employers, workers, and self-employed people. You have to make these payments by law, and the amount you owe is dependent on a percentage of your gross income. The prices vary depending on the kind of insurance.
Coverage and contributions
In Bulgaria, the social security system covers those who work for someone else, people who work for themselves, public servants, and certain other types of workers. The payments go into a number of different accounts, such as health insurance, pensions, general sickness and maternity, unemployment, and occupational accidents. Both employers and workers pay into social security, but the employer pays more. People who work for themselves have to pay their own complete contribution and register and report their income on their own.
The social security payments make it possible to get a number of benefits and services. These include medical care via the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), unemployment benefits, sick leave benefits, maternity and parental leave benefits, and retirement pensions. The health insurance part lets people in the country get important health services at little or no cost. These services include doctor visits, hospital stays, and drugs that are prescribed.
Unemployment and sickness benefits
People who lose their jobs unwillingly and have paid into the unemployment fund for at least 12 of the past 18 months before becoming jobless may get unemployment compensation. The benefit is based on a person’s average wage during the reference period and is paid for a certain amount of time dependent on how long they worked before.
If someone becomes sick, they may get sick leave benefits as long as they have had insurance for at least six months. The company pays 70% of the employee’s average daily earnings for the first three days of sickness. After that, the NSSI pays the benefit. In certain circumstances, sick pay has a maximum amount that it can pay out, but it continues as long as the person needs medical care.
Maternity and parental benefits
In Bulgaria, there are clear rules on maternity and parental leave. Women who work are allowed to take 410 days off for maternity leave, commencing 45 days before the baby is due. If the mother has been covered for at least 12 months, she will get 90% of her average insured earnings during this time. After the mother returns to work, any parent may take parental leave until the kid is two years old, and the social security system will pay for it. Fathers also have the right to take paternity leave directly after the baby is born. Both parents may even ask for unpaid leave after the legal term ends.
Disability and pension benefits
People in Bulgaria who can’t work because of a sickness or accident for good get disability payments. The amount of the disability pension depends on how bad the disability is, how much the insured person has paid in, and how long they have worked. Expert medical commissioners conduct medical evaluations to find out how bad the person’s disability is.
Bulgaria’s pension system has old-age pensions, early retirement choices under specific circumstances, and survivor’s pensions. People must have attained the retirement age and worked the appropriate number of years to get a full old-age pension. In Bulgaria, the retirement age is slowly going raised, and both men and women must satisfy the same age and service criteria. The amount of the pension is depending on how long the person worked and how much they earned on average throughout their acovered years.
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