Online safety & content laws in Bulgaria (2026)

Legal framework

EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065), implemented nationally via amendments to the Electronic Communications Act designating the Communications Regulation Commission (CRC) as Digital Services Coordinator; plus EU GDPR and the Audiovisual Media Services framework (Council for Electronic Media)

The Digital Services Act in Bulgaria

In Bulgaria, online platforms and intermediaries are governed by the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), a directly-applicable regulation covering illegal content, transparency and user protection.

Framework

the EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065)

Approach

notice-and-action on illegal content, transparency reporting, clear terms, and protection of minors

Applies to

online intermediaries, hosting services and platforms offering services to users in Bulgaria, wherever established

Very large platforms

platforms and search engines with 45M+ EU users face extra systemic-risk audits, overseen by the European Commission

Maximum fine

up to 6% of global annual turnover

Oversight

the national Digital Services Coordinator, plus the European Commission for very large platforms

The DSA is an EU regulation applied directly in Bulgaria; the national Digital Services Coordinator handles day-to-day supervision.

Key points: internet & online safety in Bulgaria

1. 01DSA in force + national implementation

   The DSA applies directly across Bulgaria as an EU regulation; Parliament adopted Electronic Communications Act amendments on 6 November 2025, in force 25 November 2025, completing the national framework and ending the EU infringement procedure opened in 2024.

   kinstellar.com digitalpolicyalert.org

2. 02Digital Services Coordinator

   The Communications Regulation Commission (CRC) is the designated Digital Services Coordinator with supervisory and enforcement powers, including certifying out-of-court dispute-settlement bodies and awarding trusted-flagger and vetted-researcher status.

   dgkv.com twobirds.com

3. 03Multiple competent authorities

   Supervision is split: the CRC covers intermediary services (and online-interface design and recommender-system transparency across all services), the Council for Electronic Media covers video-sharing platforms, and the Commission for Personal Data Protection covers specific privacy-related areas.

   lexology.com dgkv.com

4. 04Platform liability via DSA

   Intermediary/hosting liability, notice-and-action, illegal-content takedown, transparency and risk-mitigation duties are set by the DSA's harmonised EU rules rather than a separate Bulgarian statute; the EC enforces directly against Very Large Online Platforms.

   digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu

5. 05Age verification, no national law

   Bulgaria has no national law, technical standard or policy mandating age-verification to restrict minors' access to adult/harmful online content, and no plan to deploy an EU Digital Identity Wallet for minors; child-online-safety measures rely on the DSA minor-protection guidelines (July 2025) and a national child-violence-prevention programme.

   better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu

6. 06Press/internet freedom context

   The internet is open and unrestricted (Bulgaria rates 'free'); concerns center on media capture, opaque online-media ownership and SLAPP lawsuits rather than state internet censorship, and EMFA transposition has stalled.

   rsf.org article19.org

The Digital Services Act in Bulgaria: FAQ

Timeline of decisions

1. 25 Nov 2025Law
   Electronic Communications Act Amendments Implement DSA, Infringement Proceedings Resolved

   Amendments to the Electronic Communications Act entered into force, formally empowering the Communications Regulation Commission (CRC) as Bulgaria's Digital Services Coordinator with supervisory and penalty powers under the EU Digital Services Act, and designating the Council for Electronic Media as competent authority for video-sharing services. The legislation closed the gap that had triggered EU infringement proceedings in December 2024.

   Kinstellar

2. 16 Dec 2024Enforcement · official
   European Commission Opens Infringement Proceedings Against Bulgaria for DSA Non-Compliance

   The Commission sent a letter of formal notice (INFR(2024)2241) to Bulgaria for failing to legislatively empower a Digital Services Coordinator and failing to set applicable penalty rules by the 17 February 2024 DSA deadline, initiating formal infringement proceedings against Bulgaria alongside Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, and Poland.

   European Commission

3. 13 Jun 2024Decision
   Council of Ministers Designates CRC as Digital Services Coordinator

   By Decision No. 405/13.6.2024, Bulgaria's Council of Ministers administratively designated the Communications Regulation Commission as the national Digital Services Coordinator under the DSA, an interim step that lacked the necessary legislative basis, leaving enforcement powers ungranted and prompting the Commission's subsequent infringement action six months later.

   Bird & Bird DSA Tracker

Sources

1. 1.digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-calls-bulgaria-comply-digital-services-act
2. 2.kinstellar.com/news-and-insights/detail/3893/bulgaria-completes-digital-services-act
3. 3.dgkv.com/news/bulgarian-legislative-framework-updated-to-implement-the-eu-digi
4. 4.digitalpolicyalert.org/event/36922-bill-implementing-digital-services-act-in-bulgaria-design
5. 5.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=24a942e5-dda0-470a-a708-32b9db6a5d6a
6. 6.twobirds.com/en/trending-topics/digital-services-act-tracker-and-uk-online-safety-
7. 7.better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/knowledge-hub/bulgaria-policy-monitor-country-profile
8. 8.digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/commission-publishes-guidelines-protection-minors
9. 9.rsf.org/en/country/bulgaria
10. 10.article19.org/resources/bulgaria-press-freedom-undermined-by-political-polarisation