Bulgaria ranks 35th among 178 countries in the Heritage Foundation’s 2021 Index of Economic Freedom. Thus our country maintains its position in the “mostly free” category, where Bulgaria climbed up a year ago.
The index measures countries on 12 indicators in four categories: Rule of law, Government size, Regulatory efficiency, and Open markets. With a maximum score of 100 points, Bulgaria received 70.4, an increase of 0.2 points compared to the previous year, mainly due to an improvement in the assessment of the tax burden. The result is above the average for the region and the world. In Europe, Bulgaria ranks 20th among 45 countries, and 1st in the Balkans.
In the Government size category, Bulgaria put on a good performance in the indicators of tax weight and fiscal health, with the good result mainly due to the flat tax and government gross debt.
The assessments for Open markets and Regulatory efficiency have also risen. For the category of open markets, the study shows that as a member of the European Union, Bulgaria has 45 existing preferential trade agreements. Traditionally, our country lags behind in the Rule of law category.
This is Heritage Foundation’s 27th edition of the “Index of Economic Freedom”. The study defines the term “economic freedom” as the fundamental right of every human to control his or her own labor and property.
At the top of the index, this year are Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, and Iceland – each with a score of over 80 points. The survey page offers easy-to-read comparisons between countries, custom graphics, and an interactive map. Bulgaria’s profile and full index can be viewed here
