In October 2016, IME together with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom launched “My taxes” – a specialized online personal tax calculator, which can be accessed at the kolkodavam.bg website. The name “kolkodavam.bg” translates to “How much do I give?”. We are happy to announce that the website is already available in English.

The mirror site in English allows comparisons between the tax burden in Bulgaria and that in other countries, where such online applications can also be found. The goal of kolkodavam.bg is to shed light on the taxes that each person that works and lives in Bulgaria pays and to illustrate the cost of the state borne by each citizen through a so-called “personal receipt”.

This page allows every person in employment to calculate the taxes and insurance payments that he or she pays. Through several simple questions, the application enables anyone to calculate their individual personal tax and social security burden depending on their salary and consumption, and to see the personal receipt that shows what the state will spend these taxes on.

Various experiments with the application have shown that the tax burden of an average working Bulgarian is typically within the 40-45% range – i.e. about 40-45% of the total expenditures of their employer is transferred to the state via different tax payments.

The biggest burden comes from social security contributions (made both by the employer and the employee) and VAT, which is paid upon consumption. The consumption of excise goods (especially cigarettes and fuel) is also the source of a significant tax burden for those who buy such goods regularly.

Check out your taxes at kolkodavam.bg!