Regulation No. 70 of 23.06.2026 on Requirements for Payment Funds

REGULATION No. 70 of 23.06.2026 on the requirements for payment funds Pub. - State Gazette, No. 61 of 03.07.2026, effective from 01.01.2027 Adopted by Decision No. 281-N of 23.06.2026 of the Commission for Financial Supervision

Section I General Provisions

Art. 1. This Regulation defines the requirements for the formation and maintenance of funds for the payment of life pensions and funds for term payments, the calculation of the required amount of funds therein and any surplus, the replenishment of the funds, and the release of funds from them.

Section II Funds for the Payment of Life Pensions

Art. 2. (1) Upon its creation in accordance with Art. 123r, para. 1-5 of the Social Insurance Code (SIC), the fund for the payment of life pensions shall be formed from the funds of persons with whom pension contracts under Art. 167 and Art. 245b of the SIC have been concluded, by the end of the third working day from the registration of the fund for the payment of life pensions in the BULSTAT register.

(2) The funds in the individual accounts of the persons referred to in para. 1, and respectively the funds due to the persons referred to in para. 1 with the right to a survivor pension, shall be accrued as a liability of the respective pension fund to the fund for the payment of life pensions on the day of conclusion of the pension contract with the respective person, valued at one share valid for the working day preceding the conclusion of the contract.

(3) The accrued funds under para. 2 shall be transferred to the fund for the payment of life pensions within three working days after its registration in the BULSTAT register.

(4) The funds of persons with whom pension contracts under Art. 167 and Art. 245b of the SIC are concluded after the third working day from the registration of the fund for the payment of life pensions in the BULSTAT register shall be transferred to the fund for the payment of life pensions on the day of conclusion of the pension contract with the respective person or no later than on the next working day after that date. When the funds of the person are transferred on the next working day after the conclusion of the pension contract, they shall be accrued as a liability of the respective pension fund to the fund for the payment of life pensions on the day of conclusion of the contract, valued at one share valid for the working day preceding the conclusion of the contract.

(5) In the cases under para. 2 and 4, the funds in the accounts of persons insured in a universal pension fund shall be accrued as a liability after their replenishment, if necessary, in accordance with Art. 131, para. 2-5 of the SIC.

(6) The funds on the basis of which pensions are recalculated shall be transferred from the individual accounts of the persons under Art. 127, para. 6 and 7 and Art. 230, para. 10 of the SIC to the fund for the payment of life pensions on the date under Art. 169g, para. 2 or Art. 246v, para. 2 of the SIC, and if that date is a non-working day, on the first working day after that date.

Art. 3. (1) The following shall be reflected in the analytical account under Art. 123r, para. 11 of the SIC:

1. the income by which the amount of payments to pensioners and their heirs under Art. 169v, para. 2 and para. 4, first sentence, Art. 170, para. 6, and Art. 246b, para. 2 and para. 4, first sentence of the SIC and § 187, para. 2 of the transitional and final provisions of the Law on Amendment and Supplement to the Social Insurance Code (State Gazette, No. 27 of 2026) was not increased;
2. the period to which the undistributed income under item 1 relates;
3. the amount used from the analytical account to preserve the size of pensions in accordance with Art. 169v, para. 4, second sentence, and Art. 246b, para. 4, second sentence of the SIC and § 187, para. 4 of the transitional and final provisions of the Law on Amendment and Supplement to the Social Insurance Code;
4. the period in connection with which the amount under item 3 was used;
5. the operations carried out for the allocation of funds under item 1 and the use of funds under item 3 and their dates;
6. the balance of the analytical account.

(2) The income under para. 1, item 1 amounts to the sum of:

1. the part of the income from the fund's activities by which payments under the concluded pension contracts were not increased until 31 December 2026, determined in accordance with the period of participation, the present value of assumed liabilities to each person with the right to payments under these contracts, and the excess over the used technical interest rate;
2. the part of the income from the fund's activities by which payments under the concluded pension contracts were not increased after 31 December 2026, determined in accordance with the period of participation and the present value of assumed liabilities to each person with the right to payments under these contracts.

(3) The amount under para. 1, item 3 amounts to the sum of:

1. the funds used to preserve the size of payments under the concluded pension contracts until 31 December 2026, incl., and
2. the funds used to preserve the size of payments under the concluded pension contracts after the date under item 1.

(4) The income from the activities of the fund for the payment of life pensions (D) is calculated depending on the period to which it relates, using the following formula:

[Formula omitted in source text representation, but described as dependent on n, i, A0, An, Fi, Ii, Mi, Ni]

where: n is the number of days in the period; i - sequential day during the period; A0 - net assets at the end of the previous period; An - net assets at the end of the period; Fi - net cash flow in the fund for day i (with sign + or -), where Fi = Ii - Mi - Ni, where: Ii - funds received from individual accounts for the purpose of making payments from the fund, excluding the funds under Art. 170, para. 9, items 1 and 3 and Art. 245, para. 3 of the SIC, as well as funds received in accordance with Art. 123r, para. 16 of the SIC, during the i-th day of the period; Mi - the amount of accrued liabilities during the i-th day of the period, excluding liabilities to persons receiving payments from the fund, the expenses under Art. 123r, para. 9 of the SIC charged to the fund, and the accrued fee under Art. 123c, para. 1 of the SIC; Ni - funds paid out during the i-th day of the period to persons receiving payments from the fund.

(5) The balance under para. 1, item 6 is increased by the amounts under para. 1, item 1 and decreased by the amounts under para. 1, item 3. The balance cannot be less than zero.

Art. 4. (1) The required amount of funds in the fund for the payment of life pensions is determined by the responsible actuary by 31 December of each year and is equal to the liabilities to pensioners and their heirs as of that date.

(2) Liabilities to pensioners and their heirs are equal to the present value of payments due to pensioners and their heirs after their last update in accordance with Art. 169v, para. 2 and 4, Art. 170, para. 6, and Art. 246b, para. 2 and 4 of the SIC and § 187, para. 2 of the transitional and final provisions of the Law on Amendment and Supplement to the Social Insurance Code, and the last recalculation of pensions under Art. 169g and Art. 246v, para. 1 and 2 of the SIC.

(3) The present value of liabilities to pensioners amounts to the sum of:

1. the present value of liabilities under pension contracts concluded until 31 December 2026, incl., determined on the basis of: a) the technical interest rate used for calculating the pension of the respective person; b) the mortality table and average remaining life expectancy used for calculating the pension of the respective person; c) the remaining periods for guaranteed payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 2 of the SIC; d) the remaining periods for installment payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 3 of the SIC; e) the age of pensioners as of the date of calculating the present value of liabilities to them, in completed years and months; and
2. the present value of liabilities under pension contracts concluded after the date under item 1, determined on the basis of: a) the table under Art. 169, para. 1, item 2 of the SIC, used for calculating the pension of the respective person; b) the remaining periods for guaranteed payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 2 and Art. 245b, para. 1, item 2 of the SIC; c) the remaining periods for installment payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 3 and Art. 245b, para. 1, item 3 of the SIC; d) the age of pensioners as of the date of calculating the present value of liabilities to them, in completed years and months.

(4) The value of liabilities to heirs of deceased pensioners amounts to the sum of:

1. the present value of liabilities to heirs of deceased pensioners with contracts concluded until 31 December 2026, incl., determined on the basis of: a) the technical interest rate used for calculating the pension of the deceased pensioner; b) the remaining periods for guaranteed payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 2 of the SIC from the dates of death of the respective pensioners; c) the remaining periods for installment payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, item 3 of the SIC from the dates of death of the respective pensioners;
2. the remainder of payments due to deceased pensioners with contracts concluded after the date under item 1, determined on the basis of the remaining periods for guaranteed payment, respectively installment payment of pensions under Art. 167, para. 4, items 2 and 3 and Art. 245b, para. 1, items 2 and 3 of the SIC.

(5) The calculation of the required amount under para. 1 is carried out before the submission of the supervisory report of the fund for the payment of life pensions for the month of December of the year to which the calculation relates.

Art. 5. The surplus under Art. 123r, para. 15 of the SIC is equal to the positive difference between the net assets of the fund for the payment of life pensions as of 31 December of the respective year and the liabilities under Art. 4, para. 2.

Art. 6. (1) When the difference between the net assets of the fund for the payment of life pensions as of 31 December of the respective year and the amount of liabilities under Art. 4, para. 2 is negative, the pension insurance company shall replenish the difference in accordance with Art. 123r, para. 16 of the SIC within the period until 31 January of the following year.

(2) When the surplus under Art. 5 exceeds 5 percent of the amount of liabilities under Art. 4, para. 2, the pension insurance company may take a decision to release funds from the fund for the payment of life pensions. The decision shall specify the specific amount of funds released from the fund.

(3) The released funds under para. 2 shall be reflected in a separate account, accounting for the reduction of net assets of the fund for the payment of life pensions as a result of the transfer of funds to the reserve for guaranteeing pension payments, and shall not be reflected on the balance of the analytical account under Art. 123r, para. 11 of the SIC.

(4) The release of funds under para. 2 and the restoration of funds under Art. 123r, para. 17 of the SIC shall be carried out within the period until 31 January of the year following the year for which the surplus was calculated.

(5) When replenishing the difference under para. 1, the funds transferred to the fund for the payment of life pensions from the reserve for guaranteeing pension payments, sourced from receipts under para. 2 from previous periods, shall be reflected in the account under para. 3.

Section III Funds for Term Payments

Art. 7. (1) Upon its creation in accordance with Art. 123s, para. 1 and 5 in conjunction with Art. 123r, para. 2-5 of the SIC, the fund for term payments shall be formed from the funds of persons with whom contracts for installment payment of funds under Art. 167a, para. 1 or Art. 248, para. 2 of the SIC in conjunction with participation in a fund for additional voluntary pension insurance or pension contracts for the payment of a term professional pension for early retirement under Art. 168, para. 1 of the SIC have been concluded, by the end of the third working day from the registration of the fund for term payments in the BULSTAT register.

(2) The funds in the individual accounts of the persons under para. 1 shall be accrued as a liability of the pension fund to the fund for term payments on the day of conclusion of the contract for installment payment or the pension contract with the respective person, valued at one share valid for the working day preceding the conclusion of the contract.

(3) The accrued funds under para. 2 shall be transferred to the fund for term payments through the analytical accounts of the respective persons within three working days from the registration of the fund in the BULSTAT register.

(4) The funds in the individual accounts of persons with whom contracts under para. 1 are concluded after the third working day from the registration of the fund for term payments in the BULSTAT register shall be transferred to their analytical accounts in the fund for term payments on the day of conclusion of the contract with the respective person or no later than on the next working day after that date. When the funds in the individual account of the person are transferred on the next working day after the conclusion of the contract, they shall be accrued as a liability of the respective pension fund to the fund for term payments on the day of conclusion of the contract, valued at one share valid for the working day preceding the conclusion of the contract.

(5) In the cases under para. 2 and 4, the funds in the accounts of persons insured in a fund for additional mandatory pension insurance shall be accrued as a liability after their replenishment, if necessary, in accordance with Art. 131, para. 2-5 of the SIC.

(6) The funds on the basis of which term professional pensions for early retirement and installment payments are recalculated shall be transferred from the individual accounts of the persons under Art. 127, para. 6 and 7 and Art. 230, para. 10 of the SIC through their analytical accounts to the fund for term payments on the date under Art. 169g, para. 2 or Art. 246v, para. 2 of the SIC, and if that date is a non-working day, on the first working day after that date.

Art. 8. (1) The following shall be reflected in the analytical account under Art. 123s, para. 3, item 2 of the SIC:

1. the income by which the amount of payments under Art. 7, para. 1 and 4 and of heirs of persons with such payments under Art. 169v, para. 3 and para. 5, first sentence, Art. 170, para. 6, and Art. 246b, para. 3 and para. 5, first sentence of the SIC was not increased;
2. the period to which the undistributed income under item 1 relates;
3. the amount used from the analytical account to preserve the size of payments in accordance with Art. 169v, para. 5, second sentence, and Art. 246b, para. 5, second sentence of the SIC;
4. the period in connection with which the amount under item 3 was used;
5. the operations carried out for the allocation of funds under item 1 and the use of funds under item 3 and their dates;
6. the balance of the analytical account.

(2) The income under para. 1, item 1 amounts to the part of the income of the fund for term payments by which payments were not increased.

(3) The amount under para. 1, item 3 represents the negative income of the fund for term payments by which payments were not decreased.

(4) The income from the activities of the fund for term payments is calculated by applying Art. 3, para. 4 correspondingly, as:

1. the indicator Ii denotes the funds received from individual accounts for the purpose of making payments from the fund and the funds received in accordance with Art. 123s, para. 7 of the SIC, during the i-th day of the period;
2. the indicator Ni denotes the funds paid out to persons receiving payments from the fund during the i-th day of the month, and the funds transferred under Art. 170, para. 9, item 3 of the SIC.

(5) The balance under para. 1, item 6 is increased by the amounts under para. 1, item 1 and decreased by the amounts under para. 1, item 3. The balance cannot be less than zero.

Art. 9. (1) The required amount of funds in the fund for term payments is determined by the responsible actuary by 31 December of each year and is equal to the liabilities to persons receiving payments under Art. 7, para. 1 and 4, and to their heirs as of that date.

(2) Liabilities to persons receiving payments under Art. 7, para. 1 and 4, and to their heirs are equal to payments due to persons receiving payments under Art. 7, para. 1 and 4, and to their heirs after their last update in accordance with Art. 169v, para. 1, 3 and 5, Art. 170, para. 6, and Art. 246b, para. 3 and 5 of the SIC and the last recalculation under Art. 169g and Art. 246v, para. 1 and 2 of the SIC of the term professional pension for early retirement and installment payments.

(3) The calculation of the required amount under para. 1 is carried out before the submission of the supervisory report of the fund for term payments for the month of December of the year to which the calculation relates.

Art. 10. The surplus under Art. 123s, para. 6 of the SIC is equal to the positive difference between the net assets of the fund for term payments as of 31 December of the respective year and the liabilities under Art. 9, para. 2.

Art. 11. (1) When the difference between the net assets of the fund for term payments as of 31 December of the respective year and the amount of liabilities under Art. 9, para. 2 is negative, the pension insurance company shall replenish the difference in accordance with Art. 123s, para. 7 of the SIC within the period until 31 January of the following year.

(2) When the surplus under Art. 10 exceeds 5 percent of the amount of liabilities under Art. 9, para. 2, the pension insurance company may take a decision to release funds from the fund for term payments. The decision shall specify the specific amount of funds released from the fund.

(3) The released funds under para. 2 shall be reflected in a separate account, accounting for the reduction of net assets of the fund for term payments as a result of the transfer of funds to the reserve under Art. 123c, para. 1 of the SIC, and shall not be reflected on the balance of the analytical account under Art. 123s, para. 3, item 2 of the SIC.

(4) The release of funds under para. 2 and the restoration of funds under Art. 123s, para. 8 of the SIC from the surplus under Art. 123s, para. 6, item 2 of the SIC shall be carried out within the period until 31 January of the year following the year for which the surplus was calculated.

(5) When replenishing the difference under para. 1, the funds transferred to the fund for term payments from the reserve under Art. 123c, para. 1 of the SIC, sourced from receipts under para. 2 from previous periods, shall be reflected in the account under para. 3.

Transitional and Final Provisions

§ 1. Pension insurance companies that update pensions and/or installment payments in December 2026 shall submit the reports under Art. 3, para. 6 and/or Art. 8, para. 6 of Regulation No. 70 of 29.06.2021 on the requirements for payment funds (State Gazette, No. 60 of 2021) in accordance with the forms approved therewith within the period until 20 January 2027.

§ 2. Annual actuarial reports for the reporting year 2026 shall be prepared in accordance with the previous procedure.

§ 3. The following amendments and supplements are made to Regulation No. 31 of 2.08.2006 on the conditions and procedure for conducting an exam and recognizing professional competence of a responsible actuary, recognizing competence acquired outside the Republic of Bulgaria, on the form of actuarial certification, the form and content of the actuarial report and reports under the Insurance Code, which the responsible actuary certifies, as well as on the form and mandatory content of the annual actuarial report under the Social Insurance Code (Pub., State Gazette, No. 71 of 2006; amended and supplemented, No. 51 of 2008, No. 66 of 2013, No. 54 of 2014, No. 38 of 2016, No. 6 of 2017, No. 83 of 2018, No. 41 of 2019, No. 81 of 2020, No. 48 and 60 of 2021, No. 23 and 101 of 2022, No. 70 of 2024, No. 20, 51 and 65 of 2025 and No. 43 of 2026):

1. In Art. 24: a) in para. 3: aa) the text before item 1 is amended as follows: "(3) To the main part of the report for each professional pension fund, voluntary pension fund without sub-funds, fund for additional voluntary pension insurance under professional schemes, and sub-fund in a fund for additional pension insurance, the following appendices with content according to Appendices No. 5 - 13 shall be prepared:"; bb) item 4 is amended as follows: "4. Size of the pension reserve under § 188, para. 3 of the transitional and final provisions of the Law on Amendment and Supplement to the Social Insurance Code (State Gazette, No. 27 of 2026) as of 31 December of the reporting year and forecast for it as of 31 December of the following year - for a fund for additional voluntary pension insurance or the respective sub-fund therein."; cc) in item 8, the word "professional" and the comma after it are deleted; b) paragraph 4 is amended as follows: "(4) At the end of the annual actuarial report, an actuarial certification in the form of an explicit declaration, signed by the responsible actuary, shall be made, in which he states that the formed pension reserve under para. 3, item 4 and the reserves for guaranteeing gross contributions in a universal and professional pension fund, created by the pension insurance company, have been calculated correctly."; c) paragraph 5 is amended as follows: "(5) When, in accordance with the requirements for correct use of actuarial methods in practice, the responsible actuary considers that one of the reserves under para. 4 is calculated correctly but is insufficient, he is obliged to certify the report, motivating his opinion and indicating the amount that the respective reserve should have."; d) in para. 8 and 9, the word "installment" is replaced everywhere with "term"; e) paragraph 10 is amended as follows: "(10) In the actuarial reports of the fund for the payment of life pensions and the fund for term payments, an actuarial certification in the form of an explicit declaration, signed by the responsible actuary, shall be carried out, whereby:

2. he certifies the calculations of liabilities to pensioners, persons with term payments, and their heirs, as well as of the required amount of funds necessary for their coverage;

3. he states that the reserve for guaranteeing pension payments has been calculated correctly."; f) paragraph 11 is created: "(11) When, in accordance with the requirements for correct use of actuarial methods in practice, the responsible actuary considers that the reserve under para. 10, item 2 is calculated correctly but is insufficient, he is obliged to certify the report, motivating his opinion and indicating the amount that the reserve should have."

4. In Appendix No. 4 to Art. 24, para. 2: a) item 4 is amended as follows: "4. Actuarial analysis of the structure of assets of sub-funds in the universal pension fund, the professional pension fund, the voluntary pension fund, respectively the sub-funds therein, the fund for additional voluntary pension insurance under professional schemes, and each sub-fund under Art. 214a of the SIC."; b) in items 4.1 and 5.1, the words "voluntary pension fund for PEPP" are replaced with "fund"; c) in item 5.3, the words "under item 4" are deleted, and the words "voluntary pension fund for PEPP" are replaced with "fund"; d) in item 5.4, the word "professional" and the comma after it are deleted; e) item 7.4 is amended as follows: "7.4. Actuarial assessment of the pension reserve for a fund for additional voluntary pension insurance and the sources of its formation and comparison with the forecasts made in the previous actuarial report. Indication of reserves formed under Art. 193a of the SIC, the sizes of the reserves, and their relative shares to the value of the net assets of the fund."

5. Appendix No. 5 to Art. 24, para. 3 is amended as follows: "Appendix No. 5 to Art. 24, para. 3 Actuarial Balance of "..................................." (name of the professional pension fund, the voluntary pension fund without sub-funds, or the voluntary pension fund under professional schemes, respectively the sub-fund in the universal pension fund, voluntary pension fund, or voluntary pension fund for PEPP) as of 31.12.. year Asset Amount in euro Liability Amount in euro reporting year reporting year I. Total value of I. Liabilities to assets according to them: accounting statement persons granted pensions, respectively annuities under PEPP - total, incl.

6. Old-age pensions, respectively annuities under PEPP for old age - total, incl.

7. Disability pensions, respectively annuities under PEPP for disability - total, incl.

8. Survivor pensions, respectively survivor annuities under PEPP - total, incl. II. Liabilities to insured persons, respectively insured under PEPP persons - total II. Deficit/(Surplus) III. Other liabilities III. Total (I ± II) IV. Total (I + II + III) Notes:

9. Part I of the liability is not filled in for the universal pension fund.

10. The actuarial balance shall contain information on all types of paid pensions, respectively annuities under PEPP, incl. life and term.

11. The assessment of liabilities is carried out for all...