Restaurants rated two stars and up must take cards; everyone else may set a minimum, but has to say so at the door

On 20 August 2026 Gabriela Rumenova, founder of the consumer platform 'We, the Consumers', used a Bulgaria ON AIR appearance to remind the summer trade of a rule that many restaurant operators still treat as optional: food and entertainment establishments categorised with two or more stars are obliged to maintain POS terminals on their premises. The obligation is written into the Tourism Act and has applied since 1 March 2024. It came up because of a steady stream of holidaymaker complaints about 'cash only' signs appearing at the till, or not appearing at all.

Who has to accept cards, and who does not

• Categorised restaurants, bars and entertainment venues with two stars or more: a working card terminal is mandatory.
• All other shops and kiosks: no legal obligation to accept cashless payment. Card acceptance is a commercial choice.
• Card minimums: not regulated by law, so a shop may set one. The consumer group's position is that any minimum or restriction must be announced visibly at the entrance, before the customer orders, not discovered at the register. Under the Consumer Protection Act, surprising a customer with a payment restriction at the point of paying is the kind of practice the Consumer Protection Commission treats as misleading.

Rumenova added a pricing reminder for the coast: beach kiosks quote prices per 100 grams, so a stuffed pepper or a stew at 1.30 to 1.40 euro per 100 g is around 4 euro as a full portion, which is what a restaurant would charge.

The euro made the terminal the default

Whatever the law says, customer behaviour has moved. Banks reported that cards, ATMs and POS terminals switched to euro in the first hours of 1 January 2026, and in the first 48 hours of the year the national card system processed over 804,000 POS transactions worth more than 20 million euro, an average of about 25 euro per payment. For a coastal restaurant in August the terminal is no longer the alternative payment method; it is the main one.

Practical notes for operators

Three things we recommend to hospitality clients, in order of how often they cause trouble.

Integrate the terminal with the till. A standalone terminal where the waiter types the amount is the source of most card disputes: wrong amount, tip typed twice, a sale rung on the fiscal device but never charged. An integrated terminal takes the amount from the bill, the fiscal receipt is printed only on approval, and the shift report reconciles card totals to the acquirer statement automatically.

Keep the receipt in euro only. Since 9 August the dual display of leva and euro has ended on fiscal receipts and menus. Terminal slips that still print a leva conversion are a customer-service problem, not a legal one, but they generate questions on a busy terrace.

Say the policy out loud. If there is a minimum, a surcharge-free policy, or a cash-only bar within a card-accepting restaurant, put it on the door and on the menu. A sign costs nothing; a complaint to the Commission costs an afternoon.

Sources: 'We, the Consumers', 20 August 2026; Bulgaria ON AIR, 20 August 2026; Banker, 3 January 2026; DSK Bank, 31 December 2025.