Amendments to the Tax and Social-Insurance Procedure Code passed first reading in Bulgaria's Parliament on Friday.

Under the changes, aimed at preventing tax evasion, officials of the National Revenue Agency (NRA) will exercise oversight over the movement of high fiscal risk goods on the territory of the country, according to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency.

The decision is to set up a special unit at the NRA tasked with monitoring the movement of high fiscal risk goods was presented in July.

On Bulgarian territory, NRA officials authorized by the Executive Director of the NRA will exercise oversight over the movement of high fiscal risk goods.

The oversight will include the movement of all high fiscal risk goods regardless of the location of the point of reception – be it on Bulgarian territory, another EU member state or a third country.

NRA officials will have the right to stop vehicles at fiscal control points and to demand the documents accompanying the goods and to inspect them.

Apart from that, they will also have the right to inspect the goods in the vehicle and at the point of reception.

The list of high fiscal risk goods will be approved through an ordinance of the Finance Minister at the proposal of the Executive Director of the NRA.

Goods subject to customs procedures will not be subject to fiscal control.

The bill also proposes changes aimed at improving the single account for paying taxes and mandatory social security contributions.

The bill introduces the opportunity for deferring and postponing tax dues and unpaid mandatory social security contributions under alleviated terms for longer periods and in bigger amounts.

The dues mentioned in such decisions for the deferral and postponement are excluded from the single account for paying taxes and mandatory social security contributions until the maturity date of the deferred or postponed payment.

Another proposal stipulated in the bill envisages the opportunity for self-employed persons to say which social security obligations they are settling in cases when several public liabilities have accumulated.