TIRANA, November 20 – Parliament approved the 2026 draft budget after midnight with 83 votes in favor and 32 against. The budget totals 8.8 billion euros.

In a marathon session that started at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday and ended around 3:00 a.m. today, the majority and opposition debated the draft budget and the fiscal package.

MPs approved the bills on the agenda. The tax procedures law passed with 83 votes in favor and 31 against. The value-added tax law passed with 83 in favor and 32 against. The income tax law passed with 82 in favor and 32 against. The local taxes system law passed with 83 in favor and 32 against. The invoices and circulation monitoring law passed with 82 in favor and 32 against. The fiscal peace agreement passed with 83 in favor and 31 against. The real estate reassessment law passed with 82 in favor and 30 against. The law on cancellation of tax obligations passed with 83 in favor and 32 against.

Prime Minister Edi Rama described next year’s budget as historic, providing 1.7 billion euros in medium-term support for pensioners. The draft budget sets the minimum wage at 500 euros from January, with a target to reach 700 euros during the fourth mandate.

The average wage increased to 840 euros, while in the public sector it reached 1,000 euros.

The draft budget also includes wage indexing every two years and salary increases for some categories in the public administration.

Social protection remains a key focus in the 2026 draft budget, totaling 257 billion Lekë, an increase of 11.6 billion compared to last year.

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