According to Regulation No 223/2009 on European statistics, the European Statistical System (ESS) is partnership between the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) and the National Statistical Institutes and other national authorities, responsible in each Member State for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics.

The National Statistical Institute of the Republic of Bulgaria is an integral part of ESS and it is the National Statistical authority that is responsible for coordinating all activities on national level, as regards the development, production and dissemination of European statistics and also the EC (Eurostat) contact point on statistical issues.

Within the ESS framework, BNSI maintains close contact with the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) and with the MS partnership institutions.