The updated AIDA Country Report on Bulgaria provides a detailed overview on legislative and practice-related developments in asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention of asylum seekers and content of international protection in 2024. It also includes an annex which provides an overview of temporary protection.
A number of key developments drawn from the overview of the main changes that have taken place since the publication of the 2023 update are set out below.
Statistics
- Asylum applications and decisions: The overall decline in arrivals from Türkiye led to a 45% decrease in registered asylum applications (12,250 applicants in 2024 compared to 22,518 in 2023). The in-merit recognition rate stood at 61%, down from 2023 and 2022, but in a context of reduced absconding compared to previous years. Almost all positive decisions (99%) granted subsidiary protection rather than refugee status.
Asylum procedure
- National context: The political and constitutional turmoil in Bulgaria during 2024 significantly affected the asylum system due to a lack of political support and engagement, and subsequent underfunding.
- Access to the territory: In the context of increased border controls by Bulgaria, Greece, Türkiye and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), the number of “prevented entries” reported by the Bulgarian authorities decreased significantly in 2024 (70% reduction to 52,534). However, monitoring shows that many people were pushed back at the border or apprehended after an irregular border crossing. In parallel, there was a 41% increase in the number of people officially apprehended at the border with Türkiye, seen as a direct consequence of the presence of Frontex staff. In previous years, the numbers were notoriously low due to widespread pushbacks.
- Access to the asylum procedure: Asylum applicants continued to be deprived of direct access to the asylum procedure when apprehended at the border. Only 2% of those apprehended gained direct access to registration and accommodation without first being taken to and detained in a deportation centre. Such practices do not affect those who manage to reach the registration facilities independently.
- Quality of the asylum procedure: While the average length of the asylum procedure remained under six months and several improvements were observed in its overall quality, notably regarding safeguards, applicants from Afghanistan and Türkiye continued to face discriminatory treatment.
Reception conditions
- Reception conditions below basic standards: Reception conditions in Bulgaria have been gradually deteriorating for over 10 years due to a lack of funding. In 2024, reception centres failed to provide essential services such as access to adequate food, hot water and clean functioning sanitation facilities, protection from vermin infestations and subsequent health issues, etc. in many cases. The personal allowance foreseen in EU and national law has not been provided to asylum applicants since 2015. Safety in reception centres continued to be seriously compromised by the presence of smugglers, drug dealers and sex workers.
- Lack of access to healthcare: As in previous years, asylum applicants faced significant barriers in accessing consistent healthcare in 2024 due to Bulgaria’s chronic shortage of general practitioners. Due to budgetary constraints, the asylum authority was unable to cover necessary medical expenses as provided by law; these were usually covered by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and civil society.
- Reception of unaccompanied minors: Thanks to collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Organization for Migration, and funding from the EU’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and the Swiss asylum authority, the two existing safe zones were maintained and a third one opened in 2024, with overall better conditions compared to the general reception centres.
Detention of asylum seekers
- Length of detention in detention centres: Against the backdrop of decreased arrivals and asylum applicants, 99% of third country nationals who applied for international protection in a police detention centre were released on average one day before the statutory deadline. In 2024, building on progress since 2022, no registration or protection status determinations were conducted from detention centres.
Content of international protection
- Improved access to residence permits: Following years of significant difficulties for beneficiaries of international protection (BIPs) who found themselves stuck in a ‘Catch 22’ situation in which they were unable to access identity documents, the relevant law was amended in October 2024. As a result, BIPs were able to register a municipal address to obtain civil registration and a national identity number and thus a valid identity document.
- Inclusion policies: 2024 was the 11th year of Bulgaria’s “zero integration” policy at the national level. At the local level, only two municipalities signed integration agreements with new BIPs in 2024.
Temporary protection
- Statistics: 27,775 Ukrainians registered under the temporary protection (TP) scheme in Bulgaria in 2024 and there were 60,864 TP holders in Bulgaria at the end of the year.
- Reception conditions: There was still no food assistance for TP beneficiaries and newly arrived displaced people from Ukraine continued to be accommodated in a former detention centre in which no food, medical aid, social assistance or information is provided.
The full report is available here and the annex on temporary protection is available here.
For more information about the AIDA database or to read other AIDA reports, please visit the AIDA website.