Background information

The Bulgarian government initiated an integrated information portal to help those leaving Ukraine. The portal consists all the necessary official and updated information, links and contacts for obtaining temporary protection, finding home and work, as well as social assistance and child care and school for citizens of Ukraine. The portal is in four languages: Ukrainian, Russian, English and Bulgarian.

Content of measure

The website, located at ukraine.gov.bg , provides full information on border control requirements when entering Bulgaria, as well as full instructions on necessary identity documents. The portal includes special section on procedure for obtaining international protection status and temporary protection for citizens of Ukraine when arriving in Bulgaria.

The information portal includes also the option to submit alerts for assistance and evacuation of citizens. The Ukrainian citizens in need could also find information about donors, volunteers and NGOs. All measures, related to war in Ukraine, are published with updated status.

According to the official website of the Ministry Council, this integrated information portal built by the Bulgarian government is the first in the EU.

Use of measure

According to the official statistics, published in the portal, 264,853 Ukrainians entered Bulgarian borders, of which 102,918 remained in the country. Children from Ukraine are 39,143 and this information is important for the Bulgarian educational system, making efforts to include these children in learning process. 105,676 citizens of Ukraine are registered with temporary protection. 61,942 persons are accommodated.

According to the portal as of 21 February 2023, more than 1,098,205 Ukrainians entered Bulgaria, of them 50,049 stayed in Bulgaria. 151,874 are registered for temporary protection, and 11,019 have been settled.

As of 22 February 2024, 2,252,814 Ukrainians entered Bulgaria, 52,780 stayed in the country. Registered for temporary protection are 174,622 Ukrainians, settled are 5,644.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Applies to all workers	Applies to all businesses	Migrants or refugees

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	No involvement	No involvement
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: N/A

Involvement

This information portal is initiated by the Bulgarian Government in early February. The involvement of social partners is not stated publicly.

Views and reactions

CITUB organised a crisis working group that will operate through the network of regional structures of the trade union confederation. The aim of this working group is to monitor the situation with Ukrainian refugees and to respond to the need for urgent humanitarian aid.

Sources

• 26 February 2022: Bulgarian Information Portal for Ukraine (ukraine.gov.bg)
• 27 February 2022: THE GOVERNMENT OPENED A SINGLE INFORMATION PORTAL TO HELP THE LEAVERS OF UKRAINE (www.bia-bg.com)
• 15 March 2022: CITUB for Ukraine charity event collects donations for refugees in Bulgaria (knsb-bg.org)