Ukrainians in Bulgaria: what to do after you arrive

Housing

The first thing to do after arriving in Bulgaria is to find a place to live. You can stay with acquaintances, if you have any, or rent accommodation for a fee. For those who cannot afford this, there are hotels offering accommodation to refugees. The coordination centres can tell you exactly which hotels are offering housing and where places are available.

Once you have found accommodation, you need to complete an address registration with the Ministry of Interior (MVR). To register, you need the property owner’s details and signature. By law, the owners have no right to refuse. If the owner refuses to register you, you can turn to the police.

Statuses

As of Monday, 21 March, Ukrainians can register for temporary protection status. Registration will be carried out by the migration service at specially designated locations and, as promised, later also at the district offices of the MVR.

Many people have already obtained humanitarian status in Bulgaria. This is a different type of protection. Temporary protection is granted for one year, and immediately after receiving the ID card the foreign national obtains all the rights of a Bulgarian citizen, including the right to work and to use health insurance services. Humanitarian status, on the other hand, obliges the person to stay in Bulgaria without leaving the country. The status is granted for three years, and the right to work is not given immediately. This therefore makes it a less advantageous and less convenient form of protection, and those who have already received humanitarian status can give it up and obtain temporary asylum (временна закрила).

Kindergarten and school

After receiving an ID card on the basis of temporary protection, a foreign national gains the opportunity to enrol children in kindergarten and school. To do this, you need to contact the Regional Department of Education (RUO) in Burgas or another regional city.

You can also go to a coordination centre where a RUO representative is present, for example at the Sea Station in Burgas. Children are placed in schools and kindergartens according to their actual place of residence, and enrolment is possible even if the classes or groups are already completely full. You can clarify the details by calling the hotline.

Work in Bulgaria

Immediately after receiving temporary protection, Ukrainian refugees gain the right to work in Bulgaria. The job search site jobs.bg has already added a special section with job offers for Ukrainians. In addition, there are other options – job offers are published on social networks and on official websites.

You can also start your own business in Bulgaria. Bulgarian Expert is currently offering special prices on company registration for Ukrainians.

Help for refugees

Volunteer centres and Red Cross offices where you can get help are open throughout Bulgaria. In Burgas, the volunteer centre is located in the port, in the Sea Station building, and the Red Cross office is there as well. Here you can receive clothing, footwear and food free of charge.

You can find out about other aid points and locate the nearest one by calling the hotline.

Where to turn for help

Round-the-clock hotline for assistance to citizens of Ukraine: +359 885 80 90 40.

State hotline: 02 90 55555 and +380 322 465 075.

State Agency for Refugees: +359 876 388 427 or +359 876 388 437. E-mail sar@saref.government.bg. Information: https://aref.government.bg/bg/taxonomy/term/5.

Procedure for submitting, reviewing and deciding on individual applications for asylum and international protection: https://asylum.bg/bg/home-dashboard-bg.

Bulgarian Red Cross hotline, medical information and assistance: 0800 20 101 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. The e-mail address for requests for information on health and medical matters is help@redcross.bg.

Bulgarian Red Cross hotline for counselling and psychosocial support: 0800 11 466 on working days from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; on 3 days (Tuesday, Friday and Sunday) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – consultations in Ukrainian.

Restoring family links, searching for missing family members: requests are accepted at tracing@redcross.bg and by phone at +359 88 400 73 63, including Whatsapp and Viber.

Bulgarian Helsinki Committee legal aid line — 08888 19745 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on working days. More information in Russian and Ukrainian is available on the website bghelsinki.org.

https://www.bghelsinki.org/bg/news/aktualna-informacija-za-vlizashtite-v-bylgarija-ukrainski-grajdani

Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.: +359 2 980 20 49 and +359 2 981 33 18.

On weekdays from 8 to 9 a.m. and from 5 to 8 p.m., and on weekends from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 1 to 4 p.m.: +359 8888 19745 (hotline).

Enrolment in schools and kindergartens (Bulgarian Ministry of Education): 0800 16 111. Enrolment applications: mon.bg/bg/news/4708.

Crisis centre of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: 02 948 2404, crisis@mfa.bg (evacuation matters).

International Organization for Migration, hotlines providing information and support to people leaving Ukraine for various countries. Numbers in Ukraine: free from mobile phones – 527; free from landlines – 0800 50 55 01.

Single information portal in Bulgaria – https://ukraine.gov.bg/

Facebook groups: Бургас допомагає українцям / Бургас помощ украйнци; Допомога українським біженцям в Болгарії/Помощ за украинските бежанци.

Embassy of Ukraine in Bulgaria: https://bulgaria.mfa.gov.ua, tel. + 359-28-18-68-28. Consular section — +359 2 955 93 54, +359 2 818 68 27, +359 29 55 52 47. E-mail: emb_bg@mfa.gov.ua, consul_bg@mfa.gov.ua. Situation centre at the Embassy of Ukraine (only in cases involving danger to the life or the death of a Ukrainian citizen) +359 878 015 102. Address: 1618, Sofia, Ovcha Kupel district, 29 Boryana St..

Pets: Bulgarian Food Safety Agency – ukraine@bfsa.bg.