site.btaBulgarian Helsinki Committee's Programme for Legal Protection to Refugees Ceases Operations

On the 30th anniversary of its opening in 1996, the legal aid reception of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee's (BHC) Programme for Legal Protection to Refugees and Migrants ceased its reception and operation on January 1, 2026, the BHC reported on Monday.

One of the reasons is the global crisis in the funding of international humanitarian agencies and their operations, including the activities of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Since the establishment of the BHC Refugee Programme in 1994, the UNHCR has been its partner, and the work of the legal aid office for refugees and forcibly displaced persons was carried out with its financial support.

The legal aid office provided legal consultations, appeals, and representation before administrative authorities and courts to persons seeking or granted international or temporary protection. This was done through daily consultations at the BHC refugee offices in Sofia (since 1996), Svilengrad (from 2014 to 2018) and Harmanli (since 2018) as well as on a regular basis in all reception centres of the State Agency for Refugees in Sofia.

Over the past three decades, legal assistance was provided to a total of 209,703 refugees, asylum seekers and forcibly displaced persons with legal representation and litigation carried out in 3,326 court cases.

The BHC reported that it will continue to seek sustainable solutions for restoring and further developing this activity in the future. Until then, the NGO will make efforts to provide advice and support in selected individual cases involving violations of the right to asylum and fundamental rights.