Mission and objectives UNHCR Bulgaria assists the authorities and civil society organisations working directly or indirectly on the protection of refugees and supports the further development of the national protection system within the ever-evolving pan-European asylum system. On July 22, 1993, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria concluded a formal agreement under which the UNHCR's mandate in the country was launched. Previously, in the post-1990 period, around 20 people were granted status under the UNHCR mandate, through a procedure in which interviews were conducted by the Bulgarian Red Cross and status determination was carried out at UNHCR headquarters in Geneva. Historically, the Bulgarian people are known for their traditional sense of hospitality and asylum to persecuted persons from other countries. At the beginning of the 20th century, people banished from Armenia, Russia and Eastern Thrace, as well as people from countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia, fleeing repression during the anti-colonial and liberation struggle after the 1950s, were found refuge. Bulgaria laid the legislative foundations for the protection of refugees with the ratification of the 1951 Geneva Convention and the New York Protocol thereto in 1967 with the publication of the relevant texts in the State Gazette No 88 of 15 October 1993.
ContextBy a decision of the European Council on 4 December 2024, Bulgaria fully acceded to the Schengen zone as an EU Member State positioned on its external borders, lifting internal land borders with Romania. The evolving political and socio-economic landscape in Bulgaria, with a coalition government established in January 2025, poses challenges for asylum seekers and refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and from countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2024, Bulgaria received 12,250 applications for asylum compared to 22,518 in 2023. Since the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022, Bulgaria has granted temporary protection to more than 205,190 refugees as of the beginning of April 2025. Through an annual verification exercise, the Government has renewed the validity of temporary protection ID cards. Temporary Protection (TP) for refugees from Ukraine in Bulgaria has been extended until March 2026, in line with the EU Directive. UNHCR supports government-led efforts to provide key protection, including legal assistance, information on services, education, and psychosocial support. UNHCR's priority protection interventions include access to territory and asylum procedures, inclusion of refugees in essential services, Child Protection, Gender-Based Violence response, support to persons with specific needs, and mitigation of risks related to trafficking and other forms of abuse and exploitation. To that end, we are seeking to engage Online Volunteers with experience and qualification on legal research and translation through this online assignment. The research conducted by the Online Volunteers will support UNHCRโs efforts to provide technical assistance to the national counterparts, and may include translation of desk review of UNHCR positions and case law on asylum issues of European and national courts, reception conditions, child protection, and country of origin information. The Online Volunteers will be provided with resources and training to conduct such research, and will receive feedback from UNHCR experts.
Task DescriptionSelected candidates will assist UNHCR with specific legal research tasks concerning Bulgariaโs protection and inclusion regime concerning asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons as well as relevant legal and policy matters and good practices, and the impact of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum on refugee protection and inclusion/integration in Bulgaria. Specifically, the Online Volunteers will support in: - Conducting legal research on issues relating to refugee protection with regards to Temporary Protection regime and the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum - Conducting desk review of UNHCR information and guidance, and legal research on questions formulated by UNHCR experts, relevant to Bulgariaโs protection and inclusion regime concerning asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons including translation - Compiling and translating briefs on legal issues and case law of the national and European courts We expect the selected online volunteer(s) to start with this task. 15 June 2025
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