What does the asylum procedure entail?
During the asylum procedure, the State Agency for Refugees must review your asylum application individually and impartially. First you will be considered for provision of a refugee status. If a refugee status is not granted the State Agency for Refugees will consider the necessity of granting you a humanitarian status.
Time limits
Your asylum application must be reviewed within six months of the receipt of the application. The time limit may be extended in limited circumstances listed in the law, if:
- complex issues of fact or law are involved
- a large number of persons simultaneously apply for international protection
- you will be informed for the reasons and the extension period personally or with a letter.
In these cases, the time limit may be extended by a maximum of nine months at a time, but in any event, the application must be reviewed within 21 months of its receipt.
A clearly unfounded application for asylum may be reviewed under an accelerated procedure. The use of accelerated procedure is not allowed if:
- the applicant is an unaccompanied minor
- the applicant is granted a temporary protection
Under an accelerated procedure, the application is reviewed within 14 working days.
Elements of the procedure
An essential part of the procedure is the asylum interview, in the course of which you are provided with an opportunity to present facts and give explanations with regard to the circumstances that motivated you to apply for international protection. The interview is recorded.. The State Agency for Refugees may conduct more than one interview or ask clarifying questions, when necessary.
If the State Agency for Refugees deems it relevant for the assessment of your application, they may arrange a medical examination to establish signs of past persecution. The medical examination is subject to your consent.
You are required to present all the documentation regarding your reasons for applying for international protection as soon as possible, as well as about your background and other aspects relevant to your application.
It is likely that, as an asylum-seeker, you are unable to support your statements by documentary or other evidence. In this case, the main importance lies on assessing the credibility of your statements and comparing them with the available information on your country of origin. The European Court of Human Rights has confirmed that it is important to take into account all the difficulties which an asylum-seeker may encounter abroad when collecting evidence, so benefit of the doubt should be granted in favour of the person seeking international protection.
example You escaped your country due to the threat of imprisonment for being a human rights activist and holding and spreading views that your government does not tolerate. You have no documentary evidence about the treatment you have been subjected to by the authorities, or access to the warrant for your arrest. However, your statements are plausible, coherent, in accordance with the country of origin information, and you have submitted photos that prove your participation in the activities of the human rights organisation. In this case, the State Agency for Refugees should not rely on the lack of documentary evidence to reject your application.
Humanitarian status
If you do not meet the requirements for granting of an international protection as a refugee and you cannot or wish not to seek protection from your country of origin because you believe you can be exposed to gross human rights infringements, you can still be granted with international protection in the form a humanitarian status. The Asylum and Refugees Act, in accordance with international law, defines heavy encroachments as:
- Death sentence
- Torture or inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment
- Threat to your life as a civilian in case of internal or international armed conflict
The danger of gross human rights violations may be based on your activities after you have left your country of origin, especially if they are a continuance of the expression of your thoughts, believes or orientation, which you also expressed in your country of origin.
Decision-making
The Chairperson of the State Agency for Refugees can make decisions regarding:
- granting, refusal, withdrawal and termination of international protection
- suspension and termination of proceedings for granting international protection
- reunification of families
- other requests of foreigners during a procedure for granting international protection or who have been granted such protection in the Republic of Bulgaria
- appointment of the decision-making bodies in the State Agency for Refugees, which are responsible for conducting the Dublin procedure
- the designation of interviewing bodies
The Directors of the Registration reception centres / Transit centres can make decisions regarding:
- accommodation of the applicants for international protection in the relevant reception/transit centre during their proceedings, after assessment of their state of health and family and financial situation
- accommodation in the relevant centre of an applicant for international protection with a subsequent application who belongs to a vulnerable group, as well as decisions concerning his social assistance
- accommodation, social assistance, health insurance and medical assistance for applicants whose procedure has been resumed after a suspension
- accommodation of unaccompanied children in a family, with relatives, in a foster family, a residential social service, under the conditions and according to the rules of the Child Protection Act, as well as in other places of accommodation with special conditions for children
- accommodation of asylum seekers in a location chosen by them when they can prove their financial status.