site.btaBulgaria Spends over BGN 26 Million in Support of Ukrainian Refugees in 2023

The Ministry of Tourism's expenditure in 2023, mainly to hotels accommodating Ukrainian refugees, amounts to BGN 56.2 million. Of this, BGN 37.6 million is due for 2022 and was paid last year. Thus, the expenditure incurred by this ministry in support of Ukrainian refugees in 2023 amounts to just under BGN 20 million, said Finance Minister Assen Vassilev in response to a question by MP Ivelin Parvanov of Vazrazhdane during Question Time in the National Assembly. 

The Finance Minister continued with the breakdown of the amount of BGN 1.5 million allocated for social expenditures from the budget of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, which paid one-off benefits to 4,076 persons displaced from Ukraine and granted temporary protection.  

In the field of health, BGN 4.7 million has been allocated in 2023 under the budget of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). This brings the 2023 expenditure from the state budget to BGN 26.2 million.

"The Human Resources Development Programme has provided temporary support for integration into the labour market, under the same conditions as for Bulgarian citizens, with a total of BGN 6.8 million provided to employers when hiring new people," Vassilev said. "Under the operational programme for food or basic material assistance, procedures implemented by the Social Assistance Agency have been financed to provide basic assistance through a food voucher worth BGN 100, prioritised for children and their parents, amounting to BGN 3.9 million," he added. 

The expenditure on human resource development and food vouchers is entirely European funds, together with the expenditure on labour market integration, which is under ReactEU, Minister Vassilev summarised.   

"Most of the spending we do is reimbursed under EU programmes, so the burden on the budget of the Bulgarian state and the Bulgarian taxpayer is minimal. Moreover, most of the Ukrainian citizens are integrated into the labour market and pay taxes and social security contributions like all other Bulgarian citizens," Minister Vassilev said. 

He explained that the difference between the money spent in support of Ukrainian refugees in 2022 and 2023 was due to the larger number of displaced Ukrainian citizens who came to Bulgaria and received BGN 40 per day for accommodation in hotels back in 2022.