site.btaInterior Ministry Reports 50.5% Decrease in Detained Migrants in September M/M

A total of 2,303 third-country nationals were detained in Bulgaria in September, according to the Interior Ministry’s monthly report on the migration situation in this country. Of these, 224 were attempting illegal entry, 315 were attempting illegal exit and were not registered with the Interior Ministry, and 1,764 were found to be illegally present in the country. This is a decrease of 50.5% compared to August (4,654). Most of the migrants come from Syria and Afghanistan.

A total of 15,697 third-country nationals were detained between January and September 2023. Of these, 12,838 were found staying illegally in Bulgaria. This is an increase of 23.2% compared to the total number of detainees during the same period in 2022. 

The data show that as of September 30, the State Agency for Refugees’s accommodation centres are filled at 76.5% of their capacity and house 2,747 people. Most of them come from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Morocco. 

In September, 3,114 people entered the centres and 3,192 left voluntarily. There were 185 people who left with protection granted.

The centres of the Interior Ministry’s Migration Directorate were filled at 109% of their capacity, with 1,826 migrants accommodated there. The majority of them were Syrian nationals (1,142). There were also 31 Palestinians.