site.btaInterior Ministry Reports 69% Drop in Attempts at Illegal Border Crossing in February, Y/Y

A total of 695 third-country nationals attempted to illegally cross the border into Bulgaria in February, which is a drop from January's 848 migrants and by 69% compared to February 2024, the Interior Ministry says in its latest report on the monthly migration situation in the country.

In February 2025, the majority of the migrants attempted to cross the border with Turkiye (685), followed by the border with Romania (7) and with Greece (3).

In the period from January 1 to February 28, a total of 1,543 attempted to cross into Bulgaria, down by 63.4% from the like period last year (4,221 migrants). Out of those who attempted illegal entry into Bulgaria, 218 were detained by the Bulgarian authorities and 1,325 returned on their own to the interior of neighbouring countries.

Last month, the authorities detained a total of 152 illegal migrants, of whom 66 at the border upon attempted entry, 73 at the border upon attempted exit without registration by the Interior Ministry's bodies, and 13 for illegal stay. Of the latter, the majority (46.2%) were nationals of Morocco.

From January 1 to February 28, a total of 379 third-country nationals were detained. Of them, 35 were arrested for illegal stay in Bulgaria.

In February, the authorities found six unaccompanied underage foreigners, compared to one back in January. They were handed over to the Social Assistance Directorate.