Country report, gender equality : how are EU rules transposed into national law? : Bulgaria 2024.
Date: 2024-09-10
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers
Subjects: Bulgaria, age discrimination, application of EU law, equal pay, equal treatment, gender equality, labour market, maternity leave, national law, parental leave, paternity leave, pension scheme, report, sexual discrimination, sexual harassment, social security

Bulgaria 

2024 

 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers 
Directorate D — Equality and Non-Discrimination 
Unit D.3 Gender Equality 

European Commission 
B-1049 Brussels 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Country report  

Gender equality 

How are EU rules transposed into 
national law? 

Bulgaria 

Genoveva Tisheva 

Reporting period 1 January 2023 – 1 January 2024 

2024  Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2024 

© European Union, 2024 

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ISSN 2600-0164  

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

CONTENTS 
1 

3 

2 

4 

Introduction ............................................................................................... 5 
Basic structure of the national legal system ............................................ 5 
1.1 
List of main legislation transposing and implementing the directives .......... 7 
1.2 
Sources of law ..................................................................................... 7 
1.3 
1.4  Main surveys, reports on gender equality and other issues ........................ 8 
General legal framework .......................................................................... 12 
Constitution ....................................................................................... 12 
2.1 
Equal treatment legislation .................................................................. 12 
2.2 
Implementation of central concepts ......................................................... 14 
Sex/gender/transgender ...................................................................... 14 
3.1 
Direct sex discrimination ...................................................................... 17 
3.2 
Indirect sex discrimination ................................................................... 18 
3.3 
3.4  Multiple discrimination and intersectional discrimination .......................... 20 
Positive action .................................................................................... 22 
3.5 
Harassment and sexual harassment ...................................................... 24 
3.6 
Instruction to discriminate ................................................................... 26 
3.7 
Other forms of discrimination ............................................................... 26 
3.8 
3.9 
Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 27 
3.10  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 27 
Equal  pay  and  equal  treatment  at  work  (Article 157  of  the  Treaty  on  the 
Functioning  of  the  European  Union  (TFEU)  and  Recast  Directive 2006/54)
 ................................................................................................................. 28 
General (legal) context ........................................................................ 28 
4.1 
Equal pay .......................................................................................... 28 
4.2 
Access to work, working conditions and dismissal ................................... 31 
4.3 
Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 34 
4.4 
Remaining issues ................................................................................ 35 
4.5 
5  Work-life  balance  issues:  pregnancy,  maternity,  family-related  leave  and 
flexible  working  arrangements  (Directive 92/85,  relevant  provisions  of 
Directives 2006/54, and Directive 2019/1158) ........................................ 37 
General (legal) context ........................................................................ 37 
5.1 
5.2 
Pregnancy and maternity protection ...................................................... 37 
5.3  Maternity leave ................................................................................... 41 
Paternity leave ................................................................................... 43 
5.4 
Adoption leave ................................................................................... 44 
5.5 
Parental leave .................................................................................... 45 
5.6 
Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy ............................................ 49 
5.7 
Carers’ leave ...................................................................................... 49 
5.8 
5.9 
Time off for force majeure ................................................................... 50 
5.10  Flexible working time arrangements (FWAs) ........................................... 51 
5.11  Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 52 
5.12  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 52 
Occupational social security schemes (Chapter 2 of Directive 2006/54) .. 53 
General (legal) context ........................................................................ 53 
6.1 
Direct and indirect discrimination .......................................................... 53 
6.2 
6.3 
Personal scope ................................................................................... 53 
6.4  Material scope .................................................................................... 53 
Exclusions .......................................................................................... 54 
6.5 
6.6 
Laws and case law falling under the examples of sex discrimination mentioned 
in Article 9 of Directive 2006/54 ........................................................... 54 
Actuarial factors ................................................................................. 54 
6.7 
Difficulties .......................................................................................... 54 
6.8 
6.9 
Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 54 
6.10  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 54 
Statutory schemes of social security (Directive 79/7) .............................. 55 
General (legal) context ........................................................................ 55 
7.1 

7 

6 

3 

Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

7.2 

9 

8 

Implementation  of  the  principle  of  equal  treatment  for  men  and  women  in 
matters of social security ..................................................................... 55 
7.3 
Personal scope ................................................................................... 56 
7.4  Material scope .................................................................................... 57 
Exclusions .......................................................................................... 57 
7.5 
Actuarial factors ................................................................................. 57 
7.6 
Difficulties .......................................................................................... 58 
7.7 
Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 58 
7.8 
Remaining issues ................................................................................ 59 
7.9 
Self-employed  workers  (Directive 2010/41/EU  and  some 
relevant 
provisions of the Recast Directive) ........................................................... 60 
Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU ............................................... 60 
8.1 
Personal scope ................................................................................... 60 
8.2 
8.3  Material scope .................................................................................... 61 
Positive action .................................................................................... 62 
8.4 
8.5 
Social protection ................................................................................. 62 
8.6  Maternity benefits ............................................................................... 62 
Occupational social security ................................................................. 63 
8.7 
Prohibition of discrimination ................................................................. 63 
8.8 
8.9 
Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 63 
8.10  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 64 
Goods and services (Directive 2004/113) ................................................ 65 
General (legal) context ........................................................................ 65 
9.1 
9.2 
Prohibition of direct and indirect discrimination ....................................... 65 
9.3  Material scope .................................................................................... 65 
Exceptions ......................................................................................... 67 
9.4 
Justification of differences in treatment ................................................. 67 
9.5 
Actuarial factors ................................................................................. 67 
9.6 
Interpretation of exception contained in Article 5(2) of Directive 2004/113 67 
9.7 
Positive action measures (Article 6 of Directive 2004/113) ....................... 67 
9.8 
9.9 
Specific problems related to pregnancy, maternity or parenthood ............. 67 
9.10  Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 67 
9.11  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 68 
10  Violence  against  women  and  domestic  violence  in  relation  to  the  Istanbul 
Convention ............................................................................................... 69 
10.1  General (legal) context ........................................................................ 69 
10.2  Ratification of the Istanbul Convention .................................................. 75 
11  Compliance  and  enforcement  aspects  (horizontal  provisions  of  all 
directives) ................................................................................................ 78 
11.1  General (legal) context ........................................................................ 78 
11.2  Victimisation ...................................................................................... 78 
11.3  Access to courts ................................................................................. 78 
11.4  Horizontal effect of the applicable law ................................................... 79 
11.5  Burden of proof .................................................................................. 79 
11.6  Remedies and sanctions ...................................................................... 80 
11.7  Equality body ..................................................................................... 80 
11.8  Social partners ................................................................................... 81 
11.9  Other relevant bodies .......................................................................... 81 
11.10  Evaluation of implementation ............................................................... 83 
11.11  Remaining issues ................................................................................ 83 
12  Overall assessment ................................................................................... 84 
Bibliography ..................................................................................................... 85 

4 

 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

1 

Introduction 

1.1  Basic structure of the national legal system 

In terms of direct sources of law, the Bulgarian legal system is based on a strictly defined 
hierarchy of the sources of law as follows:  

EU  Law  has  supremacy  over  the  internal  legal  provisions  of  the  legislation  of  Bulgaria 
(including Constitutional provisions) which contradict it and it can have direct effect. This 
is also valid for the field of legislation related to gender equality. 

The provisions of the Constitution are directly applicable. 

Decisions of the Constitutional Court are obligatory interpretations of the Constitution. The 
Constitutional  Court  is  also  entitled,  among  other  competences,  to  declare  provisions 
contained  in  an  Act  of  Parliament  to  be  anti-constitutional.  The  Court  makes  rulings  on 
compliance with the Constitution of international treaties signed by Bulgaria, prior to their 
ratification,  as  well  as  on  the  compliance  of  the  laws  with  the  universally  recognised 
provisions of international law, including the international treaties to  which Bulgaria has 
adhered. 

Regarding international treaties, Article 5, paragraph 4 of the Constitution states:  

‘International  treaties,  ratified  in  compliance  with  the  constitutional  procedure, 
promulgated  and  entered  into  force  for  the  Republic  of  Bulgaria  are  part  of  the 
domestic  law  of  the  country  and  have  supremacy  over  those  provisions  of  the 
domestic law which contradict them.’  

Among  the  major  codes  currently  in  force  in  Bulgaria  are  the  Administrative  Procedure 
Code of 2006, the Civil Procedure Code, effective as of 1 March 2008, the Social Insurance 
Code (SIC) of 1999, the Labour Code (LC) of 1986, the Criminal Code of 1968, the Criminal 
Procedure  Code  of  2006  and  the  Family  Code  of  2009.  The  Protection  against 
Discrimination Act (PADA), adopted in 2003, is also a sui generis codification in the field. 
The  Law  on  Equality  between  women  and  men  (Gender  Equality  Law)  from  2016  is 
applicable for the issues of gender equality. 

The Constitution and a number of Acts of Parliament provide and delegate to the Council 
of Ministers, the Ministers separately, other public bodies and/or officials the authority to 
issue decrees, regulations, ordinances and instructions, to ensure the detailed regulation 
of specific areas of economic or social activity.  

The judgments issued by the Bulgarian courts in individual proceedings have no universal 
applicability, i.e. they are binding only on the  parties involved. At the same time,  some 
judgments and interpretative decisions and decrees of the Supreme Administrative Court 
(SAC) and of the Supreme Court of Cassation are a source of law and also have an impact 
on legislation and practice in the field of gender equality. 

The administration of justice in Bulgaria is based on three instances. The courts are state 
bodies  that  administer  justice  in  civil,  criminal  and  administrative  cases.  The  following 
courts  exist  in  Bulgaria:  district  courts  –  113;  provincial/regional  courts  –  28; 
administrative courts – 28; specialised Criminal Court – 1; courts of appeal – 5; Specialised 
Criminal Court of Appeal – 1; military courts – 5; Military Court of Appeal – 1; Supreme 
Court of Cassation – 1; Supreme Administrative Court – 1. The organisation and activities 
of the Bulgarian courts are governed by the Law on the Judiciary.1 

1  Law on the Judiciary (Закон за съдебната власт), promulgated in State Gazette (SG) No. 64/2007, in force 

since 10 June 2007, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2135560660. 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

A case that is under consideration by a court cannot be considered by any other body. 

Developments in Bulgarian legislation and practice in the field of anti-discrimination, equal 
treatment  and  equal  opportunities  were  made  possible  thanks  to  the  process  of  the  full 
integration of Bulgaria into the EU. 

The National Assembly is the legislative body which adopts legislation, including in the field 
of  anti-discrimination  and  gender  equality.  According  to  the  Gender  Equality  Law2  from 
2016,  the  Council  of  Ministers  is  the  central  authority  responsible  for  defining  policy  on 
gender equality. The Council of Ministers adopts the national strategy on gender equality 
and related plans as well as regulatory acts and decisions regarding  gender equality. By 
Decision  of  the  Council  of  Ministers  No. 969  from  30  December  2020,  the  new  National 
Strategy for promoting equality between women and men for the period 2021-2030 was 
adopted,3  replacing  the  previous  National  Strategy  on  Gender  Equality  2016-2020.  The 
new strategy does not differ substantially from the previous strategy or from the national 
plans on gender equality. Despite the fact it is intended to cover the next 10 years, the 
document does not contain more advanced targets and benchmarks.  

Important changes to the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence have been made to 
address the problem of domestic violence as gender-based violence as part of the policy 
on gender equality. Although adopted since August 2023, the main bulk of the amendments 
entered into force on 1 January 2024.4 

A  National  Council  on  Gender  Equality  (NCGE)  is  established  under  the  oversight  of  the 
Council  of  Ministers.  It  is  a  consultative  body  for  cooperation  and  coordination  between 
central and territorial bodies of the executive, and civil society organisations.  

The Gender Equality Law designates the Minister of Labour and Social Policy as the person 
who  is  responsible  for  the  management,  coordination  of  and  control  over  the 
implementation  of  the  state  policy  on  gender  equality.  The  Minister  is  the  chair  of  the 
NCGE. 

The  department  of  policy  for  persons  with  disabilities,  equal  opportunities  and  social 
assistance  directorate,  under  the  Ministry  of  Labour  and  Social  Policy,  serves  as  the 
secretariat to the National Council on Gender Equality. There are focal point coordinators 
on gender equality in the different ministries.  

The  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  (Комисия  за  защита  от 
дискриминация, CPD) was created in 2005 under the Protection against Discrimination Act 
as  an  independent  quasi-judicial  body  and  its  mandate  covers  all  types  of  direct  and 
indirect  discrimination,  including  discrimination  based  on  sex,  prohibited  by  law  and  by 
international instruments to which Bulgaria is a party. The Commission is composed of nine 
(9) members and has broad competences, including initiating discrimination cases of its 
own  and  assisting  the  victims  of  discrimination  in  bringing  a  claim.  The  administrative 
procedure before the Commission is very flexible and easy for petitioners to follow. There 
are  regional  representatives  of  the  Commission  who  provide  independent  support  and 
consultation  and  information  to  citizens  on  the  application  of  the  Protection  against 
Discrimination  Act,  about  the  opportunities  for  protection  of  their  rights  and  about  the 
procedure. 

2   Law on Equality between women and men (Закон за равнопоставеност на жените и мъжете), promulgated 

in SG 33/2016, in force since 26 April 2016 (Gender Equality Law), available in Bulgarian at: 
http://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2136803101. 

3   National Strategy on Equality between women and men 2021-2030 (Национална стратегия за 

насърчаване на равнопоставеността на жените и мъжете 2021-2030 г), available in Bulgarian at: 
https://www.mlsp.government.bg/uploads/41/ravni-vzmozhnosti/strategy-nsnrjm-2021-2030.pdf. 

4   Law on protection from domestic violence (Закон за защита от домашното насилие), last amended with SG 

66 and 69/2023, available in Bulgarian at: https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135501151. 

6 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

The  current  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  was  appointed  in  August 
2017, and is still serving, although its mandate has been overdue since 2022. 

According to the Law on the Ombudsman,5 the latter is a public defender who promotes 
and  protects  human  rights  and  fundamental  freedoms.6  The  Ombudsman  advocates 
through all legal means when there is a violation of human rights by  act or  omission of 
State and municipal bodies or their administration, of persons who provide public services, 
as well as acts or omissions by private persons. This institution has broad competences, 
including initiation through the competent bodies, of a procedure for the interpretation of 
the  Constitution  or  for  challenging  the  constitutionality  of  Bulgarian  laws,  or  their 
conformity with the international standards in force for Bulgaria. The Ombudsperson also 
has the role of National Prevention Mechanism according to the Optional Protocol to the 
UN Convention against Torture and other forms of inhuman and degrading treatment or 
punishment.  Recently,  the  Bulgarian  Ombudsperson  was  accredited  with  A  status  under 
the Paris Principles. The institution has had some initiatives related mainly to protection 
from domestic violence but has not yet played an important role in the issues of gender 
equality and women’s rights. 

In  fact,  there  is  no  institution  dealing  exclusively,  on  a  permanent  basis,  with  gender 
equality  in  Bulgaria.  In  2023  there  have  been  very  few  substantial  developments  and 
achievements at the national level in the field of policy on gender equality. As one of the 
major results we can mention is the adoption of the amendments to the Law on Protection 
from  Domestic  Violence  in  August  2023.7  This  is  mainly  the  result  of  the  initiative  and 
pressure of the women’s NGOs in Bulgaria. 

1.2  List of main legislation transposing and implementing the directives 

- 
- 
- 
- 

Protection against Discrimination Act (PADA);8 
Social Insurance Code (SIC);9 
Labour Code (LC);10 and 
Law on Equality between women and men (Gender Equality Law).11 

1.3  Sources of law 

Based on the main structure of the national legal system indicated above, the main sources 
of gender equality law are: 

- 

- 

- 

the Constitution with its main principles of equality and affirming the human rights 
and fundamental freedoms, as well as Constitutional Court rulings; 
EU  law  –  primary,  secondary  and  the  case  law  of  the  Court  of  Justice  of  the  EU 
(CJEU); and 
international treaties which form part of the domestic law and prevail over national 
legislation that contradicts them. 

6   Law on the Ombudsman (Закон за омбудсмана), in force since 1 January 2004, available in Bulgarian at: 

https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135467520. 

7   Law on Protection from Domestic Violence (Закон за защита от домашното насилие – ЗЗДН ), promulgated 

in SG 27/2005, in force since 1 April 2005, last amended by SC 66/ 2023 and 69/ 2023, available in 
Bulgarian at: http://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135501151. 

8  Protection against Discrimination Act – PADA (Закон за защита от дискриминация), promulgated in SG 
86/2003, in force since 1 January 2004, available in Bulgarian at: http://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135472223. 
9  Social Insurance Code (SIC) (Кодекс за социално осигуряване), promulgated in SG No. 110/99, in force 

since 1 January 2000, available in Bulgarian at: http://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1597824512. 

10  Labour Code (Кодекс на труда), promulgated in SG No. 26/86, in force since 1 January 1987, available in 

Bulgarian at: http://www.lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/1594373121. 

11  Law on Equality between women and men (Закон за равнопоставеност на жените и мъжете), promulgated 

in SG 33/2016, in force since 26 April 2016 (Gender Equality Law), available in Bulgarian at: 
http://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2136803101.  

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Such  treaties  at  UN  level  in  the  field  of  gender  equality  are  the  Convention  on  the 
Elimination  of  all  Forms  of  Discrimination  Against  Women  (CEDAW),  which  entered  into 
force  in  1982;  its  Optional  Protocol,  in  force  since  2006;  the  International  Covenant  on 
Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural 
Rights, both in force since 1970. 

Bulgaria ratified the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in 
1992.  

The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women 
and Domestic Violence (CETS No. 210, Istanbul Convention) was signed by the Bulgarian 
Government in April 2016 and has the force of a political document for Bulgaria, although 
it was not ratified by the Bulgarian  Parliament. There is a notorious Constitutional Court 
ruling  from  2018  declaring  that  the  Convention  as  a  whole  is  in  contradiction  with  the 
Constitution.12  

Since  the  issuing  of  this  ruling,  no  other  procedure  has  been  initiated  before  the 
Constitutional  Court  for  the  review  of  the  ruling  on  the  constitutionality  of  the  Istanbul 
Convention, be it by the Constitutional Court itself, or by the National Assembly. 

Furthermore, a series of National Assemblies, including the current 49th National Assembly, 
have  not  considered  any  new  draft  law  for  ratification  of  the  Convention.  The 
parliamentarians and politicians mention the ruling of the Constitutional Court as a legal 
obstacle that cannot be overcome. 

Case law is binding only for the parties in the specific case and this also applies to the case 
law of the Supreme Court of Cassation and the Supreme Administrative Court. Bulgaria is 
not a country where the law of precedent is valid. 

According  to  Article 130  paragraph  2  of  the  Law  on  the  Judiciary,  the  interpretative 
decisions of the Supreme Court of Cassation are mandatory for the bodies of the judiciary 
and  the  executive,  for  the  self-governing  local  authorities  and  for  all  bodies  that  issue 
administrative acts.  

The decisions of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination are binding only for 
the parties to the specific case. The opinions and suggestions of this body are not binding. 

1.4  Main surveys, reports on gender equality and other issues 

In recent years there have been no significant surveys or reports  published on the legal 
definition,  implementation  and  limits  of  the  central  concepts  of  gender  equality  law  in 
Bulgaria. 

A good  source  of legal  interpretation  of the concepts and practice  of  discrimination law, 
including gender equality, is the anthology of reports from a 2018 scientific conference on 
the  ‘Legal  regulation,  problems  and  trends  of  protection  from  discrimination’.13  The 
anthology includes several articles by authors who tackle the issue of discrimination based 
on  sex  and  gender.  For  example,  the  article,  ‘Indirect  discrimination  in  Bulgarian  and 
European  law’  finds  that  there  is  insufficient  knowledge  and  consequent  gaps  in  the 
understanding of the concept in Bulgarian legal practice. ‘Some constitutional aspects of 

12   Constitutional Court, Ruling No. 13, Sofia, from 27 July 2018, promulgated in SG No. 65/07.08.2018 (Ruling 

No. 13/2018). 

13   University of Economics, Varna (2018) Anthology of reports from a scientific conference on the Legal 
regulation, problems and trends of protection from discrimination,- „ Правна уредба, проблеми и 
тенденции на защитата от дискриминация” (in cooperation with the Institute of Legal Studies to the 
Bulgarian Academy of Science and the Commission for Protection against Discrimination) https://www.ue-
varna.bg/Uploads/AdminUploads/Publishing_house_bg/Zashtita_diskriminaciq_2018.pdf/ (link not available 
anymore). 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

the  protected  ground  of  discrimination’  explores  the  possibilities  and  limitations  of  the 
equality clause of the Constitution. ‘Equality policies as “hostage” of hate speech’ links the 
standards on education on gender equality in universities with the limitations imposed by 
fierce hate speech in Bulgaria in the previous two years. More general issues discussed in 
the anthology include the burden of proof and the independence of equality bodies. 

Among developments since 2018, it is worth mentioning the interpretation given by the 
Constitutional  Court  of  the  Republic  of  Bulgaria  of  the  concepts  of  sex,  gender  and 
transgender in the motivation part of Ruling No. 13 of 27 July 2018. The ruling was held 
on the conformity with the Constitution of an international treaty signed by the Republic of 
Bulgaria on 21 April 2016 – the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating 
violence  against  women  and  domestic  violence  (the  Istanbul  Convention)  –prior  to  the 
ratification of this treaty.14 The Constitutional Court ruled that the Istanbul Convention is 
contrary  to  the  Bulgarian  Constitution.  This  is  a  final  decision  of  the  Court.  It  could  be 
reviewed if a new process of ratification is initiated by the Parliament and the issue can be 
submitted again to the Constitutional Court. The main inconsistency comes from the wrong 
interpretation  of  the  term  ‘gender’  by  the  Constitutional  Court  as  an  element  of  the  so-
called ‘gender ideology’.  The correct meaning of the term, related to gender equality, as 
based  on  the  social  roles  of  men  and  women  and  related  inequalities,  was  wrongly 
interpreted and rejected by the Court ruling. Furthermore, eager to counter what it calls 
‘gender ideology’ and its  effects in Bulgaria, the Court needed to affirm in  its  ruling the 
binary concept of sex as enshrined and deeply rooted in the Bulgarian Constitution.  

The interpretations of the concepts by the Constitutional Court go far beyond the mandated 
task and concrete questions under the mentioned case and they represent restrictions of 
the  meaning  of  some  of  these  concepts,  as  well  as  contradictions  to  legal  provisions  in 
force and to other legal practice. This Ruling was strongly influenced by public debates and 
also by political pressure against the ratification of the Istanbul Convention by Bulgaria. 

Some quotations from the Ruling15 provide an indication of the restrictive interpretation of 
the Constitution and of important concepts related to gender equality: 

‘…In parallel  with the policy  of the Council of  Europe  on protecting women against 
gender-based violence and non-discrimination against women, the Council of Europe, 
in  a  number  of  its  acts,  calls  on  the  member  states  of  the  Council  of  Europe  to 
explicitly  prohibit  discrimination  based  on  “gender  identity”  in  national  non-
discrimination legislation and to include the human rights situation of “transgender 
people”  in  the  mandate  of  national  human  rights  institutions,  with  an  explicit 
reference to “gender identity” as a form of discrimination against women…’ 

‘…The  foregoing  clearly  shows  the  link  between  the  policy  of  Council  of  Europe  on 
preventing  and  combating  violence  against  women  as  a  form  of  gender-based 
discrimination against  women and the protection of  certain rights of “transgender” 
persons…’ 

‘…The  Constitutional  Court  finds  that  despite  its  undeniable  positive  aspects,  the 
Convention is internally contradictory, and this contradiction creates duality therein. 
Thus,  the  meaning  of  some  of  its  provisions  goes  beyond  the  Convention’s  stated 
purposes and its title…’  

‘…In  Article 1(1)(a)  and  (b)  of  the  Convention  the  term  “women”,  which  is 
undoubtedly based on the biological understanding of the sexes, is used to define the 
subject  of  protection  against  all  forms  of  violence  and  discrimination.  At  the  same 
time  the  legal  definitions  in  Article 3(c)  of  the  Convention  (the  English  and  French 

14   Constitutional Court, Ruling No. 13, Sofia, from 27 July 2018, promulgated in SG No. 65/07.08.2018 (Ruling 

No. 13/2018). 

15   Unofficial English translation of the ruling by UNICEF – Bulgaria – September 2018. 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

texts) include the term “gender”/ “genre”, translated into Bulgarian as “пол” (“sex”), 
with  the  following  meaning:  “socially  constructed  roles,  behaviours,  activities  and 
attributes that a given society considers appropriate for women and men”. The term 
“gender” has been translated into Bulgarian as “социален пол” (“social gender”) only 
in the provision of Article 4(3) of the Convention. In the Convention the terms “sex”/ 
“sexe” and “gender”/“genre” exist together, with “gender” being included among the 
grounds  of  discrimination  under  Article 4(3)  along  with  the  biologically  determined 
sex – “sex, gender ...”/“sexe, genre …”. Thus, gender as a biological category (“sex”), 
but  also  gender  as  a  social  construct  (“gender”)  determined  by  the  subjective 
perceptions and notions of the individual and of society about the role of men and 
women,  are  elevated  to  autonomous  and  equivalent  categories  of  the  Convention 
with  their  own  legal  existence.  The  term  “gender”/  “genre”  exists  within  the 
Convention as a separate category different from sex as a biological construct. The 
Convention divides the biological and social dimensions of gender and goes beyond 
the view of the gender binary of the human species. With the meaning specified in 
Article 3(c),  “gender”/  “genre”  becomes  a  fundamental  term  that  also  defines  the 
meaning of other phrases used in the Convention and based on this term…’ 

‘…“Gender”  is  used  in  the  phrases:  “gender  equality”  (Preamble),  “gender-based 
violence” (Preamble, Articles 2, 3, 4, 14), “gender identity” (Article 4(3)), “gender-
sensitive  policies”  (Article 6),  “gender  perspective”  (Article 6),  “non-stereotyped 
gender  roles”  (Article 14),  “gendered  understanding  of  violence”  (Article 18, 
Article 49(2)),  “gender-based  asylum  claims”  (Article 60),  “gender-sensitive 
interpretation” 
procedures” 
(Article 60(3)). These phrases, depending on the interpretation, may lead to different 
and  contradictory  understandings  of  the  philosophy  of  the  Convention.  The 
Convention is the first international treaty signed by the Republic of Bulgaria which 
gives such a definition of the term “gender” (Article 3(c) of the Convention) ….’  

“gender-sensitive 

(Article 60(2)), 

reception 

‘…The …acts of the Council of Europe aimed against discrimination and violence on 
the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity clearly serve to clarify the meaning 
of  the  terms  “gender”  and  “gender  identity”  in  the  context  of  the  approach  of  the 
Council  of  Europe  to  promote  the  understanding  that  the  biological  and  social 
dimensions  of  gender  are  not  inextricably  linked  and  exist  independently  of  each 
other; the understanding of the ability of people to self-determine their gender; as 
well as to ensure full legal recognition by the State of the gender reassignment….’  

‘…The  analysis  of  the  terms  “gender”/  “genre”,  translated  into  Bulgarian,  firstly  as 
“пол”  (“sex”)  and  secondly  as  “социален  пол”  (“social  gender”),  and  “gender 
identity”/“l’identité de genre”, translated into Bulgarian as “идентичност, основана 
на пола” (“sex-based identity”) indicates that the terms are connected and should 
be understood through one another. The term “gender”/ “genre” with the meaning 
“socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities and attributes that a given society 
considers appropriate for women and men” reflects certain social and cultural notions 
of men and women created within a given society at a given moment. These notions 
are evolving to the extent that newer notions can exclude the older ones, for example 
that gender is biologically determined. From this point of view, a biological man might 
have a female “gender”/“genre” and vice versa. This leads to the possibility of the 
individual  choosing,  at  their  own  will,  a  different  “gender  identity”  that  might  not 
coincide with the biological one. This understanding expresses aspects of the “gender 
ideology”  –  a  collection  of  ideas,  convictions  and  beliefs  that  the  biologically 
determined  sexual  characteristics  are  irrelevant,  and  only  the  gender  self-
identification is relevant…’ 

‘…The  absence  of  a  common  understanding  of  the  term  “gender”/“genre”  is  also 
illustrated  by  the  active  public  and  political  debate  “for”  and  “against”  the  gender 
ideology that has been ongoing for over two decades in dozens of countries…’ 

10 

 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

‘…As  stated,  the  Convention  uses  two  terms  for  gender  –  “sex”  and  “gender”.  It 
introduces the phrase “gender identity”, which stems from the notion that the social 
dimension  of  gender  is  independent  of  the  biological  one.  Any  distancing  from  the 
term “gender” as a biological attribute (man/woman) distances the Convention from 
the stated purposes of protecting women against all forms of violence. The internal 
contradiction  in  the  Convention  is  obvious  when  comparing  the  purposes  stated  in 
Article 1  of  the  Convention  and  its  title  with  the  term  “gender”  as  defined  in  the 
Convention.  Moreover,  the  very  definition  of  the  term  “gender”  would  have  been 
redundant, if the stated purpose of the international treaty actually corresponded to 
its title “… on preventing and combating violence against women …”. This duality of 
the terminology, of the meaning of the terms used, in practice does not lead to the 
achievement of gender equality, but rather blurs the differences between sexes thus 
resulting in the principle of equality losing its meaning…’ 

Thus, the Constitutional Court provides an interpretation of the term ‘gender’ which goes 
against the principle of gender equality and undermines the meaning and understanding 
of  related  terms  and  notions  recognised  in  EU  law  and  to  which  Bulgaria  had  already 
adhered. The Court deliberately dissociates the term ‘gender’ from ‘sex’ and attributes it 
only  to  the  blurred  concept  of  ‘gender  ideology’,  which  was  introduced  from  abroad  to 
public and political debate at the end of 2017 in Bulgaria. This wrong interpretation of the 
term ‘gender’ was broadly disseminated and applied, although it should be understood only 
in  connection  with  the  assessment  of  conformity  of  the  Istanbul  Convention  with  the 
Constitution.  The  ruling  also  contains  clear  limitations  to  already  achieved  standards  of 
non-discrimination,  such  as  the  recognition  by  Bulgarian  law  of  discrimination  based  on 
gender  reassignment,  and  limits  the  rights  of  transgender  people,  almost  excluding  the 
possibility for adding gender identity as a separate ground for discrimination. 

The Constitutional Court did not discuss and did not take into account EU standards in the 
field of gender equality and did not refer to nor apply the CEDAW convention in relation to 
the notion of discrimination against women. The legislation in force was also overlooked. 
Namely, according to the definitions of the Gender Equality Law, equality of women and 
men means equal rights, equal opportunities for realisation and for overcoming obstacles 
in all spheres in society, where both sexes are free to develop their personal capabilities 
and to make choices without the limitations of the social roles defined by their respective 
gender. 

The legal provisions of the Protection against Discrimination Act were also disregarded by 
the Constitutional Court in its interpretations of these important concepts. 

In  conclusion,  the  Constitutional  Court  ruling  created  a  legal  environment  that  favours 
wrong interpretations of key gender equality concepts and a weakening of the protection 
of gender equality, and more generally human rights, in Bulgaria. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

2 

General legal framework 

2.1  Constitution 

2.1.1  Constitutional ban on sex discrimination 

The  Bulgarian  Constitution  of  1991  prohibits  sex  discrimination,  among  other 
discrimination grounds. 

Article 6  of  the  Constitution16  addresses  these  issues.  This  provision  proclaims  that  all 
people are born free and equal in dignity and rights, and that all people are equal before 
the law. No limitations or privileges are allowed based on race, nationality, ethnic origin, 
sex,  origin,  religion,  education,  belief,  political  affiliation,  personal  and  social  status,  or 
property status.  

2.1.2  Other constitutional protection of equality between men and women 

Article 14 of the Constitution stipulates that the family, maternity and children are under 
the protection of the state and society.  

Article 46 of the Constitution stipulates that spouses have equal rights and obligations in 
the marriage and in the family. Marriage is a voluntary union between a man and a woman. 

Another relevant provision is Article 47 of the Constitution, which declares that the care 
for and education of children until they reach the age of majority is a right and obligation 
of their parents, with the support of the state. Special protection is ensured for mothers, 
who are granted paid leave prior to and after giving birth, free obstetric care, an alleviation 
of working conditions and social assistance. 

All citizens have the right to work and the state creates the conditions for the realisation 
of this right. Everybody has the right to choose freely his/her profession and workplace. 

Workers and employees have the right to safety and health at work, to the minimum wage 
and  to  remuneration  correspondent  to  the  work  implemented,  as  well  as  the  right  to  a 
break and a right to a period of leave under the conditions defined by law (Article 48). 

Article 51 of the Constitution guarantees the right to social security and social assistance. 

The provisions  of the Constitution have direct/immediate and horizontal effect (Article 5 
paragraph 2 of the Constitution). 

2.2  Equal treatment legislation 

Bulgaria’s Protection against Discrimination Act (PADA)17 has been in force since 1 January 
2004.  The  PADA  contains  a  prohibition  of  discrimination  on  a  broad  range  of  grounds, 
including on the ground of sex. Besides a prohibition of discrimination based on this ground, 
the  ban  encompasses  the  grounds  of  race,  nationality,  ethnicity,  human  genome, 
citizenship, origin, religion and belief, education, conviction, political affiliation, personal or 
social status, disability, age, sexual orientation, family status, property status, or any other 
ground, defined by law or in an international treaty to which Bulgaria is a party (Article 4(1) 
of the PADA). 

16   Constitution of Bulgaria (Конституция на РБългария), promulgated in SG No. 56/1991, in force since 13 

July 1991, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/521957377. 

17   Protection against Discrimination Act (Закон за защита от дискриминация), promulgated in SG 

No. 86/2003, in force since 1 January 2004, last amended by provisions promulgated in SG 7/2018, 
available in Bulgarian at: https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135472223. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Apart from the Commission for Protection against Discrimination, which deals with specific 
cases of discrimination based on sex, there is no official body defined by law with a gender 
equality policy remit, with all the functions required by the EU directives.  

In  order  to  fill  the  gap  in  the  structure  of  the  mechanism  for  gender  equality  and 
Government policy, a Law on Equality between women and men (the Gender Equality Law) 
was proposed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in 2015. It was adopted by the 
Bulgarian National Assembly and promulgated on 26 April 2016.18 The law regulates state 
policy  on  gender  equality,  sets  out  the  main  principles  of  this  policy,  including  positive 
measures  for  promoting  gender  equality  and  the  mechanism  for  the  adoption  of  such 
measures.  The  law  affirms  the  duties  of  the  Minister  of  Labour  and  Social  Policy  as  the 
person who will manage, coordinate and control gender equality policy. State policy in this 
field is also implemented by units in the different ministries, in the regional administration 
and at the level of the local self-governance bodies. 

The Gender Equality Law sets out the main principles of policy on gender equality which 
are (Article 2): the equal opportunities, equal access and equal treatment of women and 
men  in  all  spheres  of  life;  the  prohibition  of  discrimination  and  gender-based  violence; 
balanced  representation  of  women  and  men  in  decision-making  and  overcoming  gender 
stereotypes.  The  Law  provides  for  the  adoption  and  application  of  temporary  special 
measures for achieving gender equality but does not define the procedure for adoption of 
such measures.  

The  Regulation  on  the  structure,  organisation  and  activities  of  the  National  Council  on 
Gender Equality was adopted at the end of 2016.19 The temporary special measures and 
the measures against gender-based violence as a whole have not been adopted yet. 

In addition to the 30 coordinators at national level – persons responsible in the ministries 
and  agencies,  and  independent  bodies  –  28  regional  coordinators  and  12  deputy 
coordinators  for  equality  between  men  and  women  were  appointed  among  regional 
administration representatives in the country.  

The situation indicates that the Gender Equality Law as adopted  – an administrative law 
stating the principles and main mechanisms on gender equality – does not ensure support 
for the policy on gender equality and its real implementation in practice.  

For  the  implementation  of  Article 16  of  the  Law,  a  special  symbol/award  for  effective 
implementation of gender equality policy was created. The Ministry of Labour and Social 
Policy,  with  the  support  of  the  consultative  body  on  gender  equality  –  the  NCGE  – 
established  the  rules  and  procedures  for  the  nominations  for  the  award.20  The  award  is 
presented each year in the form of a plaque and a special certificate. It represents a symbol 
of  achievements  and  should  work  as  an  incentive  for  organisations  and  institutions  to 
improve their management in accordance with the principles of equality. Up to now, several 
organisations in different categories were granted the award. 

The list of plans adopted and of the decisions of the Council of Ministers for approval of the 
reports according to these plans is listed on the website.21 

18   Law on Equality between women and men (Закон за равнопоставеност на жените и мъжете), promulgated 

in SG 33/2016, in force since 26 April 2016 (Gender Equality Law), available in Bulgarian at: 
http://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2136803101. 

19   Regulation on the structure, organisation and activities of the National Council on Gender Equality 

(Правилник за устройството, организацията и дейността на Националния съвет за равнопоставеност на 
жените и мъжете), adopted by Decree of the CM No. 302 from 15 November 2016, available in Bulgarian 
at: https://legislation.apis.bg/doc/2966590/0. 

20   Report on gender equality for 2017 by the MLSP: https://www.mlsp.government.bg/uploads/1/blgarsko-

zakonodatelstvo/report-equality-2017-final.pdf. 

21   See: https://www.mlsp.government.bg/blgarsko-zakonodatelstvo. 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

3 

Implementation of central concepts22 

3.1  Sex/gender/transgender 

3.1.1  Definition of ‘gender’ and ‘sex’ 

The terms ‘gender’ and ‘sex’ are not defined explicitly in Bulgarian legislation. The notion 
of ‘gender’ for the purpose of protection from gender-based violence and as provided in 
the  Istanbul  Convention  was  not  adopted,  as  the  ratification  of  the  Convention  was 
rejected.  The  Ruling  of  the  Constitutional  Court,  mentioned  above  in  detail,  gives  the 
interpretation of the Court of this term, or rather, shows the misconception of this term. 
The ruling of the Court is not an interpretative decision on the constitutionality of a legal 
provision: it is the expression of another competency of the Court – the very rarely used 
competence to rule on constitutionality of treaties prior to their ratification. The ruling on 
the constitutionality of the Istanbul Convention is not related to a law in force in Bulgaria 
and the principle that the decisions of the Constitutional Court are valid erga omnes and 
are obligatory for all is not valid in this case. This particular ruling has limited application 
and might be obligatory for governmental bodies only in the context of future ratification.  

3.1.2  Protection of transgender, intersex and non-binary persons  

Article 6 paragraph 2 of the Constitution enshrines equality of all citizens before the law 
based on a variety of grounds, including sex and personal status. 

Article 4  of  the  Bulgarian  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act  contains  a  ban  on 
discrimination based on an extensive list of grounds, including sex, personal status, sexual 
orientation  but  not  explicitly  gender  identity.  Non-discrimination  against  the  mentioned 
persons – transgender, intersex and non-binary persons – is not explicitly declared as a 
principle.  Nevertheless,  the  ground  of  personal  status  contained  in  the  Constitution  and 
the PADA represents a valid basis for recognition of the rights of those people. 

According  to  paragraph  17  of  the  Additional  Provisions  of  the  Protection  against 
Discrimination  Act,  the  ground  of  sex/gender  under  Article 4(1)  of  the  Act  also 
encompasses  the  cases  of  change  of  gender/gender  reassignment.  Persons  who  change 
their  gender  according  to  the  law  are  protected  upon  change  respectively  as  males  and 
females. 

It  is  worth  quoting  paragraphs  from  the  Ruling  of  the  Constitutional  Court  mentioned 
above.23 

‘The Constitution and the entire Bulgarian legislation are built on the understanding 
of the gender binary of the human species. In fact, the Constitution clearly perceives 
the social dimension  of gender in interaction  with its biological determination … In 
short, the term “gender” is used by the constitutional legislator as a unity of biological 
determination and social construct. The social dimension of the Constitution does not 
create  a  social  gender  independent  of  the  biological  sex  as  provided  for  in  the 
Convention. 

Traditionally, human society is built on gender binary, that is the  existence of two 
opposite  sexes,  each  being  assigned  specific  biological  and  social  functions  and 
responsibilities. Biological sex is determined at birth and is in the foundation of the 
sex for the purposes of civil matters. The importance of the sex for the purposes of 

22   See Burri, S. (2018), EU gender equality law – update 2018, European network of legal experts in gender 
equality and non-discrimination, available at: https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/4767-eu-gender-
equality-law-update-2018-pdf-444-kb. 

23   Constitutional Court, Ruling No 13, Sofia, from 27 July 2018 promulgated in SG No 65/07.08.2018 (Ruling 

No. 13/2018). Unofficial English translation of the ruling by UNICEF – Bulgaria – September 2018. 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

civil  matters  in  the  legal  regulation  of  social  relations  (cohabitation,  parenthood) 
requires clarity, indisputability, stability and security.’ 

According  to  another  Constitutional  Court  ruling  –  an  interpretative  decision  from  26 
October  202124  –  the  term  ‘sex’  in  the  Constitution  should  be  understood  only  in  its 
biological sense; the Court decided almost unanimously on the question of the Supreme 
Court  interpreting  the  term  sex/gender  from  March  2021.  The  ruling  indicates  that  the 
Bulgarian  courts  have  different  practices  on  this  issue  when  deciding  requests  from 
transgender  people  to  change  their  sex  data  in  their  identification  documents.  The 
Constitutional Court says that in the Bulgarian Constitution, the biological sex ‘woman’ is 
associated with the social role of the mother, with childbirth and with obstetric care. The 
Constitutional Court stated: ‘The Constitution does not create a gender that is independent 
of the biological sex’. Therefore, under the Bulgarian Constitution, the word ‘gender’ can 
only refer to biological sex. 

The  Court  ruled  that  Bulgarian  institutions  cannot  be  obliged  to  accept  the  self-
determination  of  citizens  of  a  sex  that  is  different  from  their  biological  one.  The  Court 
declared  that  the  legal  status  of  transgender  people  can  be  further  resolved  through 
changes  in  legislation.  This  conclusion  was  confirmed  by  the  interpretative  ruling  of  the 
VKS  /  Supreme  Court  of  Cassation  No. 2/2020  of  20  February  2023,25  which  creates  a 
further obstacle to the legal change of biological sex in Bulgaria. 

The VKS ruling is a response to the need for harmonisation of contradictory court practice 
on the terms and conditions for the courts to allow under the Civil Status Registration Act 
(ZGR) a change in the civil status record of a petitioner who claims to be transsexual. 

What adds to the complexity of the issues brought by the ruling of the VKS under review 
is that it builds on the outcome of the Constitutional Court Ruling No. 15/2021 mentioned 
above,  which  stipulates  that  the  notion  of  ‘sex’  according  to  the  Constitution  should  be 
understood  only  in  its  biological  meaning.  From  the  very  beginning,  the  majority  of  the 
deciding judges focused on the fact that the court is bound by Constitutional Court Ruling 
No. 15/2021. 

The majority of magistrates who took this VKS decision advance the argument that there 
is no legal obligation for Bulgaria under the EU law to recognise same-sex marriage, which 
would be in contradiction of national identity. In addition to that, the decision is based on 
the allegation that if there is a violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human 
Rights, it is related to the lack of legislation in Bulgaria, the lack of legal conditions and 
procedures that would allow the change of the status and legal recognition of the change 
of sex. Based on such arguments, with the unilateral interpretation and ban of the change 
of sex, which does not exist in law, the VKS ruling goes beyond the scope of the  specific 
task and the competence of the court. 

It is important for the court to assess whether the public interest in Bulgaria prevails over 
the private interest of the trans people, although these rights are recognised as real and 
not denied.  

According to the motivation of the VKS, the public interest is represented by the values in 
society, shaped by religion and morals, and especially in relation to marriage. 

As  a  result  of  the  interpretative  ruling  from  February  2023  to  our  knowledge,  all  the 
applications  for  change  of  sex  have  been  declined.  There  is  serious  risk  for  procedures 
against Bulgaria for violation of EU law and for complaints under the ECHR. 

24   Constitutional Court, Ruling No. 15/2021. https://www.vks.bg/iskania-do-konstitucionnia-sad/ks-reshenie-

kd-6-2021.pdf. 

25   Available in Bulgaria at:https://www.vks.bg/talkuvatelni-dela-osgk/vks-osgk-tdelo-2020-2-reshenie.pdf. 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Table 1: Protection of transgender, intersex and non-binary persons 

Are gender 
identity/transgender 
status/intersex status/sex 
characteristic etc. specific 
grounds of prohibited 
discrimination? If yes, specify 
which grounds are recognised 
in legislation and/or case law. 
No, just discrimination based on 
sex and sexual orientation are 
expressly prohibited.  

Is discrimination against transgender, 
intersex and non-binary persons forbidden 
on the basis of the existing prohibition on 
sex discrimination? If yes, if possible 
specify which groups are protected 
(transgender/intersex/non-binary). 

No. 

According to paragraph 17 of the Additional 
Provisions of the Protection against 
Discrimination Act, the ground of sex/gender 
under Article 4(1) of the Act also encompasses 
the cases of change of gender/gender 
reassignment However, cases of transgender 
people in general, or intersex and non-binary 
people have not been addressed yet. 

3.1.3  Specific requirements 

The Bulgarian legislation in principle implicitly allows  a change of sex/legal gender. The 
law has never regulated gender recognition.   It regulates the consequences related to the 
issuing of new personal documents, as well as the protection of transgender persons from 
discrimination.  

According to Article 9 paragraph 1 of the Bulgarian Personal Documents Law from 2009:26  

‘Where  there  is  a  change  in  the  names,  personal  identification  number,  gender, 
nationality, or substantial and permanent changes in facial image of a person, they 
are obliged to submit an application for a new Bulgarian identity document within 30 
days.’ 

Pursuant  to  Article 16  paragraph  1  of  the  Regulation  for  Issuing  Bulgarian  Personal 
Documents from 2010,27 the marker of sex/gender is among the obligatory personal data 
to be contained in the Bulgarian personal documents. Furthermore, pursuant to Article 20 
paragraph 2 and Article 22 paragraph 7 of the Regulation, when changing elements of the 
personal civil status, in cases when the change is not reflected in the National Population 
Database, the application for change in the identity card or passport must be accompanied 
by:  

- 

- 

- 

in the case of change in the personal identification number  – a certificate from the 
respective municipal administration on the permanent address of the applicant; 
upon  change  of  the  names  –  official  document  certifying  the  change,  as  well  as  a 
certificate from the respective municipal administration on the permanent address of 
the person for the change made in his personal registration card; and 
in the case of gender change – an official document from the respective competent 
authorities. 

26   Bulgarian Personal Documents Law (Закон за българските лични документи) in force since 1 April 1999, 

available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2134424576. 

27   Regulation for Issuing Bulgarian Personal Documents (Правилник за издаване на българските лични 

документи) in force since15 February 2010, available in Bulgarian at: 
https://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2135663268.  

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Another relevant provision that might concern gender change implicitly is Article 19 of the 
Civil Registration Act from 1999:28  

‘A change in the first, middle or last name of a person is accepted by the court based 
on the written request of the principal, where the name causes ridicule or disgrace, 
or is publicly unacceptable, and where important circumstances require.’ 

Change of gender may be included in ‘important circumstances’. 

Prior  to  the  interpretative  decision  of  the  VKS,  issued  in  February  2023  and  mentioned 
above, the gender marker change had to be sought through a court decision. 

Court Decision No. 16/30.05.2017 of the Supreme Court of Cassation29 issued under civil 
case No. 2316/2016 г., 4th civil division, provides a set of requirements. Two cumulative 
criteria are drawn by the Supreme Court of Cassation (SCC) in order to consider and decide 
a case of gender change: a medical criterion – the existence of the status of transsexuality, 
which is defined by a complex medical expert opinion; a legal criterion – the need for the 
transsexual person to prove before the court their serious and unwavering intent to change 
the gender role performed psychologically and socially. 

Therefore,  according  to  the  court  practice,  individuals  cannot  be  obliged  to  undergo  a 
surgical  intervention  to  modify  their  body  without  their  consent  as  a  prerequisite  for 
changing  their  legal  sex/gender  marker;  on  the  other  hand,  claimants  who  allege 
transsexuality need to prove before the court their serious and unwavering intent to change 
their legal sex, and, as a minimum, having initiated hormone replacement therapy for sex 
transitioning  is  required.  In  the  specific  case,  the  claimant  was  an  intersex  person 
according to the definitions proposed above. 

The author notes that this decision, which marked a positive trend, has unfortunately been 
overruled by the Constitutional Court ruling and also by the recent interpretative decision 
of the Supreme Court of Cassation, which goes in the direction of further restrictions. 

3.2  Direct sex discrimination 

3.2.1  Explicit prohibition  

The  definitions  of  direct  discrimination  and  indirect  discrimination  correspond  to  the  EU 
definitions. The prohibition of discrimination (‘… privileges or restriction of rights’) is laid 
down  in  Article 6(2)  of  the  Bulgarian  Constitution.  Article 4  of  the  PADA  contains  the 
definitions  of  direct  (paragraph  2)  and  indirect  discrimination  (paragraph  3).  Direct 
discrimination  represents  any  less  favourable  treatment  of  a  person  compared  to  how 
another  person  is,  has  been  or  would  be  treated  under  comparable  circumstances.  The 
Labour Code (Article 8 paragraph 3) ensures special protection against direct and indirect 
discrimination, including that based on sex, in the exercise of labour rights and obligations.  

There is no specific definition of direct discrimination in case law. 

3.2.2  General discrimination 

There is no explicit provision with a prohibition of general discrimination, in all cases there 
should  be  a  person  affected  and  this  person  has  to  give  evidence  of  prima  facie 
discrimination,  by  presenting  allegations  that  the  person  is  affected.  Nevertheless, 
Article 6(1)  of  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act  states  that  the  ban  on 

28   Civil Registration Act (Закон за гражданската регистрация) in force since 30 July 1999, available in 

Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2134673409. 
29   Issued under civil case No. 2316/2016 г., 4th civil division. 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

discrimination is valid erga omnes in the exercise of the rights and obligations under the 
Constitution and the laws. 

According to Article 50 of the Protection against Discrimination Act, the procedure before 
the  Commission  is  initiated  by  a  complaint  from  the  affected  person.  In  addition  to  the 
complaints by affected persons, the procedure can be initiated also by signals of physical 
or legal persons, of state and municipal bodies. Signals (documents submitted) by physical 
and  legal  persons  are  an  exception  and  are  not  complaints  by  persons  affected  by 
discrimination.  

NGOs and trade unions have competency to initiate cases and represent affected persons 
in the court procedure only. 

3.2.3  Specific difficulties 

There are no specific difficulties in the application of the concept of direct discrimination. 

3.3  Indirect sex discrimination30 

3.3.1  Explicit prohibition 

Indirect discrimination is explicitly prohibited in Article 4(3) of the PADA and the Bulgarian 
definition is in compliance with the EU definition: to place a person or persons who bear 
the  characteristics  mentioned  in  Article 4  paragraph  1,  or  persons  who  without  having 
these  characteristics,  together  with  those  bearing  these  characteristics,  suffer  less 
favourable treatment or are put31 in a less  favourable position in comparison with  other 
persons by means of an apparently neutral provision, criterion or practice, unless the said 
provision, criterion or practice can be objectively justified in view of a lawful aim and the 
means for achieving this aim are appropriate and necessary. 

The provision is defined in more detail in order to  encompass the  outcome of the  CHEZ 
Razpredelenie case, outlined below in section 3.3.3. 

3.3.2  Statistical evidence 

Statistical  evidence  is  not  used  in  order  to  establish  a  presumption  of  indirect  sex 
discrimination. 

3.3.3  Application of the objective justification test 

National courts correctly apply the objective justification test and identify the concept of 
indirect  discrimination.  Examples  of  case  law  encompass  mainly  cases  of  indirect 
discrimination based on grounds such as ethnicity and disability. As there is no typical case 
law  on  indirect  sex  discrimination  to  mention  here,  one  case  on  indirect  discrimination 
based on ethnicity can be given as an example – CHEZ Razpredelenie Bulgaria AD v Komisia 
za  zashtita  ot  diskriminatsia.  It  was  subject  to  a  request  from  the  Administrativen  sad 
Sofia-grad (Bulgaria) for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 TFEU.32 

30   See for more information Mulder, J. (2021) Indirect sex discrimination in employment, European network of 

legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at: 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/5362-indirect-discrimination-in-employment-pdf-1-434-kb. 

31   Amendments with O.J. 105/2016. 
32   European Court of Justice (Grand Chamber), judgment of 16 July 2015, CHEZ Razpredelenie Bulgaria AD v 

Komisia za zashtita ot diskriminatsia, C-83/14, ECLI:EU:C:2015:480. Link to full case: 
http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document_print.jsf?doclang=EN&text=&pageIndex=0&part=1&mode
=lst&docid=165912&occ=first&dir=&cid=4002632. 

18 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

The  third  party,  Ms  Nikolova,  runs  a  grocer’s  shop  in  the  Gizdova  Mahala  district  of  the 
town of Dupnitsa (Bulgaria), a district inhabited mainly by persons of Roma origin. In 1999 
and  2000,  an  electricity  supply  company,  CHEZ  Razpredelenie  Bulgaria  AD  (CHEZ  RB), 
installed electricity meters for all inhabitants of the Gizdova Mahala district on part of the 
overhead  electricity  supply  network.  The  electricity  meters  were  installed  at  a  height 
between  six  and  seven  metres,  whereas  in  other  districts  in  the  town,  the  meters  were 
installed at a height of about 1.7 metres, making the meters more easily accessible to the 
consumer. In December 2008, Ms Nikolova, who is not Roma, lodged an application with 
for  Protection  against 
the  Komisia  za  zashtita  ot  diskriminatsia  (Commission 
Discrimination; the CPD) arguing that the reason for installing electricity meters at height 
in the Gizdova Mahala district was that most of the inhabitants of the district were of Roma 
origin and accordingly, she was suffering direct discrimination on the basis of nationality. 
On  6  April  2010,  the  CPD  found  that  the  installation  of  electricity  meters  at  height 
amounted to prohibited indirect indiscrimination on the grounds of nationality. This decision 
was  annulled  on  19  May  2011  by  the  Varhoven  administrativen  sad  (Supreme 
Administrative Court) on the basis that, among other things, the CPD ‘had not indicated 
the  other  nationality  in  relation  to  the  holders  of  which  Ms  Niklova  had  suffered 
discrimination’. The case was referred back to the CPD, which later found that CHEZ RB 
had directly discriminated against Ms Nikolova on the grounds of her ‘personal situation’, 
as the placement of the meters put her in a disadvantageous position compared with other 
CHEZ RB customers whose meters were in accessible locations. CHEZ RB brought an appeal 
against  the  decision  before  the  Administrativen  sad  Sofia-grad  (Administrative  Court, 
Sofia).  In  order  to  assist  in  making  its  decision,  the  administrative  court  sought  a 
preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in February 2014.  

The administrative court stated that the case should be considered from the point of view 
of the protected characteristic of ethnicity, rather than from the point of view of nationality 
or personal situation. In its view, by identifying herself with the population of Roma origin 
of the district, Ms Nikolova defined herself as a person of Roma origin and so the CPD was 
incorrect  to  hold  that  her  ethnic  origin  had  not  been  established.  Although  inclined  to 
consider that the practice of installing electricity meters at height was direct discrimination, 
the  court  was  unsure  whether  the  practice  amounted  to  either  direct  or  indirect 
discrimination. Finally, if the practice did amount to discrimination, the court took the view 
that it would not be justified. It submitted 10 questions in relation to these points to the 
CJEU for its consideration. 

The  CJEU  held  that  the  indirect  discrimination  provisions  of  the  EU  Racial  Equality 
Directive were intended to benefit persons who, although not themselves a member of the 
race  or  ethnic  group  concerned,  nevertheless  suffered  less  favourable  treatment,  or  a 
particular disadvantage, on the grounds of race or ethnicity. It was enough that a person 
suffers  the  same  disadvantage  alongside  those  of  a  certain  ethnic  origin  provided  the 
treatment stems from a measure based on the ethnic origin. 

The CJEU acknowledged that the practice was capable of objective justification; ensuring 
security of electricity supply and providing consumers with the ability to properly monitor 
electricity consumption were legitimate aims. 

The  national  courts,  however,  had  to  determine  whether  the  measures  used  by  the 
electricity company to pursue those legitimate aims were appropriate and necessary. The 
prejudice  suffered  by  the  people  living  in  the  district  would  have  to  be  weighed  in  the 
balance. 

The  case  was  decided  as  a  case  of  indirect  discrimination  and  justified  changes  in  the 
legislation  concerning  indirect  discrimination,  providing  broader  interpretation  also  for 
cases of indirect discrimination by association.  

19 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

There  are  specialist  opinions  in  employment  law  in  the  UK,  for  example,  that  this  is  an 
important decision that employers should take into account when dealing with employee 
relations  issues  and  when  putting  together  rules  and  policies.  Employers  may  now  face 
claims  from  individuals  who  ‘suffer’  from  a  policy  which  disadvantages  a  group  with  a 
protected characteristic such as gender, race, religion, etc., even where the individual is 
not a member of that group. One such example would be a working father who may claim 
that he, too, suffers from a policy to require full-time work which is indirectly discriminatory 
against working mothers. 

The  potential  for  indirect  discrimination  claims  has  definitely  been  increased  by  this 
ruling.33 

3.3.4  Specific difficulties 

The  case  law  of  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  (CPD)  and  of  the 
courts  has  so  far  mainly  dealt  with  the  notion  of  direct  discrimination.  Despite  initial 
difficulties in dealing with the concept of indirect discrimination, the equality body and the 
Supreme Administrative Court show a better understanding in their practice. 

3.4  Multiple discrimination and intersectional discrimination34 

3.4.1  Definition and explicit prohibition 

Multiple discrimination is explicitly addressed in the Protection against Discrimination Act. 
Namely, multiple discrimination is addressed in the Additional Provisions (paragraph 1(11)) 
as discrimination based on more than one ground.  

Furthermore, Article 11(2) obliges governmental bodies, public bodies and the bodies of 
self-government to take priority measures for ensuring equal opportunities for people who 
are  victims  of  multiple  discrimination  as  groups  in  a  disadvantaged  position,  and  more 
specifically in the field of education and vocational training. 

Concerning  anti-discrimination  remedies, 
in  Bulgaria  applicants  are  allowed  to 
simultaneously invoke several grounds of discrimination in the same claim. This is favoured 
both by explicit recognition of the concept itself but also by the procedure proposed in such 
cases by the Commission for Protection against Discrimination. 

According to Article 48 of the PADA, the Commission examines the incoming complaints in 
specialised  chambers  based  on  the  alleged  discrimination  grounds.  The  chambers  are 
permanent chambers for a specific ground and also a separate extended chamber of five 
members when multiple discrimination cases are at stake (Article 48(2)). The members of 
the latter are not fixed and it is defined ad hoc. The Commission notes in its reports that 
anti-discrimination provisions are also contained in other pieces of legislation, such as the 
Labour  Code,  the  SIC,  the  Health  Act,  the  Law  on  the  integration  of  persons  with 
disabilities,  the  Education  Act,  the  Employment  Promotion  Act,  the  Child  Protection  Act, 
the Social Assistance Act, the Higher Education Act, etc. Many of the provisions of these 
laws pre-date the  Protection against Discrimination Act. Complex  situations where more 
anti-discrimination  grounds  and  provisions  of  national  but  also  of  European  and 
international law are involved, are tackled by the extended chamber.35 

33   Menzies Law (2015) ‘Case update – indirect discrimination, wider implications’, blog post, 28 August 2015, 

https://www.menzieslaw.co.uk/case-update-2-indirect-discrimination-wider-implications/. 

34   See for more information Fredman, S. (2016), Intersectional discrimination in EU gender equality and non-
discrimination law, European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available 
at: https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/3850-intersectional-discrimination-in-eu-gender-equality-and-
non-discrimination-law-pdf-731-kb. 

35   Commission for Protection against Discrimination (2018), Kомисия за защита от дискриминация: Годишен 

отчет за 2017 г (Report of the Commission for its activities in 2017), available in Bulgarian 
at:http://www.kzd-

20 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Therefore,  the  author  would  assess  that  the  legislative  architecture  of  the  protection 
against discrimination in Bulgaria favours recognition by the quasi-judicial body, but also 
by the courts of multiple/intersectional discrimination. There is explicit legal recognition of 
multiple discrimination in the anti-discrimination legislation, and the law and procedure are 
well codified, which make the prerequisite for this recognition. 

3.4.2  Case law and judicial recognition  

There  is  no  specific  case  law  in  the  field  that  has  an  impact  on  the  concept  of 
intersectionality, including gender, and specifically in the field covered by EU standards on 
equal treatment which are under consideration. Although there is good basis for developing 
further legal practice, there are few relevant examples of legal cases where sex/gender is 
one of the discrimination grounds at stake. 

There follows an example of a case decided in 2017 by the Commission, where the ground 
of sex is involved in parallel with the one of family status.36 The complaint challenged the 
Civil Registration Act based on these compound grounds. The requirement under the act 
for Bulgarian citizens to have a father’s name (referring both to the second and the family 
name) is, according to the applicant, humiliating for mothers, single mothers in particular, 
and children with an unknown father, and it assigns to mothers a secondary role in defining 
the second and the family name of their children. The applicant proposes that the notion 
of ‘father’s name’ be replaced by ‘family name’ or by ‘father’s and/or mother’s name’. The 
Commission admits that the situation with the father’s name in Bulgaria is  really not so 
frequent and is part of the name tradition in the country. The use of the name of the father 
allows  the  manifestation  of  the  child-father  link  and  affirms  the  emotional  relations 
between the two of them. This is in the interest of the child as it ensures the care for the 
child by the two parents. Therefore, according to the members of the extended panel, this 
should be regarded as  a positive measure in the interest  of a vulnerable group  – minor 
children. It is true that this solution contains inequality of women and men but in view of 
the objective pursued, this inequality is objectively justified. In addition, it is said that it is 
the right of the child and his/her parents to adopt the traditions of the community of their 
origin. These are practices which represent traditional norms of behaviour. The adoption 
of  a  different  solution  based  on  formal  equality  would  bring  negative  solutions,  even 
mocking and partial isolation of the child. Therefore, no discrimination was found. 

It is the author’s opinion that the arguments of the decision are not convincing. It is a pity 
that in this case the Commission did not identify the obvious direct discrimination faced by 
the complainant – but also by all women in Bulgaria – in this very important private sphere, 
including the clear non-compliance with the CEDAW convention. Furthermore, there is no 
clear analysis of the compound discrimination alleged and justification of the decision of 
the extended panel. 

In cases where grounds of discrimination are alleged simultaneously, the practice of the 
Commission,  and  respectively  of  the  courts,  shows  that  the  complaints  are  examined 
separately, rather than in their interaction. There is no good practice of using comparison-
based tests in the case of several grounds of discrimination. 

There  is  good  legal  basis  for  progress  in  the  field  but  the  application  of  the  concept  in 
practice still presents difficulties. 

nondiscrimination.com/layout/images/stories/2015/otchet/%D0%9E%D0%A2%D0%A7%D0%95%D0%A2.
2017.pdf. All publicly available reports of the Commission are available at: https://www.kzd-
nondiscrimination.com/layout/images/stories/2015/otchet/KZD-ot4et-2020-bg.pdf. 

36   Commission for Protection against Discrimination, Decision No. 10/2017 on file No. 244/2012. 

21 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

3.5  Positive action37 

3.5.1  Definition and explicit prohibition 

Positive action is allowed in Bulgarian legislation. There is no explicit definition of the term 
‘positive action’. Such measures are provided for in the Protection against Discrimination 
Act (PADA) and in the Gender Equality Law. 

Here are the different measures and the terms used: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

‘temporary incentive / promotional measures’ (justified and proportional initiatives of 
temporary nature aiming at removing obstacles to balanced representation of women 
and  men  or  to  equal  status  of  the  representatives  of  one  sex  or  of  the  sex  put  in 
unequal position).38 Article 15 of the PADA provides that the temporary promotional 
measures are applied by the bodies of the executive for a defined period of time until 
the achievement of their objectives for balanced representation, equal opportunities 
and  equality  between  women  and  men  in  the  sphere  where  inequalities  exist  and 
persist. These measures are not yet defined and specified under the Act. 

‘promotional measures’ – for encouraging/promoting persons belonging to the less 
represented  sex  (or  ethnic  group)  to  apply  for  a  certain  job  or  position  and  for 
encouraging/promoting the vocational development and participation of workers and 
employees belonging to the less represented sex or ethnic group.39  

‘hiring  the  candidate  of  the  underrepresented  sex’  –  positive  action  measures  are 
allowed  in  the  process  of  hiring  for  positions  in  the  state  and  local  government 
administration. According to Article 39 of the PADA, if the candidates for positions in 
the State central and local administration have equivalent qualifications in relation to 
the requirements for the position, the candidate from the underrepresented sex will 
be appointed, except when there are specific circumstances for appointing the other 
candidate.  This  is  also  valid  for  determining  the  members  of  consultative  and 
managerial  and  other  bodies  in  this  sphere,  except  when  they  are  determined  by 
elections or are subject to a competition/tender. 

‘balanced representation’ – sharing of the positions by women and men in power and 
decision-making  in  all  areas  of  life  which  represents  an  important  condition  for 
equality of sexes.40 

‘measures for balanced participation’ – in education and training of men and women, 
as far and as long as these measures are needed.41 

‘special measures’ for  individuals or groups of  persons in a disadvantaged position 
based on discrimination grounds under Article 4(1) of the PADA, as long and as far 
as these measures are necessary.42 

‘measures  aimed  at  initiatives  exclusively  or  mainly  promoting  entrepreneurship 
among women’, when they are the underrepresented sex. 

37   See for more information McCrudden, C. (2019), Gender-based positive action in employment in Europe. A 
comparative analysis of legal and policy approaches in the EU and EEA, 2019, European network of legal 
experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at: 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/5008-gender-based-positive-action-in-employment-in-europe-pdf-
1-9-mb. 

38   Additional provisions paragraph 1(6) of the Gender Equality Law. 
39   Article 24 PADA. 
40   Additional provisions, paragraph 1(3) of the Gender Equality Law. 
41   Article 7 paragraph 1(13) of the PADA. 
42   Article 7 paragraph 1(14) of the PADA. 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

- 

- 

‘measures aimed at initiatives for preventing or compensating for disadvantages in 
the professional careers of women’.43 

‘treating  people  differently  in  the  provision  of  goods  and  services  when  they  are 
aimed exclusively or predominantly at one of the sexes’, if the aim is legitimate and 
if the means are adequate and necessary.44 

It  can  be  concluded  that  the  Bulgarian  legislation  on  positive  action  goes  beyond  the 
employment sphere and beyond EU standards in general. In the employment sphere, the 
regulation of positive action measures for the underrepresented sex is an obligation for the 
employer.  A  general  remark  is  that  these  measures  still  remain  as  a  formal  principle, 
despite detailed regulation, with limited practical implementation. 

3.5.2  Conceptual  distinctions  between  ‘equal  opportunities’  and  ‘positive  action’  in 

national law 

‘Equal opportunities’ is a concept adopted in the Gender Equality Law. It means creating 
conditions for the realisation of equal chances and ensuring guarantees for access to all 
spheres  of  social  life,  as  well  as  achieving  personal  and  professional  realisation  and 
development  (Additional  Provisions,  paragraph  1(2)  of  the  Law).  Equal  opportunities  of 
women and men in all spheres of social, economic and political life is stated as the first 
principle of the State policy of equality. Equal treatment of women and men and the ban 
of discrimination and violence based on sex is another principle enshrined in the Law.45 

3.5.3  Specific difficulties  

A  major  constraint  is  the  lack  of  knowledge  and  awareness  of  the  principle  by  the 
representatives  of  the  institutions.  There  is  no  reliable  monitoring  of  gender  equality  in 
Bulgaria and therefore it is difficult to identify the areas where to adopt positive measures 
for ensuring equality. 

One major obstacle to adoption and implementation of positive action is the widespread 
understanding  of  equality  as  formal  equality,  without  any  exception.  In  recent  years, 
according to the author of this report, this understanding was reinforced by the anti-liberal 
trends and attitudes against the promotion of the rights of more vulnerable persons and 
groups, such as minorities. It also affects the  societal attitudes against encouraging the 
rights of women compared with those of men, where needed. Human rights, human rights 
standards and human rights defenders are all affected. 

Another more concrete obstacle to the application of the concept of positive measures is 
the inappropriate interpretation of the concept by the Commission for Protection against 
Discrimination (CPD). For  example, in the above-mentioned multiple discrimination case 
related to the father’s name, in the opinion of the author of this report, inequality cannot 
be justified through the anti-discrimination principle of positive action in the interest of the 
child. 

In  other  more  recent  cases,  the  CPD  –  in  order  to  justify  the  exclusion  of  men  from 
educational  courses  provided  by  a  private  organisation  –  uses,  among  other  things,  the 
argument that this could be considered a positive action measure taken according to the 
Gender Equality Law. The author of this  report is  of the  opinion that this law cannot be 
applied in the specific case as the positive measures provided in the Gender Equality Law 
are only those taken by the governmental bodies as an element of the State policy. This is 
valid  also  for  the  temporary  special  measures  for  balanced  participation  of  both  sexes, 

43   Article 7(1)(18) of the PADA. 
44   Article 7(17) of the PADA. 
45   Article 2(1) and (3) of the Gender Equality Law. 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

mentioned in Article 7(1)(13) of the PADA. This illustrates the difficulty that the principle 
presents even for the equality body. 

3.5.4  Measures to improve the gender balance on company boards46 

There are no measures, as provided or planned quota, for improving the gender balance 
on company boards. The approach adopted by the Government is soft policy with measures 
of  a  voluntary  nature  and  through  the  minimum  standards  for  including  information  on 
gender  balance  in  the  annual  activities’  reports  of  large  public  companies,  which  were 
introduced by the Accountancy Act47 and with the amendment to the Law on public offering 
of  securities.48  These  provisions  are  not  explicitly  on  gender  representation  and  gender 
balance on company boards and on priority measures but are aimed at harmonisation with 
the capital requirements - Directive 2013/3649 and Directive 2014/9550 on the disclosure 
of non-financial information. 

As  to  the  harmonisation  with  Directive 2022/2381,51  a  working  group  of  experts  was 
established  by  the  Ministry  of  Labour  and  Social  Policy,  but  no  concrete  measures  have 
been defined or taken yet. 

3.5.5  Positive action measures to improve the gender balance in other areas 

There are no positive action measures adopted in other fields, such as in political decision 
making. 

3.6  Harassment and sexual harassment 

3.6.1  Definition and explicit prohibition of harassment 

Harassment,  along  with  sexual  harassment,  is  explicitly  forbidden  and  defined  by  the 
Protection against Discrimination Act. According to Article 5 of the PADA, harassment and 
sexual harassment represent discrimination. 

According  to  paragraph  1(1)  of  the  Additional  Provisions,  harassment  is  any  unwanted 
conduct based on the grounds defined in Article 4(1), expressed physically, verbally or in 
any other way, which has as its purpose or effect the violation of the dignity of the person 
and  the  creation  of  a  hostile,  degrading,  humiliating,  offensive  and  intimidating 
environment. 

The definition complies with the EU requirements. 

3.6.2  Scope of the prohibition of harassment 

Bulgarian law goes beyond the regulation of harassment in the workplace and also explicitly 
covers protection from harassment in educational institutions (Article 31 of the PADA), and 

46   See for more information Senden, L. and Kruisinga S., (2018) Gender-balanced company boards in Europe. 
A comparative analysis of the regulatory, policy and enforcement approaches in the EU and EEA Member 
States, available at: https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/4537-gender-balanced-company-boards-in-
europe-pdf-1-68-mb. 

47   Accountancy Act (Закон за счетоводството), in force since 1 January 2016, available in Bulgarian at: 

https://www.lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2136697598. 

48   Law on public offering of securities (Закон за публичното предлагане на ценни книжа) in force since 31st 

of January 2000, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2134697472. 

49   Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and the Council on access to the activity of credit 

institutions and the prudential supervision of credit institutions and investment firms. 

50   Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2013/34/EU of the 
European Parliament and the Council as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by 
certain large undertakings and groups. 

51   Directive2022/2381/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on improving the gender balance 

among directors of listed companies and related measures. 

24 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

harassment  in  the  area  of  the  establishment,  equipping  and  expansion  of  an  economic 
activity (Article 37(3)). Harassment in the latter sphere is explicitly defined as follows: the 
rejection or the acceptance by a person of conduct which represents harassment or sexual 
harassment cannot be a ground for taking a decision which affects this person. 

As there is no limitation by law of the application of the concept of harassment in other 
spheres, it is the author’s opinion that protection is valid for all spheres. 

3.6.3  Definition and explicit prohibition of sexual harassment 

According to paragraph 1(2) of the Additional Provisions of the PADA, sexual harassment 
is any unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, expressed physically, verbally or in any other 
way, which violates the dignity and honour of the person and creates a hostile, degrading, 
humiliating,  offensive  and  intimidating  environment.  Namely,  sexual  harassment  occurs 
when a person refuses to accept such behaviour or the compulsion to accept it which might 
influence the taking of decisions affecting this person.  

The definition corresponds to the EU standards.  

3.6.4  Scope of the prohibition of sexual harassment 

Bulgarian law goes beyond the regulation of sexual harassment in the workplace and also 
explicitly covers protection from sexual harassment in educational institutions (Article 31 
of the Act), and both harassment or sexual harassment in the area of the establishment, 
equipping and expansion of an economic activity (Article 37(3)). In the latter sphere, the 
rejection or the acceptance by a person of conduct which represents harassment or sexual 
harassment cannot be a ground for taking a decision which affects this person. 

According  to  Article 17  of  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act,  an  employer  who 
receives  a  complaint  from  a  worker  or  employee  who  alleges  he/she  is  subjected  to 
harassment, including sexual harassment, has to immediately check the situation, to take 
measures  for  stopping  the  harassment  and  for  applying  disciplinary  measures,  if  the 
harassment is committed by another worker or employee.  

The employer has the obligation, together with representatives of the trade unions, to take 
all possible measures to prevent discrimination in the workplace (Article 18 of the PADA). 
In addition, he/she has to make visible and accessible for the workers/employees the text 
of  the  PADA  and  the  respective  regulations  against  discrimination  in  the  collective 
agreement and the internal rules (Article 22 of the PADA). 

As there is no limitation by law of the application of the concept of sexual harassment in 
other spheres, it is the author’s opinion that protection is valid for all spheres. 

In  addition  to  the  regulation  mentioned  in  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act, 
Article 127(2)  of  the  Labour  Code52  provides  for  the  obligation  of  the  employer,  among 
other  obligations  for  ensuring  conditions  of  work  for  the  employee/worker,  to  preserve 
his/her dignity during the implementation of his/her working obligations. The provision was 
adopted in 2001.53  

3.6.5  Understanding of (sexual) harassment as discrimination 

According  to  Article 5  of  the  PADA,  harassment,  along  with  sexual  harassment,  are 
explicitly forbidden and defined as discrimination by the Protection against Discrimination 
Act. 

52   Labour Code (Кодекс на труда), promulgated in SG 26/86, in force since 1 January 1987, amended by 

provisions promulgated in SG 109/2020, available in Bulgarian: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1594373121. 

53   SG No. 25 from 2001, in force since 31 March 2001. 

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3.6.6  Specific difficulties  

The case law consists of court cases and cases before the equality body initiated mainly by 
women  concerning  sexual  harassment.  Difficulty  also  derives  from  the  fact  that  in  most 
cases there are no witnesses to the discriminatory behaviour, which makes it difficult for 
the alleged victim to provide initial evidence. 

There are still gaps in the practical implementation: there are delays in proceedings, and 
the  application  of  the  burden  of  proof  by  the  Commission  for  Protection  against 
Discrimination  (CPD)  and  by  the  courts  has  not  always  been  in  full  compliance  with  EU 
standards. At the beginning of 2015, Article 9 (Burden of Proof) of the PADA was amended 
and the correct wording was introduced in the definition of the rule on the burden of proof 
in cases of discrimination. Prior to that, the inconsistent practice of both the CPD and the 
courts was reflected in the level of proof required from women who were complaining in 
most  of  the  cases.  As  a  result,  their  access  to  justice  was  limited.  After  the  legal 
amendment the situation has improved but the refining of the analysis and the developing 
of the gender approach in cases of sexual harassment is still needed. 

In particular, the broader scope of protection against harassment and sexual harassment, 
as  in  the  private  sphere,  in  the  entrepreneurship  sphere  and  in  the  educational 
environment has not yet been explored and discussed in the practice and case law of the 
Commission for Protection against Discrimination and of the courts. 

3.7  Instruction to discriminate 

3.7.1  Explicit prohibition 

In Bulgaria instruction to discriminate is explicitly prohibited as an element of the notion 
of ‘incitement to discrimination’. ‘“Incitement to discrimination” is encouraging directly and 
intentionally, instruction to discriminate and persuading somebody to discriminate.’54 

3.7.2  Specific difficulties 

To the author’s knowledge, there  are no  specific difficulties in the field of discrimination 
based  on  sex.  There are no relevant  cases in  relation to this discrimination ground; the 
provision  was  used  mainly  in  relation  to  other  grounds  such  as  ethnicity  and  sexual 
orientation. In cases related to other grounds, the equality body and the court had to deal 
with  hate  speech  and  incitement  to  discrimination,  with  both  issues  of  harassment  and 
incitement/instruction to discriminate. The courts have been cautious in their motivation 
and decisions, although positive outcomes have been achieved in some cases. 

3.8  Other forms of discrimination 

The author of this report believes that other forms of discrimination, such as discrimination 
by  association  or  assumed  discrimination,  although  not  explicitly  defined  as  such,  are 
encompassed  in  the  definition  of  discrimination  ‘based  on  the  grounds  of  Article 4 
paragraph 1 of the PADA’. Paragraph 1(8) of the Additional Provisions provides that this 
means:  

‘…on the basis of the real, current or past existence, or assumed existence of one or 
more grounds in connection with the person discriminated against or with a person 
connected to the discriminated person.’  

‘Connected persons’ are also defined in the Additional Provisions (paragraph 1(9)). 

54   Additional Provisions paragraph 1(5) of the PADA. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Algorithmic discrimination is not specifically  mentioned in the PADA,  or at least not yet. 
Nevertheless, the scope of protection under the law is very broad and any discrimination 
based  on  the  grounds  mentioned  in  Article 4  is  forbidden,  so  implicitly,  algorithmic 
discrimination in relation to one or more of the protected grounds is also forbidden. 

There are no specific issues related to case law on other forms of discrimination. 

3.9  Evaluation of implementation 

The author considers that the implementation of the EU law concepts in Bulgarian law are 
formally satisfactory. The main concepts are introduced and explained. There is, however, 
discrepancy in the interpretation of main concepts of discrimination based on sex, gender, 
and transgender, including by the Constitutional Court, which threaten the understanding 
and implementation of these principles by the institutions and by the magistrates.  

3.10  Remaining issues 

Despite some advances in the scope of positive action, the concept has not yet been applied 
in  policy  and  practice.  This  is  also  true  for  the  concept  of  multiple  discrimination.  The 
legislation and policy on gender equality remains in part declaratory and still in favour of 
formal equality. 

The  equality  body  has  broad  competence  for  protection  against  discrimination  based  on 
sex but it is not used actively enough. 

Despite the widespread hate speech and harassment against women’s rights defenders in 
the year 2018, in the course of the campaign against the Istanbul Convention, the equality 
body did not use its broad competences under the law for initiating action, in compliance 
with its competencies, against those who perpetrated the harassment.  

27 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

4 

Equal  pay  and  equal  treatment  at  work  (Article 157  of  the  Treaty  on  the 
Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and Recast Directive 2006/54) 55 

4.1  General (legal) context 

4.1.1  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

There  have  been  no  specific  difficulties  with  regard  to  the  application  of  the  equal  pay 
principle. There have not been any substantial societal debates or legislative proposals.  

4.2  Equal pay 

4.2.1  Implementation in national law 

The principle of equal pay is  regulated in the Labour Code and in the Protection against 
Discrimination Act (Article 14). The employer must ensure equal remuneration for equal or 
equivalent  work/work  of  equal  value.  This  principle  applies  to  all  types  of  pay  –  any 
remuneration, paid directly or indirectly, in cash or in kind. The notion of equal pay includes 
the  assessment  criteria  in  determining  the  labour  remuneration  and  the  assessment  of 
work  performance.  These  criteria  must  be  equal  for  all  employees,  regardless  of  the 
duration  of  the  contract  or  the  working  time,  and  is  determined  by  collective  labour 
agreements or by internal administrative rules regarding salaries. 

The  principle  enshrined  in  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act  is  not  defined  as  a 
typical equal pay clause between men and women only but encompasses all discrimination 
grounds. 

Article 243  of  the  Labour  Code  (LC)  defines  the  equal  pay  principle  between  men  and 
women as ensuring equal remuneration for equal or equivalent work, by also encompassing 
all elements of pay. 

The EU standards of equal pay are fully transposed in Bulgarian legislation. However, there 
is  a  big  gap  between  the  formal  recognition  of  the  equal  pay  principle  and  its 
implementation in practice. No specific and consistent legislative or policy measures have 
been adopted so far to address the gender pay gap. 

There is a specific procedure for the assessment of civil servants. 

In principle, no justifications for differences in pay for women and men are accepted. This 
is confirmed by the case law of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination.56 The 
case  law  on  this  issue  is  not  recent  but  this  case  (Devnya  Cement,  described  below  in 
section 4.2.4) was the first important case in the field and its outcome and main principles 
impacted further case law.  

55   See on equal pay Burri, S. (2019), National Cases and Good Practices on Equal Pay, European network of 

legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/publications/thematic-reports;.  
See also Foubert, P. (2017), The enforcement of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal 
value: A legal analysis of the situation in the EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, 
European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/4466-the-enforcement-of-the-principle-of-equal-pay-for-equal-
work-or-work-of-equal-value-pdf-840-kb.  
See on the issue of pay transparency: Veldman, A. (2017), Pay transparency in the EU A legal analysis of 
the situation in the EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, European network of legal 
experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/4073-pay-transparency-in-the-eu-pdf-693-kb. 

56   E.g. Devnya Cement – Decision of the CPD No. 29/4.07.2006, confirmed by Decision No. 10594/1.11.2007 

of the Supreme Administrative Court. 

28 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

The law provides, as an exception to the principle of non-discrimination in Article 7, for the 
possibility of more advantageous working conditions (which also include pay) in relation to 
different  working  experience  or  seniority,  when  it  is  objectively  justified  for  achieving  a 
legitimate aim with the means deemed necessary.  

4.2.2  Definition in national law 

There is no separate, explicit and general definition of pay in Bulgarian law.  

4.2.3  Explicit implementation of Article 4 of Recast Directive 2006/54 

Article 4 of Recast Directive is explicitly implemented through Article 14 of the PADA, as 
mentioned above.  

4.2.4  Related case law 

The  legal  practice  on  ensuring  equal  pay  is  being  developed  by  the  Commission  for 
Protection against Discrimination. The Commission is still the preferred forum for women 
who seek protection against unequal pay. Although the case law mentioned below is not 
recent, as the first case which had an impact, it is worth mentioning it. There has not been 
much litigation and development of the concept in practice.  

The Devnya Cement case was decided by the second specialised panel of the Commission 
and  was  confirmed  by  the  Supreme  Administrative  Court.  The  Commission  found 
continuous unequal treatment of the applicant, a female worker at Devnya Cement, in that 
she was provided with unequal pay for work of equal value, when compared to her male 
colleagues.  The  complainant  was  working  as  mill  operator  and  was  receiving  lower  pay 
than her male colleagues appointed to the same job position – the differences came both 
from  the  main  remuneration  and  from  additional  payments  for  seniority,  working 
conditions, like night work and overtime work, and bonuses.  

The Commission declared that it constituted both a violation of Article 14(1) (the equal pay 
provision)  of  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act  (PADA),  and  direct  discrimination 
based  on sex within the meaning of Article 4(2) of the law.  Before the Commission, the 
defendant could not justify the difference of around EUR 23 (BGN 45) in pay on a monthly 
basis vis-à-vis the applicant and to her detriment, compared to her male colleagues. The 
Commission  ordered  Devnya  Cement  to  discontinue  the  practice  of  unequal  treatment 
based  on sex in the  enterprise, and to amend the collective agreement so as to include 
guarantees  of  equal  pay,  based  on  sex  and  on  all  other  grounds,  as  required  by 
Article 14(1) and (2) of the Protection against Discrimination Act.57 

There  is  no  substantial  development  of  case  law  concerning  equal  pay  in  Bulgaria.  As  a 
general comment there is a lack of a clear gender approach in cases of pay discrimination 
to  the  detriment  of  women.  This  is  due,  in  the  first  place,  to  the  fact  that  in  the  anti-
discrimination law (PADA) equal pay is regulated as equal pay for all, based on all grounds.  

Secondly, as mentioned in this report, the fact that Section 3 of Chapter II of the PADA is 
called ‘Protection in the exercise of the right to work’ is interpreted by the Commission in 
its practice as a separate ground of discrimination – discrimination in employment. Thus 
claims  for  equal  pay  are  considered  without  regard  to  any  grounds  for  discrimination, 
especially not the ground of sex.  

According to the author of this report, the interpretation of the provision of Article 14(1) 
of the PADA is problematic for the application of the provisions on equal pay and equality 
in working conditions as a whole. The provision of the PADA which reads that equal pay is 

57  Decision of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination No. 29/4.07.2006, confirmed by Decision 

No. 10594/1.11.2007 of the Supreme Administrative Court. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

ensured on all grounds, without a specific clause on women and men, is detrimental for 
the classical principle of equal pay, which means the equal pay of men and women. This 
general clause of the PADA shifts the focus from the deep gender aspects of unequal pay 
cases and creates an obstacle to building relevant case law specifically on the equal pay of 
men and women. 

4.2.5  Permissibility of pay differences 

As an exception to the principle of non-discrimination, in Article 7(1)(5) of the PADA, the 
law  provides  for  the  possibility  of  more  advantageous  working  conditions  (which  also 
include  pay)  in  relation  to  different  work  experience  or  seniority,  when  it  is  objectively 
justified for achieving a legitimate aim with the means for that aim deemed necessary. The 
principle of equal pay being very strict according to Bulgarian law, it would be in very rare 
cases that this provision could be used to justify pay differences. 

4.2.6  Requirement for comparators 

Comparators  are  not  explicitly  required  by  law  but  they  may  sometimes  be  required  in 
practice. 

4.2.7  Existence of parameters for establishing the equal value of the work performed 

Such parameters are not explicitly established by law. As mentioned above, the notion of 
equal pay includes the  assessment criteria  for  determining labour remuneration and the 
assessment of work performance. These criteria are equal for all employees, regardless of 
the  duration  of  the  contract  or  the  working  time,  and  must  be  determined  by  collective 
labour agreements or by internal administrative rules regarding salaries. 

There  are  specific  rules  and  procedures,  for  example  for  the  assessment,  including  the 
periodic assessment of civil servants, regardless of the grounds defined in Article 4(1) of 
the  PADA.  These  are  the  unified  classification  of  positions  in  the  administration  and 
regulations on the remuneration of civil servants. 

4.2.8  Other relevant rules or policies 

To our knowledge there are no other relevant rules or policies. 

4.2.9  Job evaluation and classification systems 

There are as yet no such harmonised job evaluation and classification systems in Bulgaria.  

4.2.10 Wage transparency58 

National law and case law do not significantly address the issue of wage transparency. 

58   See Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council to strengthen the application of 
the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay 
transparency and enforcement mechanisms, COM/2021/93 final. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

4.2.11 Implementation of the transparency measures set out by European Commission’s 
Recommendation  of  7  March  2014  on  strengthening  the  principle  of  equal  pay 
between  men  and  women  and/or  Directive (EU)  2023/970  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 to strengthen the application of the 
principle  of  equal  pay  for  equal  work  or  work  of  equal  value  between  men  and 
women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms 

The  European  Commission’s  Recommendation  of  7  March  2014  on  strengthening  the 
principle of equal pay between men and women was not specifically given attention and 
was not followed in Bulgaria. 

No specific measures have yet been adopted in relation to EU Directive 2023/970, except 
an  initiative  of  the  Ministry  of  Labour  and  Social  Policy  for  creating  a  working  group  of 
experts on the issue of harmonisation. 

Although  there  are  no  specific  measures  related  to  pay  transparency,  the  equality  body 
(the Commission for Protection against Discrimination) and the Labour Inspectorate have, 
as a matter of principle, the right to require information from employers – for the CPD in 
the course of an investigation in relation to the allegations of victims of discrimination, and 
in relation to the control functions over observation of labour legislation in the case of the 
Labour Inspectorate. These general competencies are regulated in Article 56 of the PADA 
and  in  Article 402(1)  and  (2)  of  the  Labour  Code.  There  are  no  specific  obligations  to 
provide  information  specifically  about  pay  transparency  and  wage  differences,  and  the 
refusal of or obstructing the gathering of information in such cases are not connected with 
specific concrete sanctions.  

4.2.12 Other measures, tools or procedures 

There are no other specific measures taken in recent years that have a substantial impact 
on equal pay and equal working conditions for women and men. 

4.3  Access to work, working conditions and dismissal 

4.3.1  Definition of the (material) scope (Article 14(1) of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

The author considers that the definition of a worker in Bulgarian law is in line with the CJEU 
case  law.  Chapter  2  Section 1  of  the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act  regulates 
protection against discrimination in the employment sphere. Without explicitly indicating 
the personal scope of the protection, the law uses the term ‘employer’, which encompasses 
all  relations  between  workers  and  employers  under  a  labour  contract.  According  to 
Article 28 of the Protection against Discrimination Act, this protection is also extended to 
civil servants under the special civil servants’ contracts. Those obliged to ensure equal pay 
and equal access to work and working conditions are the employers. The definition of the 
concept  of  ‘employer’  is  contained  in  the  Additional  Provisions  of  the  Labour  Code, 
paragraph 1(1): the term ‘employer’ is associated with any physical or legal person, or its 
branches,  or  any  other  unit  which  is  autonomous  from  an  organisational  and  economic 
point of view, and who/which hires workers and employees independently under a labour 
contract, including home workers or workers for distance working, as well as in cases of 
sending  a  worker  or  employee  for  temporary  work  to  another  enterprise  called  the 
beneficiary. It is to be noted that the definition of an employer was extended so that it is 
also applicable to the categories of home workers, distance workers and temporary workers 
as a result of the amendments to the Labour Code in 2011 and 2012.59  

Discrimination based on the grounds indicated in Article 4(1) of the PADA is also prohibited 
in the field of the public and the real (economic) sector, directly or indirectly, in relation to 

59   Provisions promulgated in SG 33/2011, 82/2011 and 7/2012. 

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the  implementation  of  an  economic  activity,  including  in  relation  to  establishment, 
equipment  and  development  of  such  an  activity,  according  to  Chapter  2  Section 3 
Article 37(2). It means that there is ban on discrimination on all grounds in the business 
sector and economic initiatives, and not only in employment relations. 

The  protection  given  by  Bulgarian  legislation  in  the  field  of  access  to  work  and  working 
conditions is almost in full compliance with the EU equal treatment directives (except for 
the lack of an explicit statement on equality in the benefits provided for by trade unions 
and other professional organisations). The main guarantees are provided by the Protection 
against Discrimination Act, supplemented by the guarantees of the Labour Code (for labour 
contracts)  and  by  the  relevant  provisions  of  the  Law  on  Civil  Servants.60  The  detailed 
protection corresponding to the requirements  of Recast Directive 2006/54 is provided in 
the  Protection  against  Discrimination  Act:  Article 12  lays  down  the  principle  of  non-
discrimination in the field of recruitment and Article 13 ensures the right to equal working 
conditions; Article 14 relates to the right to equal pay; Article 15 guarantees the right to 
equal conditions for  vocational training and retraining, for upscaling qualifications or  re-
qualification, for professional promotion, and  promotion in terms  of position or  rank, by 
ensuring  equal  conditions  for  professional  assessment.  Equal  criteria  in  applying 
disciplinary sanctions are required by Article 20, and Article 21 lays down equal conditions 
for the termination of employment. 

The protection provided by the law covers all aspects of working life and is extended to all 
types  of  employment  relations,  including  those  related  to  sex  discrimination  in  the 
implementation of military service in the armed forces, with the exception of activities and 
positions  where  sex  constitutes  a  determining  factor  (Article 27  of  the  PADA).  The 
protection  also  covers  civil  service  relationships.  In  addition  to  the  requirements  in  the 
Directive, Bulgarian law also contains protection against discrimination in unemployment. 

Article 37(2) mentioned above extends this protection to the public sector and the sector 
of the real economy in all cases of the establishment, initiation, equipping or expansion of 
any economic activity. 

Article 36 lays down the principle of non-discrimination in the subscription/adherence to, 
terms  of  membership  and  participation  in  trade  unions  and  in  all  kinds  of  professional 
organisations, besides the requirement for specific education in professional organisations. 
Equality in the benefits provided by such organisations is not explicitly included but could 
be related to the equality in the terms of participation. 

Concerning the material scope of protection by the PADA, it is worth mentioning again and 
analysing  the  provision  of  Article 13(1)  –  that  the  employer  ensures  equal  working 
conditions  regardless  of  the  grounds  under  Article 4(1).  This  broad  wording  creates 
problems, according to the author of this report. The expression ‘regardless of the grounds 
under Article 4’ may entail interpretations in the direction of considering the discrimination 
in  the  field  of  working  conditions  as  a  separate  ground  of  discrimination,  instead  of 
regarding it as an area of life where discrimination based on the grounds indicated may 
take place. It is in fact the case that in some instances of case law this area is mentioned 
as a separate discrimination ground. The equality body itself has a specialised section on 
discrimination  in  the  exercise  of  the  right  to  work.  As  explained  above,  the  area  of 
protection against discrimination in the sphere of work is interpreted in the practice and 
structure of the Commission as if it were a separate area of discrimination; it is considered 
as  discrimination  in  itself,  without  the  need  to  specify  one  of  the  grounds  mentioned  in 
Article 4 of the law. This often results in gender-neutral consideration of cases related to 
employment discrimination based on sex. 

60   Law on Civil Servants (Закон за държавния служител), in force since 27 August 1999, available in 

Bulgarian at: https://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2134673408. 

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By  this  interpretation  and  broadening  of  the  grounds  of  discrimination,  the  Commission 
has assumed a broader competence to consider and decide labour law cases even when 
there is not a strictly defined separate discrimination ground. Thus the Commission might 
turn into a sort of labour court, or rather, labour jurisdiction, although Bulgaria does not 
have  such  specialised  courts.  In  addition,  the  members  of  the  Commission  do  not 
necessarily have the training and preparation for hearing such cases, which would be of 
the competence of a court. 

The  author  mentions  this  because  of  the  tendency  which  is  in  place.  It  shows  how  an 
extended material scope can lead to extended procedural scope and competences. 

The  author  is  of  the  opinion  that  equality  in  employment  conditions  should  always  be 
measured  and  assessed  against  the  discrimination  grounds  mentioned  in  Article 4(1)  of 
the PADA. 

4.3.2  Implementation of the exception on occupational activities (Article 14(2) of Recast 

Directive 2006/54) 

As  an  exception,  different  treatment  is  allowed  by  reason  of  the  nature  of  a  particular 
occupation  or  activity,  or  of  the  conditions  under  which  it  is  performed,  when  gender 
characteristics  constitute  an  essential  and  decisive  occupational  requirement,  the  aim  is 
legitimate  and  the  requirement  does  not  go  beyond  what  is  necessary  for  its 
achievement.61  

More concrete and rigid exceptions are provided in cases of differential treatment based 
on  religion,  faith  or  sex  in  occupational  activities  and  religious  education  or  training  at 
religious institutions or organisations62 (Article 7(3) and (4)). The author is of the opinion 
that the detailed regulation of these exceptions goes beyond EU law and presents a risk of 
non-compliance with the requirements for legality and proportionality, and the exceptions 
based  on  religious  considerations  in  relation  to  sex  cannot  be  a  priori  justified.  The 
exceptions should be removed also in view of more recent EU case law.63 

As  pointed  out  in  Bougnaoui  and  ADDH  v  Micropole  SA,  in  accordance  with 
Directive 2000/78, it is only in very limited circumstances that a characteristic related, in 
particular, to religion may constitute a genuine and determining occupational requirement. 

4.3.3  Protection  against  the  non-hiring,  non-renewal  of  a  fixed-term  contract,  non-
continuation  of  a  contract  and  dismissal  of  women  connected  to  their  state  of 
pregnancy and/or maternity 

According to Article 12(3) of the PADA, the employer does not have the right to refuse the 
appointment of a woman for reasons of pregnancy, maternity or the fact of caring for a 
child. 

Under Article 13(3), when the mother who is on pregnancy, maternity or childcare leave 
returns to work, she has the right to occupy the same position or an equivalent one, and 
to get advantage of all improvements of the working conditions. Childcare leave is the term 
used for leave of the parents outside the pregnancy, maternity leave and related leaves 
during the initial period. In Bulgarian a range of leaves are named childcare leave. or leave 
for  raising  a  child  There  is  no  term  that  corresponds  to  parental  leave  as  such.  So,  the 
term of childcare leave will be used in this report in all places where it corresponds to the 
concrete notion and provisions of the Bulgarian law. Roughly, it corresponds to parental 
leave, but it is not used as a term in Bulgarian law.  

61   Article 7(2) of the PADA. 
62   Article 7(3) and (4). 
63   See: CJEU, judgments of 14 March 2017, Achbita C-157/15, ECLI:EU:C:2017:203 and Bougnaoui C-188/15, 

ECLI:EU:C:2017:204. 

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Maximum protection is provided for a worker or employee who is on leave under Article 163 
LC:  Leave  for  pregnancy,  giving  birth.  According  to  Article 333(6)  LC,  this  category  of 
workers may  only be dismissed when the  enterprise has to  close down (Article 328(1)). 
This most protected category also comprises the 15 days of paternity leave. It does not 
include adoptive parents. Leave for adoption is regulated in a special, separate section. If 
the employee is made redundant during her maternity leave until its end, she is entitled 
to maternity benefits up to 410 days, as guaranteed under Bulgarian legislation. 

According  to  Article 335  LC,  the  dismissal  must  be  in  writing  and  in  most  cases  written 
notice  is  required  where  the  specific  grounds  are  substantiated.  The  sanction  for  not 
respecting this provision is that the dismissal will be declared illegal by the courts.  

4.3.4  Implementation  of  the  exception  on  the  protection  for  women  in  relation  to 

pregnancy and maternity (Article 28(1) of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

Article 7(7)  of  the  PADA  stipulates  that  the  special  protection  for  pregnant  women  and 
mothers  under  the  law  does  not  constitute  discrimination.  Also  within  this  category  are 
women at an advanced stage of in vitro fertilisation. There is an exception to the exception, 
however:  this  protection  does  not  apply  when  women  in  such  situations  do  not  want  to 
avail  themselves  of  this  protection  and  they  have  informed  their  employer  thereof  in 
writing, accordingly.  

4.3.5  Particular difficulties 

The author mentioned some difficulties above about the risk of treating discrimination in 
the working conditions as a discrimination ground per se and broadening the competence 
of  the  equality  body  for  ruling  on  labour  cases,  regardless  of  the  listed  grounds  in 
Article 4(1)  of  the  PADA.  This  interpretation  as  a  separate  ground  of  discrimination  is 
attributed  to  discrimination  in  the  working  conditions  by  the  Commission  and  by  the 
administrative courts, while the Supreme Court of Cassation rejects this interpretation and 
requires a violation of a specific protected ground. 

4.3.6  Positive action measures (Article 3 of Recast Directive 2006/54)  

A  variety  of  positive  measures  of  a  general  nature  is  also  provided  for  in  Bulgarian 
legislation, as mentioned above in section 3.5 on positive action. There are more specific 
opportunities  for  positive  action  in  the  sphere  of  work.  Such  concrete  measures  are 
provided  as  follows:  Hiring  the  candidate  of  the  underrepresented  sex  is  allowed  under 
certain  conditions.  Positive  action  measures  are  allowed  in  the  process  of  hiring  for 
positions in the state and local government administration. According to Article 39 of the 
PADA,  if  the  candidates  for  positions  in  the  state  central  and  local  administration  have 
equivalent qualifications in relation to the requirements for the position, the candidate from 
the underrepresented sex will be appointed, except when there are specific circumstances 
for  appointing  the  other  candidate.  This  is  also  valid  for  determining  the  members  of 
consultative  and  managerial  and  other  bodies  in  this  sphere,  except  when  they  are 
determined by elections or are subject to a competition/tender. 

Promotional measures may be taken for encouraging/promoting persons belonging to the 
less  represented  sex  (or  ethnic  group)  to  apply  for  a  certain  job  or  position  and  for 
encouraging/promoting  the  vocational  development  and  participation  of  workers  and 
employees belonging to the less represented sex or ethnic group (Article 24 PADA). 

4.4  Evaluation of implementation 

In the sphere of working conditions for men and women, Bulgarian legislation is in line with 
EU standards. The barriers for access to employment in most spheres have been removed 
by  law  but  implementation  in  practice  still  needs  improvement.  Some  barriers  remain, 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

however – differential treatment based on religion, faith or sex in occupational activities 
and religious education or training at religious institutions or organisations is still allowed 
by  law  and  recognised  as  an  exception  to  discrimination  without  the  need  for  particular 
scrutiny. 

4.5  Remaining issues 

It is important to further tackle the issue of interpretation of the scope of the protection 
from discrimination in the sphere of work, the  contradictory definition  and expanding in 
practice of the right to equal conditions of work as a separate discrimination ground. During 
the  period  of  the  COVID-19  pandemic,  the  main  piece  of  legislation  through  which  the 
Government has taken measures to tackle the pandemic and its consequences is the Law 
on  the  measures  and  actions  in  times  of  state  of  emergency  and  for  overcoming  the 
consequences,  announced  with  the  Decision  of  the  National  Assembly  from  13  March 
2020.64 

The main measures provided for the period of the pandemic relate to the following: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

the  possibility  for  the  employers  to  mandate  work  at  home  or  from  distance, 
depending  on  the  specificity  of  the  working  process,  with  a  specific  order  of  the 
employer; 

the  possibility  for  the  employer  to  grant  the  annual  paid  leave  for  the  workers  or 
employees, upon the employer’s own initiative; 

the possibility to grant up to 90 days per year as unpaid leave while maintaining the 
social insurance for the employee for this period; and 

promotion of maintaining the employment in sectors affected by the epidemiological 
measures and related closing of businesses, for example, the sectors of tourism and 
hospitality. The measure of support for these businesses is called 60/40, where the 
state allocates 60 % of the staff costs, including social insurance, if the employers 
prove that they will ensure the remaining 40 % and keep their staff. 

There is no specific data on the impact of the pandemic on gender equality in employment 
and on the employment of women, and more specifically how the measures against the 
pandemic affected economic sectors that are most at risk and most sensitive for gender 
inequality. These are sectors where women prevail in the workforce, such as tourism, or 
the most feminised sectors. 

At the end of December 2020 to January 2021, almost one year after the official start of 
the  pandemic  and  after  several  periods  of  restrictions  –  and  even  closure  –  for  some 
businesses,  the  average  rate  of  unemployment  was  higher,  at  over  6 %,  with  figures 
around  14 %  in  the  north-western  regions  of  Bulgaria.  On  average,  six  unemployed 
persons were waiting for one position of employment.65 

64   Law on the measures and actions in times of state of emergency and for overcoming the consequences, 

announced with the Decision of the National Assembly from 13 March 2020 (Закон за мерките и 
действията по време на извънредното положение, обявено с решение на народното събрание от 13 
март 2020 г. и за преодоляване на последиците) promulgated in SG 28/ 2020, in force since 13 March 
2020, last amended by provisions promulgated in SG 109/ 2020, available in Bulgarian at: 
https://www.lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2137201253. 

65   BTV Novinite (2021), ‘Средно шестима безработни се борят за едно свободно място у нас’ (On average, 

six unemployed people fight for one free place in our country), Novinite, 29 March, available in Bulgarian at: 
https://btvnovinite.bg/bulgaria/sredno-shestima-bezrabotni-se-sastezavat-za-edno-svobodno-mjasto-u-
nas.html. 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

At the time of this report, for 2022, the unemployment rate was mitigated and the rate for 
men is 4.3 % and for women 3.9%.66 

In the National Plan for Recovery and Sustainability,67 which was prepared in relation to 
the  pandemic  and  is  to  be  reviewed  and  considered  by  the  European  Commission,  no 
specific  attention  was  given  to  gender  equality  in  employment  or  the  impact  and 
opportunities for women’s employment.  

Research conducted by the Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation on some trends of the 
impact of COVID-19 on the situation of women in employment showed that in the pandemic 
years 2020-2021, women’s unemployment rose and that, in the sectors of tourism, culture 
and entertainment, which were most affected and where women predominate, there is a 
considerable  increase  in  women  losing  their  jobs.  Men  represent  the  majority  of  self-
employed  workers,  who  were  less  affected  during  this  period.  The  research  is 
representative for Plovdiv and Pleven regions. Some discriminatory tendencies in the hiring 
of women in new positions were identified. Working from home or increased working from 
home is one of the trends indicated. However, this entails isolation from the job market 
and  women  respondents  would  like  this  form  of  work  to  be  linked  to  choose  and  to  be 
balanced with in-person participation in employment.68 

66   Source: National Statistical Institute, https://nsi.bg/bg/content/4011/безработни-лица-и-коефициенти-на-

безработица-национално-ниво-статистически-райони-области. 

67   National Plan for Recovery and Sustainability (Национален план за възстановяване и устойчивост), 

adopted on 30 October 2020, last version from 6 April 2022, available in Bulgarian at: 
https://nextgeneration.bg/14. 

68   Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation (2022), Български център за джендър изследвания” относно 

въздействието на пандемията Ковид 19 върху положението на жените и равнопоставеността на пазара 
на труда (A study by the Bulgarian Center for Gender Research Foundation on the impact of the COVID-19 
pandemic on the situation of women and gender equality in the labour market) March 2022, available in 
Bulgarian at: https://bgrf.org/articles/проучване-на-фондация-български-център-за-джендър-
изследвания-относно-въздействието-на-пандемията-ковид-19-върху-положението-на-жените-и-
равнопоставеността-на-пазара-на-труда-612. 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5  Work-life  balance  issues:  pregnancy,  maternity,  family-related  leave  and 
flexible  working  arrangements  (Directive 92/85,  relevant  provisions  of 
Directives 2006/54, and Directive 2019/1158)69 

5.1  General (legal) context 

5.1.1  Overview of national acts on work-life balance issues 

The major national legal acts and policies regarding work-life balance  in  Bulgaria are as 
follows: 

- 

the  Strategy  for  Promotion  of  Gender  Equality  2021-2030.  The  strategy’s  priority 
area is to increase the participation of women in the labour market and equal levels 
of economic independence as well as work-life balance for both sexes. 

Other relevant legislation: 

- 
- 
- 

Protection against Discrimination Act (PADA); 
Labour Code (LC); and 
Social Insurance Code (SIC). 

5.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

There  are  no  substantial  political  and  societal  debates  or  pending  legislative  proposals 
concerning work-life balance in Bulgaria. 

There are no important surveys on practical difficulties linked to work-life balance. 

The Bulgarian Government policy for work-life balance is linked with services for childcare 
or care for other dependent family members. It will require more promotional measures 
for hiring unemployed women or women with small children, and measures for including 
women in continuous training, and providing for flexible forms of employment.  

There are no pertinent legislative proposals after the major changes in 2022. 

5.2  Pregnancy and maternity protection70 

5.2.1  Definition in national law (Article 2 of Directive 92/85) 

Explicit definitions of the main concepts related to pregnancy and giving birth have been 
provided  in  joint  Ordinance  No. RD-07-4  of  15  June  2015  of  the  Minister  of  Labour  and 
Social  Policy  and  the  Minister  of  Health:  Ordinance  for  improving  working  conditions  for 
pregnant women, women who have given birth or breastfeeding women.71 This ordinance 

69   See Masselot, A. (2018), Family leave: enforcement of the protection against dismissal and unfavourable 
treatment, European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available at 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/4808-family-leave-enforcement-of-the-protection-against-dismissal-
and-unfavourable-treatment-pdf-962-kb and De la Corte Rodríguez, M. (2022), The transposition of the 
Work-Life Balance Directive in EU Members States: A long way ahead, available at: 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/5779-the-transposition-of-the-work-life-balance-directive-in-eu-
member-states-a-long-way-ahead. 

70   Directive 92/85/EEC of 19 October 1992 on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the 

safety and health at work of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are 
breastfeeding (tenth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive 89/391/EEC), OJ 
L 348, 28.11.1992. 

71  Ordinance No. RD-07-4 of 15 June 2015 from the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the Minister of 
Health: Ordinance for improving working conditions for pregnant women, women who have given birth or 
breastfeeding women (Наредба –РД-07-4 за подобряване на условията на труд на бременни работнички 
и на работнички родилки и кърмачки), promulgated in SG 46/2015, in force since 26 June 2015, available 
in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/2136553201. 

37 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

was meant to ensure full compliance with Directive 92/85. Section 1(1) of the Additional 
Provisions defines the notion of a pregnant worker as follows: 

‘1. “Pregnant female worker” is a female worker or employee with a confirmed status 
of pregnancy as well as one in an  advanced  stage  of in  vitro treatment within the 
meaning of section 1, point 13  of the Additional Provisions of the LC and who has 
duly  informed  her  employer  about  her  status  with  a  document  issued  by  the 
competent health authorities.’ 

In this ordinance, the notions of a woman worker who has given birth and a breastfeeding 
worker are defined, as well.  

‘“A female worker or employee who has given birth” is one who has returned to work 
prior to 90 days after having given birth and has informed her employer of her status 
with a document issued by the health authorities.’  

‘“A  breastfeeding  female  worker  or  employee”  is  one  who  breastfeeds  her  child 
herself and has informed her employer of her status with a document issued by the 
health authorities.’ 

In Bulgarian legislation, equal protection to that guaranteed to pregnant women is granted 
to  female  workers  and  employees  who  are  at  an  advanced  stage  of  in  vitro  fertilisation 
treatment. Their rights were made consistent with those of pregnant female workers and 
employees  and  with  those  who  are  breastfeeding.  According  to  Section 1(13)  of  the 
Additional  Provisions  of  the  Labour  Code  (LC)  and  to  Section 1(16)  of  the  Additional 
Provisions of the PADA, this advanced stage corresponds to the period up to 20 days from 
the aspiration of the ova until the transfer of the embryo.  

The definition of a pregnant worker is consistent with the requirements of Directive 92/85. 

5.2.2  Obligation to inform employer (Article 2 of Directive 92/85) 

Notification of the employer by the pregnant woman is regulated in Article 313a of the LC 
as an obligation for the woman in order to avail herself of the rights of pregnant workers 
and employees provided for in the Labour Code. She has to present a relevant certificate 
issued by health authorities. In the case of termination of pregnancy, the worker/employee 
has to inform the employer within seven days. The employer and the  relevant officers in 
the enterprise have the obligation of confidentiality in relation to all these circumstances. 

5.2.3  Case law on the definition of a pregnant worker, a worker who has recently given 
birth  and/or  a  worker  who  is  breastfeeding  and  the  obligation  to  inform  the 
employer 

There is no relevant case law. 

5.2.4  Implementation of protective measures (Articles 4-6 of Directive 92/85) 

These protective measures are ensured in Bulgarian legislation.  
Articles 307 and 309 LC regulate this protection. The employer cannot compel a pregnant 
or  breastfeeding  woman,  or  a  woman  at  an  advanced  stage  of  in  vitro  fertilisation,  to 
perform  work  that  entails  a  risk  to  their  health  or  safety.  The  pregnant  woman  has  the 
right to refuse to perform work that is defined as harmful to her health or for the health of 
the child or which, as a result of a risk assessment, is defined as representing considerable 
harm to their health. The assessment is carried out on the basis of regulatory acts, such 
as an Ordinance by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy, issued jointly with the Minister 

38 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

of Health (No. 5 from 1999).72 The assessment is carried  out by the employer, with the 
participation  of  units  dealing  with  labour  medicine,  the  bodies  dealing  with  health  and 
safety at work and other specialists in the enterprise. The employer can also invite other 
external experts and organisations. 

A list of the working activities and working conditions that pose a risk to the health and 
safety of pregnant workers is provided in a joint Ordinance by the Minister of Labour and 
Social Policy and the Minister of Health. This is currently regulated by the above-mentioned 
Ordinance No. RD-07-4 of 15 June 2015 of the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the 
Minister of Health: Ordinance for improving the working conditions for pregnant women, 
women  who  have  given  birth  or  breastfeeding  women.  In  this  ordinance  there  is  also  a 
reference to the above-mentioned Ordinance No. 5 of 1999 on the procedure, methodology 
and periodic review of the risk assessment for the health and safety of pregnant workers, 
workers who have given birth or are breastfeeding. The ordinance from June 2015 contains 
non-exhaustive lists of the risk factors, work processes and working conditions for women 
of the protected categories.  

Under  Bulgarian  law,  and  according  to  Article 309  LC,  the  employer  is  obliged  to  adjust 
any working conditions  that are not suitable for pregnant or breastfeeding women  or, if 
this is not technically and objectively possible, the employer has to transfer the worker to 
other suitable  work. The provisions by the health authorities are obligatory both for the 
pregnant  worker  and  for  the  employer  in  such  cases.  Until  the  adequate  adjustment  is 
made, the pregnant or breastfeeding worker is exempted from the obligation to perform 
the unsuitable work. In all cases, the level of remuneration received prior to the adjustment 
for this category of workers should be maintained, and in the event of wage differences 
after the adjustment, the worker should be compensated up to the amount received prior 
to that. In addition to the ordinance mentioned above, the Ordinance for an adjustment to 
the  workplace  for  pregnant  workers,  workers  who  have  given  birth  and  breastfeeding 
workers is valid as well.73  

In addition, the LC provides for a standing obligation for the employer to define on a yearly 
basis, in conjunction with the health authorities, the working positions and workplaces that 
are  suitable  for  pregnant  workers,  workers  in  an  advanced  stage  of  in  vitro  fertilisation 
treatment and breastfeeding workers.  

5.2.5  Case law on issues on protective measures 

There is no substantial case law on issues addressed in the provisions mentioned above. 

5.2.6  Prohibition of night work (Article 7 of Directive 92/85) 

According to Article 140(4) of the LC, night work (from 10pm until 6am) is forbidden for 
pregnant workers and workers in an advanced stage of in vitro fertilisation treatment; this 
also applies to mothers with children up to six years old, and mothers who care for children 
with disabilities, notwithstanding their age, unless their explicit written consent is given. 
Fathers are not protected under this provision, even if they are sole parents, which could 
be regarded as direct sex discrimination. After the changes in legislation concerning the 
different  sorts  of  parental  leave,  there  is  either  a  gap  in  legislation,  or  omission  due  to 
economic considerations. 

72   Ordinance No. 5 from 1999 for the procedure, methodology and frequency of implementing risk assessment 
(Наредба за реда, начина и периодичността на извършване на оценка на риска), promulgated in SG 
47/99, in force since 25 May 1999, available in Bulgarian at: https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/-549691391. 

73   Ordinance for adjusting of the working conditions, adopted by Decree No. 72/86 of the Council of Ministers 
Наредба за трудоустрояването, promulgated in SG 7/87, in force since 30 January 1987, available in 
Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/-552857597. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

The  possibility  for  a  transfer  to  daytime  work  or  leave  from  work,  or  an  extension  of 
maternity leave, is not explicitly provided for in such cases. However, it can be considered 
to be an implicit possibility, in view of the protection provided by the provisions mentioned 
above. The relatively long maximum duration of maternity leave in Bulgaria can be added 
to this. 

5.2.7  Case law on the prohibition of night work 

There is no substantial case law on the prohibition of night work. 

5.2.8  Prohibition of dismissal (Article 10(1) of Directive 92/85) 

The  provisions  on  the  conditions  for  the  dismissal  of  these  categories  of  workers  are  in 
compliance with the Directive.  

The  prohibition  is  not  absolute.  According  to  Article 333(5)  LC,  a  pregnant  worker  or  a 
worker at an advanced stage of in vitro fertilisation treatment may only be dismissed based 
on  the  grounds  of  Article 328(1)(1),  (7),  (8)  or  (12)  with  previous  notice,  and  without 
notice only based on Article 330(1) and (2)(6) LC. In the latter case (Article 330(2)(6)) a 
dismissal will only be possible with the prior permission of the Labour Inspectorate. In the 
case  of  Article 328  LC,  these  hypothetical  situations  cover:  the  closing  down  of  the 
enterprise,  a  refusal  by  the  worker  to  follow  the  enterprise  or  its  unit  if  it  is  moved  to 
another location, when the position has to be vacated in favour of the return of an illegally 
dismissed worker or employee, and when there is an objective impossibility to perform the 
duties under the labour contract. Article 330(1) covers cases when the worker is detained 
for  the  enforcement  of  a  verdict  and  330(2)(6)  LC  covers  a  dismissal  for  a  breach  of 
discipline. 

Increased protection is provided in cases of the dismissal of a female worker or employee 
who  is  the  mother  of  a  child  up  to  three  years  of  age.  According  to  Article 333(1),  a 
preliminary approval by the Labour Inspectorate for each individual case is required before 
a dismissal under Article 328(1)(2), (3), (5) or (11) and Article 330(2)(6) LC. This covers 
the closing down of part of the enterprise or a reduction in personnel, a decrease in the 
volume of work, a lack of qualities and skills by the worker or employee for the effective 
performance  of  the  work,  a  change  to  the  job  requirements  and  when  the  worker  or 
employee does not comply with them.  

This protection is not provided for fathers, even if they are sole parents. There is a separate 
ground, though, which provides the same level of protection from dismissal – for a worker 
or employee who started using the leave granted to him/her. It is not  related directly to 
being a father of a small child. In the first months of maternity leave, it is understandable 
that the protection is for mothers. If, after the first six months, the fathers take the rest 
of the leave, they will be protected based on that ground. 

5.2.9  Employer’s  obligation  to  substantiate  a  dismissal  in  writing  (Article 10(2)  of 

Directive 92/85) 

According  to  Article 335  LC,  the  dismissal  must  be  in  writing  and  in  most  cases  written 
notice  is  required  where  the  specific  grounds  are  substantiated.  The  sanction  for  not 
respecting this provision is that the dismissal will be declared illegal by the courts. 

40 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5.2.10 Protection against dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave 

Table 2: Protection against dismissal during pregnancy and maternity leave 

Yes/no  Protected 

Exceptions 

period 
During 
pregnancy and 
advanced stage 
of in vitro 
fertilisation. 

Yes. 

Mother of a 
child up to 
three years. 

The closing down of the enterprise, a 
refusal by the worker to follow the 
enterprise or its unit if it is moved to 
another location, when the position has 
to be vacated in favour of the return of 
an illegally dismissed worker or 
employee, and when there is an 
objective impossibility to perform the 
duties under the labour contract. 
This covers the closing down of part of 
the enterprise or a reduction in 
personnel, a decrease in the volume of 
work, a lack of qualities and skills by 
the worker or employee for the 
effective performance of the work, a 
change to the job requirements and 
when the worker or employee does not 
comply with them. 

Specific 
procedure? 
Prior permission 
of the Labour 
inspectorate. 

With approval by 
the Labour 
inspection in 
each individual 
case. 

5.2.11 Employment rights (Article 11(1) of Directive 92/85)  

The main employment rights of women are maintained in  the event of the enactment of 
protection measures applied according to Articles 5, 6 and 7 of Directive 92/85, and namely 
in case of refusal of the pregnant or breastfeeding woman, or a woman at an advanced 
stage of in vitro fertilisation, to perform work that entails a risk to their health or safety, 
or in case of transfer of the woman to another work which is suitable for her, if the initial 
working  conditions  are  not  suitable  and  cannot  be  adjusted.  In  the  latter  case, 
Article 309(3) of the LC explicitly provides for monetary compensation for the pregnant or 
breastfeeding woman if the new working place is related to a lower salary, compared to 
her previous pay level. For the rest of the cases where special protection applies, with the 
explicit consent of the woman, including night work, there are no provisions indicating a 
change  in  the  income  level  or  other  conditions  of  the  labour  contract  of  the  woman. 
Therefore  we  can  assume  that  no  change  can  take  place  without  her  knowledge  and 
consent.  

5.2.12 Case law on the protection against dismissal and the maintenance of income and 

other employment rights 

There  is  no  case  law  related  to  protection  against  dismissal  and  maintenance  of 
employment rights. 

5.3  Maternity leave 

5.3.1  Maternity leave in national law (Article 8(1) and (2) of Directive 92/85) 

Bulgarian  legislation  provides  for  maternity  leave.  Female  employees  are  entitled  to 
pregnancy and maternity leave for 410 calendar days (Article 163(1) LC). It goes beyond 
the minimum requirements of EU law. 

There is a period of 45 calendar days  that must be used before giving birth (Article 163 
LC). 

41 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

There is a legal right to share part of maternity leave in Bulgaria. 

According  to  Article 163(10)  LC,  with  the  consent  of  the  mother,  after  the  child  is  six 
months old, the father may use the remaining paid leave of up to 410 days, and the paid 
leave of the mother is interrupted. ‘Interrupted’ is the term used – the father may not use 
the full remaining leave but step into part of it, for example. For the time of this leave, the 
relevant parent employee will be paid cash compensation under the terms of and subject 
to the amounts specified in the Social Insurance Code.  

In addition, if the  father is unknown, this leave can be  shared with one of the mother’s 
parents. If the father has passed away, the leave  can be used by one of the parents of 
both mother and father. 

In the same provision on pregnancy and maternity leave (Article 163 LC), extended rights 
and opportunities have also been regulated for children and parents where small children 
are placed as a protective measure. These solutions have been extended to mothers and 
their  husbands  within  whose  families  children  have  been  placed  as  a  measure  of  child 
protection  under  the  Law  on  Child  Protection.  A  female  worker  or  employee  within  the 
family  where  a  child  has  been  placed  as  a  protective  measure  under  the  Law  on  Child 
Protection (a family consisting of close relatives or having close connections or in a foster 
family) has the right to leave which is the same as maternity leave (410 days) from the 
placement of the child onwards. In this case, the female worker or employee has the same 
right to maternity leave as mothers at birth. When the child is placed in a family, usually 
at an early age, the woman in this family will take the leave first, on equal terms to the 
mother of the child. The first part of the leave – the first six months – are maternity leave 
and it usually goes to a woman who will take care of the child at this early stage. It is rare 
for very small children to be placed in the care of a man as a sole foster parent or relative.  

When a child has been placed within a family as a protective measure, with the consent of 
the woman, her husband can benefit from the remainder of the leave after the child has 
reached the age of six months (for up to 410 days, as mentioned above). 

These provisions have been in force since 1 July 2018. 

5.3.2  Maintenance  of 
Directive 92/85)  

income  and  other  employment  rights  (Article 11(2)  of 

There is a legal provision ensuring that the maintenance of income and other employment 
rights relating to the employment contract are ensured during maternity leave. The explicit 
provision is in Article 13(3) of the PADA. 

5.3.3  Paid maternity leave (Article 11(3) and (4) of Directive 92/85)  

Maternity  leave  is  paid  for  the  whole  period.  According  to  Article 163(14)  LC,  during 
maternity leave an allowance is paid by the state under the conditions and amounts defined 
in a special law. The period of maternity leave is recognised as seniority period.  

The  maternity  benefit  during  pregnancy  and  maternity  leave  amounts  to  90 %  of  the 
average  remuneration  or  the  average  insurance  income  based  on  which  the  worker  or 
employee  contributed  to  social  security  –  or  for  self-insured  persons,  based  on  the 
contributions made for general illness and maternity for the previous 24 months (Article 49 
of the Social Insurance Code – SIC).74 It is equivalent to the maximum pay for sick leave. 
There is no fixed limit for the amount. 

74   Social Insurance Code (SIC) (Кодекс за социално осигуряване), promulgated in SG No. 110/99, in force 

since 1 January 2000, available in Bulgarian at: http://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1597824512. 

42 

 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

A novel provision from 2020 of the SIC creates more favourable conditions for a mother 
who acquires the right to maternity benefits during a period when she is already receiving 
such benefits or a childcare benefit for raising a child under two years of age  – in these 
cases  she  can  benefit  from  the  higher  amount  of  contribution  received  for  her  previous 
child, as the case may be. 

According to Article 48a of the SIC, as a matter of principle, the conditions for eligibility for 
the  allowance  are  that  persons  are  under  a  labour  contract  and  are  insured  for  general 
illness and maternity if they have 12 months of insurance contributions for this risk. 

5.3.4  Right to return to the same or an equivalent job (Article 15 of Directive 2006/54) 

According  to  Articles  13  and  15  of  the  PADA,  a  mother  who  returns  from  pregnancy  or 
maternity leave (Article 13, paragraph 3 of the law), or child care leave, is entitled, at the 
end of her maternity leave, to return to the same job or to an equivalent position under 
terms  which  are  no  less  favourable  to  her  and  to  benefit  from  any  improvement  in  the 
working conditions. If the father (biological or adoptive) shares this leave with the mother, 
he also benefits from these rights upon his return from leave for raising a child. Pursuant 
to Article 15(2) of the PADA, workers returning from pregnancy, maternity and childcare 
leave mentioned in Article 13(3) have the right to be trained with regard to technological 
changes  related  to  their  job  that  have  taken  place  in  their  absence.  Thus  they  will  be 
ensured the required professional qualification. 

5.3.5  Case law on maternity leave 

There is no substantial case law on these issues. 

5.3.6  Table on maternity leave 

Table 3: Maternity leave 

Duration  Obligatory 

period 

Max. 410 
days. 

45 days (to be 
used before the 
due date). 

5.4  Paternity leave 

Possibility to 
share 
maternity 
leave? 
Yes. 

Payment or 
allowance 

Right to return 
after the end of 
maternity leave 

Yes. 

Allowance, 
90 % of the 
average 
income. 

5.4.1  Paternity leave in national law (recital 26 Directive of 2006/54 and Articles 3(a) and 

4 of Directive 2019/1158)  

Since 2009, if the parents are married or live together (cohabit), the father is entitled to 
15 calendar days of paid paternal leave upon the birth of his child after the child is brought 
home from the hospital (Article 163 LC). The leave is not expressly named paternity leave. 
This leave is regulated in Article 163(8) in the provisions on pregnancy and birth-related 
leave. The leave is described as a leave for the father in the event of a birth of a child. It 
cannot be transferred to the mother. 

5.4.2  Paid paternity leave (Article 8(1) and (2) of Directive 2019/1158) 

Paternity  leave  is  provided  as  a  form  of  sick  leave.  According  to  Article 50(6)  SIC  the 
amount of the allowance provided for sick leave is up to 90 % of the average remuneration 
or the average insurance income based on which the worker or employee contributed to 

43 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

social security. The allowance paid for the 15 days of paternity leave is equivalent to the 
maximum allowance for sick leave, namely 90 %. According to the general rules, workers 
are entitled to this level of allowance during sick leave if they have at least 12 month of 
insurance contribution;  however,  for paternity leave  only 6 months  of  prior insurance is 
required, due to the latest amendments of SIC from 2022.75 There is no upper limit for the 
amount of the allowance. 

5.4.3  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  paternity  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

According to Article 13(3) of the PADA, fathers on paternity leave are explicitly recognised 
as  having  the  right  to  return  to  their  job  or  to  an  equivalent  post  and  to  benefit  from 
improvements  in  working  conditions.  As  fathers  on  paternity  leave  are  covered  under 
Article 163,  they  also  benefit  from  maximum  protection  against  dismissal  under 
Article 333(6)  LC:  they  can  be  dismissed  only  upon  notification  and  in  cases  where  the 
enterprise is being closed down. 

The general protection against discriminatory treatment based on family status under the 
PADA, including related to the burden of proof, is also valid in cases related to paternity 
leave.  

5.4.4  Case law on paternity leave 

There is no relevant case law. 

5.4.5  Table on paternity leave 

Table 4: Paternity leave 

Who is entitled? 

Duration  Possibility to 

share 
paternity 
leave? 
No. 

Father when 
married to or in 
cohabitation with 
the mother. 

15 
calendar 
days. 

5.5  Adoption leave 

Payment or 
allowance 

Qualifying 
conditions for 
allowance 

Yes, allowance 
(90 % of the 
income). 

6 months of 
prior insured 
period. 

5.5.1  Adoption leave in national law (recital 27 of Directive 2006/54)76 

A section in the Labour Code entitled ‘Leave for adopting a child up to five years’ and the 
provisions of Article 164b LC77 have consolidated the special provisions related to the leave 
for adoptive parents.  

An adoptive mother of a child up to five years has a right to leave of 365 days from the 
day of adoption of the child but no later than the child reaching the age of five years. When 
the adoptive parents are married and the mother works under a labour contract, she can 

75   Social Insurance Code, promulgated in S.G. 62 of 5 August 2022, in force since 8 August 2022, available in 

Bulgarian at https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1597824512. 

76   Adoption leave is defined at EU level as an individual and non-transferable right to leave of men and women 
subsequent to the adoption of a child. While in the case of birth there are two distinct rights to create an 
early bonding with the child, i.e. maternity leave for the delivering mother and paternity leave for the other 
parent, in the case of adoption there is an only right to leave (adoption leave) which under the EU definition 
should be the same for each adoptive parent. 

77   Labour Code (Кодекс на труда), promulgated in SG No. 26/86, in force since 1 January 1987, amended by 
provision promulgated in SG 30/2018, available in Bulgarian at: https://lex.bg/bg/laws/ldoc/1594373121. 

44 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

agree for the adoptive father or either parent of the mother or the father to take the leave 
after the first six months. Therefore, the leave is regulated as an individual but transferable 
right.  

When the female worker or employee is the sole adoptive parent of a child and works on 
a labour contract, after six months from the adoption of the child, her parents can  step 
into  the  adoption  leave  until  its  expiry.  In  such  cases,  the  leave  of  the  mother  is 
interrupted. The adoptive father, when he is the sole adoptive parent, has the same rights 
as the sole adoptive mother.  

When  the  adoptive  parents  are  married,  the  adoptive  parent  has  the  right  to  15  days’ 
paternity leave at the adoption of a child up to 5 years and upon taking the child. Adoptive 
parents,  or  the  other  relatives  caring  for  the  child  have  the  right  to  additional  leave  for 
caring for a child up to two years of age. 

The periods of leave for adoptive parents are recognised for seniority (length of service) 
purposes  and  allowance  is  paid  according  to  the  Social  Insurance  Code  under  the  same 
terms  and  conditions  as  the  ones  the  biological  parents  would  be  entitled  to  –  for  the 
equivalent to maternity leave and paternity leave, up to 90 % of the average remuneration 
or the average insurance income based on which the worker or employee contributed to 
social security.  Additional childcare or parental leave for adoptive parents follows the terms 
and conditions of these types of leave. 

5.5.2  Legal protection of the right to adoption leave (Article 16 of Directive 2006/54) 

Adoptive  parents  have  the  same  rights  as  persons  on  childcare  leave  when  they  are  on 
leave according to Article 164b LC. Upon return to work, they have the right to occupy the 
same or another equivalent position and to benefit from any improvement of the working 
conditions, according to Article 13(3) of the PADA.  

Adoptive mothers of children up to three years of age who are on childcare leave have the 
right to increased protection against dismissal as biological mothers do. Adoptive fathers 
are not explicitly protected on these grounds but can enjoy similar protection on another 
ground, namely if they started taking leave with the consent of the employer.  

5.5.3  Case law on adoption leave 

There is no relevant case law on the issues discussed above. 

5.6  Parental leave 

5.6.1  Parental leave in national law (Article 5 (1), (2) and (4) of Directive 2019/1158) 

The  Bulgarian  Labour  Code  uses  the  term  childcare  leave  or  leave  for  raising  a  child. 
Childcare  leave  is  the  term  used  for  leave  taken  by  the  parents  outside  the  pregnancy, 
maternity leave and related and equivalent leave during the initial period. In Bulgaria, a 
range of forms of leave are called childcare leave. The Labour Code does not include a term 
that would fully correspond to parental leave, as in the Directive. 

In summary, the childcare or parental leave is part more generally of the leave related to 
maternity and other paid or unpaid leave for taking care of the child, as follows: 

- 

- 

pregnancy and childbirth, and maternity leave – 410 days paid, out of which 45 days 
obligatory before the planned birth of the child/ after 6 months of the child it can be 
taken by the father with mother’s consent; 
paternity leave (leave for the father at the birth of the child –15 days paid); 

45 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

- 

- 
- 
- 

additional childcare leave for both parents after maternity leave – up to 2 years old 
– paid; 
special childcare leave for fathers – 2 months paid; 
unpaid childcare leave for both parents – for 6 months - up to 8 years old; 
adoption leave – up to 5 years old (365 days paid). 

The  consent  of  the  mother  is  needed  for  fathers  to  share  the  maternity  leave  or  the 
additional childcare leave up to the child reaching two years of age. In addition to that, the 
prevailing practice is that mothers take maternity leave and mothers  and grandmothers 
take the additional childcare leave. 

New legislation was adopted and entered into force from 1 August 2022 in view of better 
harmonisation  with  the  Work-Life  Balance  Directive.  The  most  notable  feature  of  the 
transposition package is a paid childcare leave of two months especially for fathers, which 
is non-transferable. Where the father (the adopter) has taken leave under Article 163(10), 
Article 164(3),  Article 164b(2)  and  (5)  or  Article 167(1)  for  a  period  of  less  than  two 
months, he is entitled to leave in the amount of the difference between two months and 
the leave taken.  

After the leave for pregnancy, childbirth or adoption has been used, if the child is not placed 
in a daycare establishment, the mother, regardless of the number of children, is entitled 
to additional leave to raise her child until the child reaches the age of two (Article 164(1) 
of the LC). With the consent of the mother, this leave can be granted to the father or to 
one of their parents if the grandparents work under an employment contract. When a child 
is placed in a family as a protective measure, the persons with whom the child was placed 
also have the right to this childcare leave until the child is two. 

In addition to the childcare leave until the child is two years old, or after the adoption leave 
under Article 164b LC, any of the parents (biological or adoptive) has the right to make 
use of unpaid leave of up to six months until the child is eight (unless the child in placed 
in  an  institution  with  full  public  support);  this  feature  was  introduced  in  2004  and  is 
regulated in Article 167a LC. 

A special childcare leave of two months is provided for the father (biological and adoptive) 
of  a  child  up  to  eight  years.  This  provision  of  Article 164c  LC  has  been  in  force  since  1 
August 2022.  

As mentioned above, in the case of childcare leave available after maternity leave until the 
child is two, the mother can, if she opts to do so, share the leave with the father or with 
the grandparents. When a child is placed in a family as a protective measure, only one of 
the spouses is entitled to this leave (Article 164a LC). The qualifying conditions are being 
under a labour contract and having a minimum of 12 months of insured period. 

The  right  to  six  months  of  additional,  unpaid  childcare  leave,  available  until  the  child  is 
eight, is provided to each parent, and each of them can use up to five months from the 
other one’s share, upon agreement. The qualifying condition is to be under labour contract. 

The two months of childcare leave for fathers, until the child is eight, is non-transferable. 
The qualifying conditions are being under a labour contract and having a minimum of 12 
months of insured period. 

There are several specific examples of the forms of parental leave mentioned above and 
regulated  in  Article 167  LC.  When  the  mother  of  a  child  up  to  two  years  or  an  adoptive 
mother  of  a  child  up  to  five  years  gets  a  severe  disease  or  passes  away,  the  forms  of 
parental leave are taken by the father. In case of his consent, the leave can be taken by 
one of the grandparents of the child. The grandparents of the child can also take such leave 

46 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

in the event  of severe  disease  of the mother/ adoptive mother and death of the  father/ 
adoptive father.  

5.6.2  Period of notice (Article 5(3) of Directive 2019/1158) 

The notice period for taking unpaid parental leave is 10 days (Article 167a(7) LC) and the 
worker has to specify the requested period and dates of the leave. 

A notice  of 10 days is also required for the  two months’ paid leave  for the father under 
Article 164c LC.  

For all other types of childcare leave there is no such requirement. It means they should 
be allowed immediately if the conditions are fulfilled.  

5.6.3  Postponement of parental leave (Article 5(5) of Directive 2019/1158) 

The employer cannot postpone the parental leave of the employee. 

5.6.4  Flexible take-up of parental leave (Article 5(6) of Directive 2019/1158) 

The leave under  Article 164c LC  for the  father  can be taken as  a whole or in parts. The 
employee can ask for the unpaid leave in its full length or partially, at least  five days in 
each part. 

They can be interrupted by the parent employee/worker.  

It is not indicated that the parental leave can be taken part time, which means that it must 
be taken full time, as is usual in Bulgarian law and practice. This is valid for all types of 
childcare leave. 

5.6.5  Special rules for adoptive parents, parents with a disability and parents of children 

with a disability or a long-term illness (Article 5(8) Directive 2019/1158) 

The  rules  for  adoptive  parents,  including  parental  leave,  are  described  in  detail  above. 
There are no special rules for parents with disabilities and with children with disabilities or 
long-term illness.  

5.6.6  Paid parental leave (Article 8(1) and (3) of Directive 2019/1158) 

For childcare leave available after maternity leave, until the child is two, the mother, or 
the person who is raising of the child (primary caregiver), is entitled to benefits under the 
terms of and subject to the amounts specified in the Law on the Budget of the State Social 
Insurance Scheme. The benefit for childcare leave for children under the age of two years 
is a flat rate amount and from 1 April 2022 and for 2023 was fixed at EUR 360 (BGN 710) 
per month.78 

For the two months of childcare leave for fathers until the child is eight, the allowance is 
provided from the social insurance scheme in the same amount. 

Additional  childcare  leave  for  six  months  for  each  parent  until  the  child  is  eight,  under 
Article 167a LC, is unpaid.  

The requirements for paid parental leave encompass having a labour contract and having 
been fully insured for a period of at least 12 months. 

78   Law on amendment of the Budget of the State Social Insurance Scheme, promulgated in S.G. 52 from 5 

July 2022, in force from 1 July 2022, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.noi.bg/wp-
content/uploads/ZIZBDOO_2022.pdf. 

47 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

In the author’s opinion, the amount of the statutory parental allowance is not adequate, in 
the light of recital 31 of Directive 2019/1158. The amount of EUR 360 is not sufficient to 
motivate  fathers  to  take  the  leave  instead  of  the  mothers.  So,  the  allowance  does  not 
correspond  to  an  adequate  level  of  remuneration,  as  there  is  no  incentive  for  the  first 
earners of the family. 

5.6.7  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  parental  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Based on the provision of Article 13(3) of the PADA, parents on parental leave are explicitly 
recognised as having the right to return to their job or to an equivalent post and to benefit 
from  improvements  in  working  conditions.  The  protection  of  employment  rights  is  also 
focused  on  women  in  maternity  leave,  fathers  on  paternity  leave  and  childcare  leave 
related to Article 163 on the paid leave up to 410 days. 

Concerning the protection from dismissal, parents on parental leave can be dismissed only 
upon approval by the Labour Inspection (Article 333(1) LC). Mothers of children up to three 
years old are protected under this condition explicitly as mothers. The person who started 
a leave that was granted to them cannot be dismissed. 

The  general  protection  against  discriminatory  treatment  based  on  sex  and  family  status 
under the PADA, including related to the burden of proof, is also valid in cases related to 
parental leave.  

5.6.8  Case law on parental leave 

There is no relevant case law. 

5.6.9  Table on parental leave 

Table 4: Paternity leave 

Duration and 
period 

After maternity 
leave, until the 
child is two. 

Six months for 
each parent 
after the age of 
2 years, to be 
used until the 
child is eight. 
Two months for 
fathers until 
the child is 
eight. 

Possibility to 
share 
parental 
leave? 

Yes, the 
mother can 
share it with 
the father or 
with the 
grandparents. 
Yes, up to five 
months, from 
the six) 
provided to 
each parent, 
can be shared. 
The two 
months for 
fathers is non-
transferable. 

Flexibility 
(e.g. full-
time, part-
time, 
piecemeal? 
Full time and 
can be taken in 
parts. 

Can be taken in 
parts, at least 
5 days each. 
No indication of 
a possibility for 
part- time. 
Can be taken in 
parts. No 
indication of a 
possibility for 
part-time 
leave. 

Payment or 
allowance? 

Qualifying 
conditions for 
payment or 
allowance? 

Yes, a flat-rate 
allowance from 
the social 
insurance 
scheme. 

Labour contract 
and fully 
insured for a 
period at least 
of 12 months. 

No, in principle.  No allowance, 
no conditions 
for it. A labour 
contract is 
required. 

Yes, allowance 
from the social 
insurance 
scheme. 

Labour contract 
and fully 
ensured for 12 
months at 
least. 

48 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5.7  Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

5.7.1  Prohibition of surrogacy 

Surrogacy is illegal in Bulgaria. 

5.7.2  Child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

Not applicable. 

5.7.3  Case law on child-related leave in relation to surrogacy 

There is no applicable case law. 

5.8  Carers’ leave 

5.8.1  Carers’  leave  in  national  law  (Articles  3(1)(c),  (d)  and  (e)  and  6  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

According to Article 162 LC, the worker or employee has the right to leave as a result of a 
temporary inability to work due to the sickness of a family member (child or another close 
relative/ ascendant or descendant/ or spouse). The care risks include care for a healthy 
child  up  to  12  under  quarantine  or  affected  by  a  quarantine  measure  by  the 
school/educational establishment. The worker also has the right to leave in the event of a 
necessary medical examination or analysis, and necessary accompanying of a sick family 
member for a medical examination, analysis or treatment. The leave is allowed with the 
consent of the health institutions. 

Requirements  for  such  leave  include  having  employment  status  and  insurance  for 
temporary inability for work, with a minimum period of six months of insurance. 

Only one insured family member has the right to the allowance for the same period and in 
the same case. 

For the period of carers’ leave, the worker is entitled to social security benefits that amount 
to up to 70 % of his/her average remuneration which during the first three days are paid 
by the employer and to up to 80 % for the rest of the leave. As of 1 January 2024, the 
employer pays only the two first days of the leave. The length of the leave is limited to 60 
calendar days in a calendar year for taking care of a sick child (it is a limited period for all 
family members who could take the leave and it does not include the care for a sick child 
in a medical establishment and when the child is under quarantine for an infectious disease 
or returned from school when there is quarantine), and is up to 10 calendar days in one 
calendar  year  for  taking  care  of  or  accompanying  for  medical  examinations  an  adult 
relative. The 10 days comprise both the needed medical examinations and the sickness. 
For taking care of a sick relative with a chronic disease, the allowance is paid only for an 
acute phase of the disease. 

The detailed regulation is provided in Articles 40-45 of the Social Insurance Code (SIC).  

Outside  of  these  opportunities,  unpaid  leave  under  Article 160  LC  is  available  for  the 
purpose of care for family members. It is subject to consent by the employer. 

Requirements  for  such  leave  include  having  employment  status  and  insurance  for 
temporary inability for work, with a minimum period of six months of insurance. 

49 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5.8.2  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  carers’  leave  (Articles  10,  11  and  12  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Based on the wording of Article 13(3) of the PADA, carers are not explicitly recognised as 
having the right to return to their job or to an equivalent post. 

Concerning the protection from dismissal, the  person who  started taking leave  that was 
granted to them cannot be dismissed. 

The  general  protection  against  discriminatory  treatment  based  on  sex  and  family  status 
under the PADA, including related to the burden of proof, is also valid in cases related to 
carers’ leave.  

5.8.3  Case law on carers’ leave 

There is no relevant case law. 

5.9  Time off for force majeure 

5.9.1  Time off for force majeure (Article 7 of Directive 2019/1158) 

There is no clear difference between leave for force majeure and carers’ leave in terms of 
legal regime, except for the length of the leave allowed and related eligibility for payment 
of the allowance, as mentioned above. Both types of leaves are regulated in Article 162 LC 
and in the SIC. The force majeure leave is available for urgent reasons and, in principle, 
related  to  the  need  for  medical  examinations  and  treatment,  both  for  the  worker  or 
employee, or for a family member.  

Outside of the periods and grounds covered by the state allowance and mentioned in detail 
above,  time  off  for  force  majeure  can  also  be  requested  under  the  conditions  of  unpaid 
leave. 

The unpaid leave is not limited by time but only leave up to 30 working days in a calendar 
year  is  recognised  for  length  of  service.  There  are  no  other  requirements  for  asking  for 
unpaid leave. 

5.9.2  Legal  protection  of  the  right  to  time-off  for  force  majeure  (Articles  10  and  11  of 

Directive 2019/1158) 

Based  on  the  wording  of  Article 13(3)  of  the  PADA,  persons  on  time-off  leave  are  not 
explicitly recognised as having the right to return to their job or to an equivalent post and 
to benefit from improvements in working conditions.  

Concerning the protection from dismissal, the  person who  started taking leave  that was 
granted to them cannot be dismissed. 

The  general  protection  against  discriminatory  treatment  based  on  sex  and  family  status 
under the PADA, including relating to the burden of proof, is also valid in cases related to 
carers’ leave.  

5.9.3  Case law on time off for force majeure 

There is no relevant case law. 

50 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5.10  Flexible working time arrangements (FWAs) 

5.10.1 Right to FWAs (Article 3(1)(d) and (f) and 9 of Directive 2019/1158) 

According to Article 167b LC a worker or employee who is the parent/adoptive parent of a 
child up to eight years old has the right to suggest in writing to his/her employer changes 
for a certain period to the duration and the distribution of the working time, or to suggest 
work from distance, and other changes in the labour relationship, with a view to facilitating 
his/her work-life balance. This right can be used also by a worker or employer who takes 
care  of  a  parent,  child,  spouse,  brother,  sister  and  parent  of  the  other  spouse  or  other 
relatives in direct line, for serious medical reasons. 

There  is  no  explicit  requirement  for  such  flexible  arrangements  to  be  for  a  reasonable 
period. 

The right is regulated as an option for the worker to suggest flexible arrangements in such 
cases. The employer has the obligation to take the suggestion into account. The specific 
arrangements and changes in the labour contract are made when there is a possibility for 
the enterprise and by mutual and additional agreement of the worker/employee and the 
employer in written form. There is a requirement to have worked a minimum period of four 
months in the enterprise. 

If the employer refuses to allow the changes, he/she has to  state the motivation for the 
refusal within 14 days.  

Therefore, the right to adjust working patterns is regulated as a relative right and not as 
an absolute right. 

The worker or employee has the right, prior to the expiry of the FWA period, to ask for a 
return to the previous conditions of work.  

The  worker  or  employee  and  the  employer  can  also  reach  an  agreement  for  flexible 
arrangements and changes in the labour relations during the period of using a maternity, 
paternity or childcare/ parental leave under Articles 163- 167a LC.  

No other legal rights to flexible working arrangements are provided. 

5.10.2 Duration of FWAs (recital 35 and Article 9(1) and (3) of Directive 2019/1158)  

The  specific  arrangements  and  changes  in  the  labour  contract  are  subject  to  additional 
agreement with the employer. 

5.10.3 Legal protection of the right to FWAs (Articles 11 and 12 of Directive 2019/1158) 

The general protection against discriminatory treatment based on sex, marital and family 
status  under  the  PADA,  including  related  to  the  burden  of  proof,  is  also  valid  in  cases 
related to flexible working arrangements. 

There  is  no  other  specific  protection  from  dismissal,  outside  the  ones  mentioned  above 
concerning the different types of leave, and besides the protection for persons who started 
any type of leave granted to them by the employer.  

5.10.4 Case law on FWAs and legal protection of the right to FWAs 

There is no relevant case law on these issues. 

51 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

5.11  Evaluation of implementation 

In  the  view  of  the  author  of  this  report,  following  the  adoption  of  the  legislation  for 
harmonisation,  the  Work-Life  Balance  Directive is  almost  fully  transposed.  The  following 
problematic issues can be mentioned: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

the flat rate payment for the special parental leave for fathers up to two months is 
not adequate as an amount in order to be a trigger for better work-life balance for 
both mothers and fathers; 
there  is  no  additional  childcare/parental  leave  for  mothers  of  children  up  to  eight 
years old; 
there  is  no  full  guarantee  for  maintaining  the  employment  rights  of  those  under 
carers’ leave; and 
there  are  no  special  rules  for  parents  with  disabilities  and  those  of  children  with 
disabilities or a long-term illness, as required by the WLB Directive. 

More time is required to reach a more general assessment of the changes in legislation on 
gender equality, as well as specific assessments and studies on the issue. 

5.12  Remaining issues 

There are no other remaining issues. 

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6 

Occupational social security schemes (Chapter 2 of Directive 2006/54) 

6.1  General (legal) context 

6.1.1  Issues related to gender equality and social security 

Since  the  year  2000,  the  pension  system  in  Bulgaria  has  consisted  of  three  pillars.  The 
model was based on the World Bank’s advice and influence and is different from the pillars 
in the EU countries. The first pillar is the universal social security fund, a ‘pay-as-you-go’ 
type,  which  is  obligatory  for  persons  in  an  employment  relationship  or  self-employed 
persons.  The  second  pillar  is  a  mandatory  and  fully-funded  pension  fund  with  defined 
contributions  that  are  allotted  to  individual  accounts  run  by  licensed  pension  insurance 
companies or, based on the choice of the insured person, contributed to the state pension 
fund. The third pillar includes supplementary voluntary pension schemes. 

In  Bulgaria  there  are  no  second  pillar  pension  schemes  comparable  to  the  type  of 
occupational  pension  schemes  recognised  in  EU  law.  Provisions  for  the  establishment  of 
occupational pension schemes are contained in the Social Insurance Code within the third 
pillar as part of additional voluntary social insurance (Part III of the SIC). These schemes 
are not well developed in Bulgaria. 

6.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

There are no pending proposals for legislation or societal debate on the specific issue. 

6.2  Direct and indirect discrimination 

Direct and indirect discrimination based on sex is forbidden, first in acceptance of persons 
into the schemes and also in the process of insurance under such schemes. Specifically, 
no discrimination based on sex, including discrimination based on marital and family status, 
is allowed within the scope of application of the schemes and the conditions for accessing 
them;  the  obligation  to  pay  contributions  and  the  calculation  thereof;  the  calculation  of 
retirement payments and other terms of the related rights. 

6.3  Personal scope 

Since  the  new  schemes  are  part  of  the  third  pillar  in  Bulgaria  the  occupational  social 
security  directive  is  not  applicable  to  them.  Nevertheless,  it  can  be  said  that  additional 
voluntary pension insurance is open to all physical persons aged 16 and over (Article 210 
SIC). In Bulgarian legislation, there are no occupational social security schemes which form 
part of a second pillar of social security, as in other EU Member States. The situation in 
Bulgaria and other new Member States has been explained in reports in the context of the 
European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination.79 

6.4  Material scope 

Despite the fact that compliance cannot be sought, it is worth mentioning that voluntary 
insurance under the professional schemes of enterprises which are the insurers gives the 
right  to  a  fixed-term  pension,  an  ad  hoc  or  postponed  payment  of  the  accumulated 
amounts  under  the  individual  account,  or  an  ad  hoc  or  postponed  payment  of  the 
accumulated amounts to the successors of a deceased insured person or of a retired person 
(Article 212 SIC). 

79  Renga, S., Molnar-Hidassy, D., Tisheva, G. (2010), Direct and Indirect Gender Discrimination in Old-Age 
Pensions in 33 European Countries, European network of legal experts in the field of gender equality, 
available at: http://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/2810-discrimination-old-age-pensions. 

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6.5  Exclusions 

Not applicable. 

6.6  Laws  and  case  law  falling  under  the  examples  of  sex  discrimination 

mentioned in Article 9 of Directive 2006/54 

There  are  no  relevant  laws  or  case  law  falling  under  these  examples  as  the  schemes  in 
Bulgaria are not of the type provided under EU law and they have not been well developed 
in practice. 

6.7  Actuarial factors 

Sex is not used as an actuarial factor and no exceptions to the principle are acceptable. 

6.8  Difficulties 

The differences and difficulties were explained above so there is no case law relevant to 
occupational social security schemes according to Directive 2006/54.  

6.9  Evaluation of implementation 

The pension system in Bulgaria does not correspond to the EU model, and more specifically, 
the second pillar of the type of occupational social security schemes as they exist in the 
old Member States are not known in our system. The system cannot be changed and will 
develop further in expanding models of occupational schemes, in third and fourth pillars, 
instead.  

6.10  Remaining issues 

There are no remaining issues. 

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7 

Statutory schemes of social security (Directive 79/7) 

7.1  General (legal) context 

7.1.1  Overview of national acts 

The main act is the Social Insurance Code (SIC). 

7.1.2  Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

There are analyses focusing on the problems of women who are retired because of their 
lower  income  and  the  higher  risk  of  poverty.  The  most  interesting  intersection  between 
poverty  and  the  health  status  of  women  has  to  be  explored,  as  there  is  a  total  lack  of 
political sensitivity on the issue, due to the socioeconomic environment itself, which is a 
condition for the reproduction of the problem at a higher scale.80  

As  mentioned  previously,  the  gender  pay  gap  has  an  impact  on  the  pension  gap.  The 
differences  in  pensions  between  the  two  sexes  were  mentioned  above  in  section  4.2  on 
equal pay. Women prevail in the segments of the lower pensions and vice  versa  –  men 
prevail in the higher pensions’ levels and the maximum amount.  

Periods that are most related to women as carers are counted as insured periods for the 
purpose of seniority but are not taken into account for defining the insurance income: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

the periods of leave for pregnancy and maternity, adoption leave from the child’s age 
of two to five years, the paid and unpaid parental leave, unpaid leave from work; 

the periods of counted seniority for non-working mothers;  

the periods when a parent or adoptive parent has taken permanent care of his/her 
disabled child until 16 years of age, and due to that has not worked under labour or 
civil servants’ contracts and was not insured; and 

the  periods  when  a  parent  (adoptive  parent)  of  a  disabled  person  or  one  of  the 
parents  of  the  mentioned  parent  (adoptive  parent)  of  such  a  disabled  person,  or 
spouse have cared for disabled persons who are permanently disabled and need such 
care, and as a result were not insured or had not received a pension. 

7.2  Implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women in 

matters of social security 

Statutory social security has two pillars in Bulgaria – state social security (first Bulgarian 
pillar)  and  the  supplementary  obligatory  funded  pension  (second  Bulgarian  pillar).  The 
latter  tier  is  privately  managed.  In  the  second  Bulgarian  pillar  of  the  statutory  social 
security  scheme,  until  recently,  the  insurance  companies  used  gender-related  actuarial 
factors for the different life expectancy of women and men, as there was no explicit legal 
ban. The companies were allowed to implement such practices, with the sanction of the 
vice-president of the Commission for Financial Supervision.81 This contradicted EU law and 
EU case law on equality in statutory pensions. The Commission for Financial Supervision is 
an independent body for financial supervision, for ensuring stability and transparency of 
the non-banking financial system in Bulgaria. 

80   Spasova, M (2017) ‘Връзката бедност-здравен статус на жените пенсионери в България’ (The 

relationship between poverty and the health status of women pensioners in Bulgaria), Challenging the Law, 
22 January, available at: https://www.challengingthelaw.com/biopravo/bednost-zdraven-status/. 

81   See the website of the Commission for Financial Supervision (Комисия за финансов надзор): 

https://www.fsc.bg/. 

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Article 3 of the Code of Social Insurance (SIC) states that one of the main guiding principles 
of the state/statutory/social security system is equality between insured persons. This was 
fully  valid  only  for  the  first  state  and  statutory  pillar.  After  positive  changes  (amending 
provision promulgated in SG 92/2017), the SIC Article 169(4) prescribes as follows:  

‘It is not permitted to use  sex as an actuarial factor in defining the amount of the 
pension for supplementary old age lifetime pensions’.82  

There are no conditions regarding the affiliation to a scheme or entitlement to statutory 
benefits which are different  for men and women and that directly or  indirectly puts  one 
gender/sex in a disadvantaged position. 

There  is  no  possibility  for  earlier  retirement  for  women  only,  except  the  different 
pensionable age. Women are not obliged to retire earlier if they prefer to continue working. 
In many cases women can continue working after reaching the retirement age and thus 
add to their insurance periods and to the amount of their pension. 

7.3  Personal scope 

The personal scope of state social security is in compliance with the Directive.  

The law differentiates between the benefits of persons insured against all social insurance 
risks, those insured against employment injuries and occupational diseases and persons 
insured  against  disablement  by  general  sickness/common  illness,  old  age  and  death 
(Articles 11-13 SIC). 

As a matter of principle, Article 4(1) SIC provides for the coverage of all risks for workers 
and employees, civil servants, judges and prosecutors, and those working on management 
contracts.  Paragraph  3  regulates  those  people  who  are  insured  for  disablement  due  to 
common illness, old age and death – self-employed people, including agricultural workers. 
These people can also insure themselves for common illness and maternity. 

According  to  Article 127  SIC,  persons  born  after  31  December  1959  are  obliged  to 
contribute to the obligatory supplementary social insurance in a universal pension fund if 
they are insured in the state fund ‘Pensions’ and have not opted for supplementary social 
insurance with increased contribution to the state fund ‘Pensions’.  

According to Article 124 SIC, supplementary obligatory social insurance is realised through 
contributions to a universal pension fund by an individual contract with a pension insurance 
company. Between the end of 2014 and 2018, new provisions were put in place for persons 
born after 31 December 1959 – SIC and additional regulation provide for their possibility 
to choose and switch between the supplementary social insurance in a universal private 
pension fund and the supplementary social insurance through the state insurance in the 
fund ‘Pensions’. Persons already contributing through private companies can discontinue 
their  contract  and  transfer  their  supplementary  insurance  to  the  state  pension  fund.  As 
insecurity  for  the  private  funds  was  publicly  expressed,  and  still  remains,  some  people 
stopped  trusting  these  companies,  despite  any  eventual  benefit  related  to  future  higher 
replacement rate for the insured persons.  

Transfer of the supplementary insurance from the state fund back to the universal privately 
managed pension funds is also possible under certain conditions.  

82   This new provision was implemented in 2018 and will apply to the pensions still to come for people born 

after 1959. 

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7.4  Material scope 

The  material  scope  and  covered  risks  in  Article 2  SIC  are  in  compliance  with  the  EU 
requirements. 
According to Article 2 of the SIC, public social insurance provides benefits, allowances and 
pensions for the following conditions:  

- 
- 
- 
- 
- 
- 
- 

a temporary inability to work;  
a temporarily reduced ability to work;  
disablement;  
maternity;  
unemployment;  
old age; and  
death. 

7.5  Exclusions 

The  main  exclusion  invoked  by  Bulgarian  legislation  is  the  difference  in  the  pensionable 
age of men and women. Currently, according to Article 68 SIC, women acquire the right 
to a social insurance pension upon attaining the age of 60 years and 10 months and men 
at 63 years and 10 months, provided there are insured periods of 35 years and 2 months 
for  women  and  38  years  and  2  months  for  men.  Between  31  December  2016  and 
31 December  2029,  the  pensionable  age  for  women  will  increase  by  two  months  every 
calendar year and from 1 January 2030 by three months per year until the age of 65 is 
reached.  For  men,  the  scheme  is  as  follows:  from  31  December  2016  until 
31 December 2017  the  pensionable  age  for  men  will  increase  by  two  months,  and  from 
1 January 2018 by one month per calendar year until the age of 65 is reached. As for the 
compulsory insurance periods for old-age pension entitlement, from 31 December 2016 it 
will increase by two months for both men and women, until 37 years is reached for women 
and 40 years for men. These provisions entered into force on 1 January 2016. According 
to these calculations, by the beginning of 2023 the pensionable age for women was 62 and 
for men 64 years 6 months. 

The gender difference in the compulsory insurance periods is justified, among other things, 
by  the  risk  for  women  of  longer  periods  of  interruption  of  their  professional  and  career 
development  due  to  their  care  obligations,  and  by  increased  risk  of  long-term 
unemployment compared to men. 

Different pensionable ages for men and women for the moment are justified in Bulgaria, 
due to the impact of hardships of the transition and the heavy burden on a generation of 
working people during this period. The transition period for working people in Bulgaria was 
marked  by  numerous  and  fragmented  changes  in  legislation,  insecure  and  exploitative 
conditions  of  employment  and  also  the  risks  of  informal  work  and  work  without  social 
security  coverage.  This  is  even  more  true  for  women  than  for  men  during  this  period. 
Furthermore,  the  difficulties  led  to  a  worsened  health  status  and  disabilities,  of  women 
especially. This is a burden on working people in Bulgaria who were living in a period of 
transition and this burden is above the average burden in Western countries.  The initial 
increase in the pensionable age for a generation of women since the transition (this age 
used  to  be  55  years)  is  already  very  abrupt  and  equalisation  with  men  at  64-65  years 
would be unbearable. 

7.6  Actuarial factors 

Actuarial factors are not used in the state pension fund. They were explicitly banned from 
the supplementary obligatory social security. Article 169(4) currently reads that: 

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‘It is not permitted to use  sex as an actuarial factor in defining the amount of the 
pension  for  supplementary  old  age  lifetime  pensions’  (Amendment  to  SIC  by 
provisions promulgated in SG 92/2017).  

Prior to the legislative changes introduced at the end of 2017, sex was used as an actuarial 
factor by pension insurance companies under the second Bulgarian pillar. This practice was 
in contradiction to Council Directive 79/7/EEC on the principle of equal treatment of men 
and women in social security. This violation of EU law was reported to the EU Commission 
by  the  Bulgarian  Gender  Research  Foundation  –  an  organisation  dealing  with  gender 
equality issues since 1998 – and became an issue of concern also for the Commission in 
the EU Pilot No. 6013/14/JUST.  

In  addition  to  reporting  the  violation  to  the  Commission,  the  gender  equality  NGO 
supported the claims of a group of Bulgarian women born after December 1959. The latter, 
for three consecutive years before the Supreme Administrative Court, attacked the decision 
by the Commission for Financial Supervision allowing the use of sex as an actuarial factor 
by private insurance companies. The Court rejected all three complaints (the last judgment 
was  No. 11601  of  2  November  2016  under  court  file  No. 2694/2015),  with  the  main 
argument  being  that  there  was  no  issue  of  discrimination  based  on  sex.  The  court 
apparently confused the insurance through the second pillar and the additional obligatory 
insurance  in  private  funds  with  the  third  pillar,  where  insurance  is  voluntary  and  where 
there was explicitly a ban on discrimination based on sex and actuarial factors based on 
sex. 

After receiving the final decisions from the Supreme Administrative Court, the women who 
complained decided, with the support of experts from NGOs, to submit a complaint to the 
European  Court  of  Human  Rights  (ECtHR)  in  Strasbourg.  Unfortunately,  as  mentioned 
above, it was unsuccessful, being rejected at a very initial stage by a blanket letter from 
the Court. The ECtHR does not give explanations in its letters, the justification is based on 
general initial admissibility of the complaint with no further explanation. The letters also 
say that one should not ask for further questions and explanations from the Court. It may 
have  been  seen  by  the  ECtHR  as  not  being  such  a  significant  issue  of  human  rights 
protection. 

Despite the negative outcome from the court cases, amendments to the SIC since 2014 
are a fact – introducing the possibility to choose between supplementary contribution to 
the state pension fund and to the private insurance funds, as well as the ban on the use of 
sex as an actuarial factor. They are the result of the legal pressure by women applicants 
who challenged the court and through EU Pilot 6013/14/JUST brought to the Commission 
by the Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation. 

7.7  Difficulties 

The difficulties for the application and compliance with EU law are rooted in the different 
three-pillar system in Bulgaria. As explained above, the second Bulgarian pillar is part of 
the statutory social security system. Bulgaria does not have professional pension schemes 
of the type recognised as belonging to the second EU pillar.  

Another  difficulty  were  the  existing  inequalities  in  the  second  Bulgarian  pillar  –  the 
supplementary obligatory social insurance for those born after 31 December 1959 and the 
use until the end of 2017 of sex as an actuarial factor. They were formally removed through 
the explicit ban on sex discrimination. 

7.8  Evaluation of implementation 

Currently there is no significant contradiction in the pension schemes with relevant EU anti-
discrimination law.  

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7.9  Remaining issues 

There are no remaining issues. 

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8 

Self-employed  workers  (Directive 2010/41/EU  and  some 
provisions of the Recast Directive) 

relevant 

8.1  Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU 

The  SIC  regulates  the  main  personal  and  material  scope  of  the  social  insurance  of  self-
employed persons. 

The Regulation on social insurance for self-employed persons,83 Bulgarian citizens working 
abroad  and  those  involved  in  maritime  activities  regulates  the  procedural  requirements 
and concrete procedure of social insurance.  

The  transposition  of  the  Directive was  realised  through  amendments  to  the  Protection 
against  Discrimination  Act  (PADA),  namely  amendments  by  Articles  7(1)(19)  and 
Article 37(2) and (3), as well as paragraph 1(1), (2) and (5) of the Additional Provisions 
to the Act. The amendments in Article 7 introduce an additional exception when differential 
treatment  is  not  deemed  discriminatory:  in  cases  of  differential  treatment  when  taking 
measures  aimed  at  initiatives  exclusively  or  mainly  promoting  entrepreneurship  among 
women  in  instances  of  their  underrepresentation  or  to  overcome  and  compensate  for 
disadvantages  in  their  professional  careers.  The  provision  in  Article 37(2)  prohibits 
discrimination based on any of the grounds of Article 4(1) of the Act in the public sector or 
real  economy  sector,  direct  or  indirect,  in  relation  to  conducting  an  economic  activity, 
including the establishment, equipping or expansion of an economic activity or in relation 
to  starting  or  expanding  any  other  form  of  such  activity.  Article 37(3)  prohibits  any 
harassment or sexual harassment within the context of the activities mentioned above. 

It is worth mentioning the already existing Article 26 of the PADA which provides for equal 
conditions for access to a profession or an activity, for opportunities to exercise the activity 
or profession and for development in this sphere. It covers the scope of the equal treatment 
principle enshrined in Article 4(1) of Directive 2010/41/EU: the establishment, equipping 
and  expansion  of  a  business  or  the  launching  or  expansion  of  any  other  form  of  self-
employed activity, despite the different wording of the two provisions. The other provisions 
that were amended in view of compliance with the Directive are those in Article 4 of the 
Social Insurance Code (SIC), which enhance the insurance rights  of persons covered by 
the Directive.  

8.2  Personal scope 

8.2.1  Scope 

The  SIC  regulates  the  main  personal  and  material  scope  of  the  social  insurance  of  self-
employed persons. 

The Regulation on social insurance for self-employed persons, Bulgarian citizens working 
abroad  and  those  involved  in  maritime  activities  regulates  the  procedural  requirements 
and concrete procedure of social insurance.  

Bulgarian law does not contain a legal definition of self-employed persons, only a definition 
of different groups of the self-employed for the purposes of social security law. The SIC 
and  related  regulatory  acts  mention  different  categories  of  such  persons.  For  example, 
Article 4 of the SIC mentions the following categories: persons registered for performing 
freelance activities and crafts; persons exercising commercial activities, single owners of 
companies, owners or associates in trading companies; registered agricultural and tobacco 
producers;  and  the  spouses  of  the  categories  of  persons  mentioned  above  when  they 
participate in their activities with their consent. The Regulation on social insurance for self-

83   Available in Bulgarian at https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/-549442559, in force since 1 January 2000. 

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employed  persons,84  Bulgarian  citizens  working  abroad  and  those  involved  in  maritime 
activities,  further  specifies  the  group  of  freelancers  and  can  non-exhaustively  comprise 
those performing the following types of activities: based on preliminary registration, legally 
required notaries public, attorneys-at-law (barristers and solicitors), accountants, licensed 
evaluators,  experts in the courts and the prosecutor’s office, medical  experts, insurance 
agents;  activities  for  which  they  are  obliged  to  pay  patent  tax,  without  being  single 
company owners; when the professional activity is conducted at their own risk and on their 
own  account;  scientists;  experts  in  the  field  of  culture  and  education;  architects; 
economists; journalists; and other persons performing a freelance activity, when they are 
duly registered. 

The author points out that these provisions of the Regulation already existed before the 
adoption of the new Directive and this regulatory act was not amended for the purpose of 
harmonisation.  In  terms  of  rights  as  self-employed  persons,  all  categories  are  treated 
equally, including freelancers, agricultural producers, small business operators and others. 

8.2.2  Definitions 

Bulgarian law does not contain a legal definition of self-employed persons. 

8.2.3  Categorisation and coverage  

As  mentioned  above,  self-employed  workers  are  included  in  this  category,  as  well  as 
agricultural workers.  

8.2.4  Recognition of life partners 

The status of life partners is not explicitly regulated in this sphere or in any other sphere. 
In  terms  of  social  security,  the  SIC  only  mentions  contributing  spouses  as  subjects  of 
insurance rights. 

8.3  Material scope 

8.3.1  Implementation of Article 4 of Directive 2010/41/EU 

No specific information is available. 

8.3.2  Material scope 

Article 4 has been correctly transposed in Bulgarian legislation, firstly through the existing 
provision  in  Article 26  of  the  PADA  which  provides  for  equal  conditions  for  access  to  a 
profession  or  an  activity,  for  opportunities  to  exercise  the  activity  or  profession  and  for 
development in this sphere. In addition, the equal treatment principle is ensured through 
the new provision in Article 37(2) PADA, which prohibits any discrimination based on one 
of the grounds of Article 4(1) of the PADA in the public or real economy sector, direct or 
indirect,  in  relation  to  conducting  an  economic  activity,  including  the  establishment, 
equipping or expansion of an economic activity or to the undertaking or expansion of any 
other form of such activity. 

The  author  notes  that  the  provision  in  Article 26  is  broader  and  also  covers  the 
requirements of Article 14(1)(a) of Directive 2006/54/EC. 

84   Regulation on social insurance for self-employed persons (Наредба за общественото осигуряване на 

самоосигуряващите се лица, българските граждани на работа в чужбина и морските лица) promulgated 
in S.G. 21/ 2000, in force since 1 January 2000, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/-
549442559. 

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8.4  Positive action 

As  mentioned  above,  the  amendment  in  Article 7(1)(19)  PADA  introduces  additional 
positive  action  aimed  at  initiatives  exclusively  or  mainly  promoting  entrepreneurship 
among women in cases of their underrepresentation or to overcome and compensate for 
disadvantages in their professional careers. 

No specific real positive action in the implementation of this provision has been taken. 

8.5  Social protection 

According to Article 4(3) of the SIC, the coverage for disability due to general illness, for 
old  age  and  death  is  mandatory  for  the  following  categories  of  persons:  1.  persons 
registered as freelancers or craftspeople; 2. persons exercising trading activities, company 
owners,  and  associates  in  a  trading  company;  3.  registered  agricultural  and  tobacco 
producers. These persons can insure themselves voluntarily for the risks of general illness 
and maternity. 

Article 4(9)  of  the  SIC,  amended  in  view  of  harmonisation  with  Directive 2010/41/EU, 
regulates voluntary insurance for spouses of the self-employed persons mentioned above. 
As a matter of principle, the spouses of the persons mentioned in points 1 and 4 (persons 
registered  as  freelancers  or  craftspeople;  and  registered  agricultural  and  tobacco 
producers), when with their consent they participate in the activities of these persons, can 
be registered voluntarily for disability due to general illness, old age and death, as well as 
for general illness and maternity, if they are not already insured on other grounds. 

The  insurance  contributions  for  the  spouses  of  the  persons  mentioned  in  point  1  of 
Article 4(3)  of  the  SIC  are  based  on  the  minimum  insurance  income  for  self-employed 
persons, defined by the Law on the Budget of the State Social Security Scheme, and the 
contributions for the spouses of registered agricultural and tobacco producers are based 
on the minimum insurance income for agricultural producers, defined explicitly in the same 
Law. 

The  specific  procedure  for  the  insurance  of  self-employed  persons  is  regulated  by  the 
Regulation  on  social  insurance  for  self-employed  persons,  Bulgarian  citizens  working 
abroad and those involved in maritime activities. 

Voluntary social security pension schemes exist according to the SIC (Part III of the Code) 
and they are open to everyone who is in a position to pay the contributions. The insurance 
with  companies  and  funds  for  supplementary  voluntary  insurance  is  individual.  This 
insurance gives the right to an individual pension for age or disability, a survivor’s pension, 
etc. 

8.6  Maternity benefits 

The protection of pregnancy and maternity regarding self-employed persons and assisting 
spouses/life partners is in compliance with the requirements of the Directive both in terms 
of  opportunities  and  minimum  coverage.  In  fact,  the  self-employed  women  in  these 
categories who are insured for general illness and maternity, according to the conditions 
mentioned  above,  have  the  right  to  maternity  benefits  which  amount  to  90 %  of  their 
average  gross  remuneration.  The  condition  for  the  self-employed  is  to  have  paid 
contributions  for  these  risks  for  at  least  24  months  preceding  the  month  when  the 
temporary inability to work occurs. 

No  system  of  services  supplying  temporary  replacements  or  existing  national  social 
services is available either for the self-employed or their contributing partners. 

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8.7  Occupational social security 

8.7.1  Implementation of provisions regarding occupational social security 

Although  an  occupational  social  security  scheme  is  part  of  another  pillar  according  to 
Bulgarian law, different from the second pillar referred to in the Recast Directive, voluntary 
social security pension schemes exist according to the SIC (Part III of the Code) and they 
are  open  to  everyone  who  is  in  a  position  to  pay  the  contributions.  The  insurance  with 
companies and funds for supplementary voluntary insurance is individual. This insurance 
gives the right to an individual pension for age or disability, a survivor’s pension, etc. 

The  insurance  in  the  private  companies  for  supplementary  voluntary  insurance  is  not  of 
the type of occupational social security as regulated by the Recast Directive. Each physical 
person  from  the  age  of  16  can  insure  himself/herself  in  a  private  fund  or  be  insured 
voluntarily through an enterprise. This right is individual, and contributions to the fund are 
fixed and on fixed terms. 

This is used as a means to increase the pension income and the replacement rate, which 
is far from the dream of having a replacement rate of 70-80 %. For individuals it is still an 
onerous  task  to  contribute  to  a  fund  in  addition  to  paying  the  high  contributions  to  the 
statutory pension scheme. Even when it is practised as a voluntary pension scheme, higher 
levels  of  payments  are  necessary  in  order  to  be  reflected  as  an  increase  in  the  pension 
income, which is very low in Bulgaria. 

Therefore, especially for women, although there is a possibility to join a scheme based on 
contributions and the investment capital and income of pension funds, it is unlikely to be 
affordable  for  the  average  person  in  employment.  In  addition,  there  is  not  yet  enough 
confidence in the management capacity and transparency of private pension funds. 

8.7.2  Application  of  exceptions  for  self-employed  persons  regarding  matters  of 

occupational social security (Article 11 of Recast Directive 2006/54) 

As  the  schemes  are  a  different  type  from  those  regulated  in  the  Directive,  no  such 
exceptions  from  the  principle  of  equality  are  regulated  and  practised.  According  to 
Article 231(1)  of  the  SIC,  access  to  the  supplementary  pension  insurance  schemes  is 
universally  ensured,  as  discrimination  based  on  a  broad  range  of  grounds  is  prohibited, 
including discrimination based on sex. Paragraph 2 explicitly prohibits discrimination based 
on  sex,  both  direct  and  indirect,  and  discrimination  based  on  family  status,  in  all  the 
contexts of insurance through a professional scheme, and namely: 

- 
- 
- 

in the field of application and the requirements for access; 
in the obligation for contribution and calculation of the contributions; and 
calculation of the pension payments, including the increases due to spouses and to 
persons who have a right to maintenance. 

8.8  Prohibition of discrimination 

The general provision of the SIC on equality of insured persons is valid – Article 3 of SIC. 

8.9  Evaluation of implementation 

There are no issues of unequal treatment in law and no serious issues reported in practice. 
Implementation,  of  course,  is  always  an  issue,  and  especially  the  rights  and  insurance 
coverage of contributing spouses, where women prevail. 

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8.10  Remaining issues 

The self-employed, and specifically self-employed women and gender equality in this field 
were  not  a  focus  of  the  Government  measures  during  the  pandemic.  These  professions 
were  affected  by  the  economic  crisis  as  well  but  were  not  addressed,  except  for  the 
possibility  to  receive  bank  loans  for  a  period  without  bank  interest,  under  the  condition 
that  they  present  evidence  of  a  decrease  in  their  income  of  20 %  compared  to  similar 
periods in the previous year (2019). The fact that these groups of employed persons were 
not addressed was criticised as one of the gaps in the anti-COVID-19 measures.  

Loans were also available to the self-employed who had to close their business, with the 
intention of reopening, based on declarations for interruption of business made before the 
relevant authority (the National Income Agency).  

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9 

Goods and services (Directive 2004/113)85 

9.1  General (legal) context 

9.1.1  Specific  problems  of  discrimination 

in 

the  online  environment/digital 

market/collaborative economy 

There are no specific problems of discrimination based on sex identified in this context. 

9.1.2  Political and societal debate 

There are no such substantial debates. 

9.2  Prohibition of direct and indirect discrimination 

Article 37 of the PADA prohibits any refusal to supply goods or services and to supply lower 
quality goods or services, or their supply under less favourable conditions, based on the 
discrimination grounds defined in the law.  

9.3  Material scope 

The  material  scope  of  the  national  law  is  broader  than  that  specified  in  Article 3  of  the 
Directive.  No  sphere  is  explicitly  excluded  so  the  law  also  applies  to  the  content  of  the 
media  and  advertising,  and  to  education.  Article 35  PADA  requires  the  application  of 
methods  aimed  at  the  elimination  of  gender  stereotyping  in  education  and  training. 
Educational institutions are obliged to include gender equality education. 

The  case  law  of  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  has  explicitly 
confirmed the application of the equal treatment principle in the media and advertising.  

Nevertheless, some extreme cases of sexist advertisements brought before this equality 
body were not properly dealt with by the institution. The outcomes were as follows: either 
the equality body referred the case to another institution (e.g. the Council for Electronic 
Media), or it suggested that the cases are rather for the self-regulatory body on advertising 
(established  by  businesses  in  2010).  Thus  the  institution  dealing  with  discrimination 
refused  to  examine  the  cases  through  a  discrimination  lens.  The  only  case  where  the 
equality body issued a decision was the case against Peshtera anisette where the outcome 
was negative for the women complainants.86 The arguments that it was more of a moral 
issue and that no discrimination was proved was upheld until the court of last instance  – 
the panel of five judges of the Supreme Administrative Court.87 

In September 2008, 13 women brought a complaint of sex discrimination against a series 
of  advertisements  for  the  Peshtera  anise  aperitif,  together  with  the  producer,  the  joint 
stock company Vinprom Peshtera. They were entitled ‘Passion in Crystals’ and ‘The Season 
of Watermelons’ and were notorious for their television, print media and billboard versions. 
The advertisements displayed the ‘chalga’ (a Bulgarian music genre often referred to as 
pop-folk) singer Galena wearing a skimpy bathing suit patterned with watermelon motifs 
over her breasts. The advertisements are aimed at encouraging men to drink anise aperitif 
with watermelon. The woman and her body are directly connected with easy access and 
pleasure gained from alcohol, summer and a slice of watermelon.  

85   See e.g. Caracciolo di Torella, E. (2021), Directive 2004/113EC on Gender equality in goods and services – 
In search of the potential of a forgotten Directive, European network of legal experts in gender equality and 
non-discrimination, available at: https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/5614-directive-2004-113-ec-on-
gender-equality-in-goods-and-services-in-search-of-the-potential-of-a-forgotten-directive-1-38-mb. 

86   Judgment No. 201 from 15 September 2010 on case file 217/2008. 
87   Judgment No. 3616 from 13 March 2012 on case file 12183/2011. 

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This case was brought before the Commission for Protection against Discrimination (CPD) 
against  the  producer,  the  advertising  agency,  the  media  and  all  connected  with  the 
dissemination  of  the  advertisement.  The  case  was  supported  by  the  Bulgarian  Gender 
Research Foundation. The procedure for adjourning the first hearing was unusually lengthy 
and  contradictory  and  it  took  10  months  for  the  CPD  to  start  considering  the  case.  The 
complainants  were  not  provided  with  timely  information  by  the  CPD  and  some  of  them 
were even unofficially advised to abandon this impossible cause and to drop the case. No 
support was provided to the women despite the explicit provision for this in the law.88 The 
complainants  were  obliged  –  by  the  members  of  the  panel  of  the  CPD,  ex  officio,  and 
without  any  request  from  the  respondents  –  to  explain  repeatedly  and  one  by  one  how 
they felt when they saw these adverts and why they felt discriminated against. Despite the 
explicit message in the adverts, the explanations by the women and four detailed experts’ 
opinions, most of them in favour of the claim, at the end of 2010 the CPD found that no 
evidence of prima facie discrimination was available, and subsequently there was no sex 
discrimination in this case. It should be noted that one of the expert opinions solicited by 
the CPD was from a sexologist, as if there was something wrong with the perceptions and 
sexual lives of the women who complained. This decision,  subsequently appealed by the 
women,  was  confirmed  by  the  Supreme  Administrative  Court  with  a  decision  in  June 
2011.89 The Court confirmed the decision of the CPD and added that there was no empirical 
evidence  that  the  adverts  affected  the  majority  of  women  in  Bulgaria  and  that  the  13 
women cannot be representative of women in Bulgaria. It implied that they were possibly 
too sensitive to the adverts. The court said that the reference to international instruments, 
and namely to CEDAW, was not relevant for the court, as only the Government and not 
the judiciary was bound by the international human rights instruments. It can  be noted 
that in this case, the court refused to take into account not only international norms but 
any norms regulating discrimination and human rights, by saying that it is a problem which 
lies outside the scope of the law, a moral problem, raised through a subjective opinion. 

Upon appeal, a final judgment on this case was issued by the special panel of the Supreme 
Administrative Court on 13 March 2012. It held that prima facie sex discrimination could 
not  be  proved.  As  to  the  gender  stereotypes,  the  Court  refused  to  deal  with  them  as  a 
source of such discrimination with the ‘historic’ argument:  

‘… It has been a just and lawful assumption by the Commission that these are issues 
from the area of aesthetics, ethics, psychology and social science, and namely of a 
type  of  sub-culture,  which  issues  have  a  philosophical  dimension,  which  are 
characteristic of the state of society at the given historical moment and cannot, and 
could not, be solved within the limited factual frame of a concrete legal case.’ 

It is important to note at this stage that experts and women’s NGOs are convinced that 
the decisions of the equality body and, respectively, the court, which are in fact in favour 
of the corporate sector, are also due to the fact that the media and advertising sectors are 
excluded from the scope of the Directive. So, no obligations and sanctions derive from the 
Directive for  the  Government  and  private  actors  in  this  sphere.  This  situation  has  been 
particularly  harmful  for  Bulgarian  women  as  gender  stereotypes  and  the  role  of  women 
primarily as sex objects were broadly reinforced and disseminated on a very large scale. 90 

This first case on sex discrimination in advertising, although unsuccessful, influenced the 
further  practice  of  the  equality  body  concerning  its  arguments  and  the  CPD  also  took 
positive decisions condemning discrimination not in advertisements but in relation to the 

88   According to Article 47 paragraph 9 of the PADAt, the Commission provides independent support to victims 

of discrimination in the process of filing complaints against discrimination.  

89   Judgment No. 12450/2010. 
90   Important research in this field is the following study: Gender Stereotyping – a pervasive and overlooked 

source of Discrimination against Women in Bulgaria (2012), Special Alternative Report to the 4th, 5th, 6th 
and 7th governmental report for the 52nd session of CEDAW Committee, 9-27 July. Available at: 
http://eige.europa.eu/rdc/library/resource/aleph_eige000005979 and also at: 
https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/cedaw/docs/ngos/BGRF_for_the_session_en.pdf. 

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content of the media. For example, at the end of 2014, the CPD issued a decision against 
a journalist for a sexist expression in an internet article.91 

Given  that  condemning  an  individual  journalist  is  much  easier  for  the  CPD,  the  author 
believes  that  the  reactions  of  the  equality  body  are  not  balanced  as  it  would  not  have 
applied the same standard to a corporate actor whose discriminatory acts are detrimental 
to citizens. 

9.4  Exceptions 

There  is  no  exception  to  the  areas  where  equality  in  the  field  of  goods  and  services  is 
applied. 

9.5  Justification of differences in treatment  

Since  the  end  of  2007,  Article 7(1)(18)  of  the  PADA  allows  differential  treatment  in  the 
provision of goods and services in accordance with EU law – when the provision of goods 
and services exclusively or primarily to members of one sex is justified by a legitimate aim 
and the means of achieving that aim are appropriate and necessary.  

9.6  Actuarial factors 

Article 246(3)  of  the  SIC  ensures  that  sex  will  not  be  used  as  an  actuarial  factor  in  the 
calculation  of  pension  benefits  in  the  third  pillar,  the  supplementary  voluntary  social 
insurance scheme. 

9.7  Interpretation of exception contained in Article 5(2) of Directive 2004/113 

The Test-Achats ruling resulted in amendments related to the use of sex as an actuarial 
factor  in  the  field  of  insurance  and  in  the  area  of  supplementary  voluntary  pension 
insurance. The provisions of the two codes were changed, respectively the Insurance Code 
(Article 65a) and the Social Insurance Code (Article 246(3)). The use of sex as an actuarial 
factor was prohibited for all  contracts  concluded after 20 December 2012. For  contracts 
concluded up to 20 December 2012, the insurers may continue to include such factors if 
they use reliable and regularly updated statistical information, which is publicly available, 
and from which the determining importance of gender is obvious. 

9.8  Positive action measures (Article 6 of Directive 2004/113) 

No general specific positive action measures are provided in the field but Article 7(1)(18) 
of the PADA allows differential treatment of persons based on sex in the provision of goods 
and services aimed exclusively at one of the sexes, provided that it has a legitimate aim 
and the means are appropriate and necessary.  

9.9  Specific problems related to pregnancy, maternity or parenthood 

There are no specific problems related to pregnancy, motherhood and parenthood. 

9.10  Evaluation of implementation 

There are no issues of inequality in the law. It is necessary to ensure implementation, as 
in Bulgaria, the field covered by non-discrimination in goods and services is broader than 
the minimum EU standards. 

91   Judgment of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination of 18 December 2014, available in 

Bulgarian at:http://www.kzd-nondiscrimination.com/layout/index.php. 

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9.11  Remaining issues 

There are no remaining issues. 

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10  Violence  against  women  and  domestic  violence  in  relation  to  the  Istanbul 

Convention92 

10.1  General (legal) context 

10.1.1 Surveys and reports on issues of violence against women and domestic violence 

Bulgarian  society  has  a  deeply  rooted  notion  of  gender  difference  and  there  are  still 
traditional gender roles without a real sense of gender inequality. Bulgarian society as a 
whole still denies the existence of a power imbalance between men and women as well as 
the  prevalence  of  violence  and  abuse.  Many  women  are  silenced  by  social  and  cultural 
norms and endure violence and cruelty in their homes. 

At  least  132  women  are  said  to  have  lost  their  lives  between  2018  and  June  2023, 
according to associations working on protecting women’s rights. This number includes 26 
women  in  2022  and  13  between  January  and  July  2023.  One  death  is  recorded  every 
fortnight. 

In 2018, out of 138 intentional murders in Bulgaria, according to official data of the Ministry 
of Interior, over 40 were the murders of women in an intimate and close relationship. 93 In 
total, 79 intentional murders were registered in Bulgaria in 2016,  with about 28 % of all 
intentional  killings  in  the  country  constituting  murders  of  women  by  their  relatives.  In 
2017,  women  killed  in  domestic  violence  accounted  for  about  30 %  of  all  victims  of 
intentional murder in the country. 

Important information and guidance are available on the website of the Bulgarian Helsinki 
Committee, including on murders of women as a result of domestic violence.94 

Although it is difficult to quantify this phenomenon, NGOs working on this issue estimate 
that this physical violence, which can even result in the victim's death, has affected several 
thousand women in recent years. Between 2017 and 2021, there were 141 convictions for 
femicide and attempted femicide.95 

This all happened and was endured in the context of fierce opposition in political, religious 
and  media  circles  to  the  issue  of  violence  against  women  and  to  the  ratification  of  the 
Istanbul  Convention.  The  term  ‘gender’  and  related  notions  of  ‘gender  equality’  and 
‘gender-based  violence’  were  rejected,  distorted  and  debased  by  these  political  and 
ideological circles. Leading social scientists and women’s rights experts link the increased 
number of murdered women and the failed ratification of the Istanbul Convention – it is an 
issue of a culture condoning violence against women and impunity for such acts of violence.  
There is no official and regular data on the issue of GBV is Bulgaria. 

Also, in the view of the author of this report, there is a severe lack of adequate support 
services for victims, and especially of sufficient coverage by specialised support services. 
Bulgaria  does  not  fulfil  terms  of  the  Council  of  Europe  recommendation  on  safe 

92   See for more information: Nousiainen, K. and Chinkin, C. (2015), Legal implications of EU accession to the 

Istanbul Convention, European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination, available 
at: https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/3794-legal-implications-of-eu-accession-to-the-istanbul-
convention; and De Vido, S., Sosa, L. (2021) Criminalisation of gender-based violence against women in 
European States, including ICT-facilitated violence, European Commission, available at: 
https://www.equalitylaw.eu/downloads/5535-criminalisation-of-gender-based-violence-against-women-in-
european-states-including-ict-facilitated-violence-1-97-mb. 

93   Novinite (2019), ‘Dramatic increase in murders of women through domestic violence in Bulgaria’, 

Novinite.com, 5 February 2019, available at: 
https://www.novinite.com/articles/194972/Dramatic+Increase+in+Murders+of+Women+in+Domestic+Viol
ence+in+Bulgaria. 

94   See: http://spasena.org/. 
95   See Elmi, J. (2021) ‘#NotOneMore: it’s time for an in-depth conversation on domestic violence’, Toest, 27 

November 2021. #NitoEdnaPovetche: Vreme e za zadalbotchen razgovor za domaschoto nasilie”. 

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accommodation  in  specialised  women’s  shelters.  Moreover,  the  absence  of  specific 
provisions  criminalising  domestic  violence  and  marital  rape,  led  to  continuous  calls  for 
reforms in the legal framework to ensure the protection of victims of such violence. 

All the forms of GBV, addressed by the Istanbul Convention, are known in Bulgaria and are 
encountered  often  –  domestic  violence/  physical,  sexual,  psychological,  financial  or 
economic violence, sexual violence, sexual harassment, early and child marriages, stalking, 
etc. The work of NGOs identify the main groups of more vulnerable women and girls as 
Roma  women and girls, women and girls with  disabilities, and women and girls seeking 
international  protection.  The  main  groups  of  victims  of  multiple  discrimination  were 
identified through the work of the Alliance for Protection from GBV.96 

The  2016  National  Study  on  Domestic  and  Gender-Based  Violence  was  conducted  and 
published  with  the  support  of  Partners  Bulgaria  Foundation,  Centre  for  the  Study  of 
Democracy and Human Rights Academy, Norway: National Study on Domestic and Gender-
Based Violence (DGBV) and Elaboration of Victims Support Model (VSM).97  

The results and findings from this study confirm the trends mentioned above, such as: 

- 
- 
- 

- 

- 

low levels of awareness and willingness to share GBV; 
reported prevalence is significantly lower than the real occurrence of GBV;  
women are still more vulnerable in terms of multiple, repetitive and systematic GBV, 
and Roma women and girls are more vulnerable than the general population; 
prevention  measures  are  still  occasional  and  dependent  on  the  good  will  and 
resources  available  to  specific  actors,  awareness  of  GBV  victimisation  and 
perpetration is very low; and 
inter-institutional cooperation lacks well-established and enforced rules, distribution 
of obligations and mechanisms of communication; its level in different regions of the 
country varies. 

The EIGE Gender Equality Index 2017 shows that Bulgaria ranks first in the EU in intensity 
by cumulation of factors for different forms of violence against women and is last among 
all countries according to the indicator of effectiveness of the response of state institutions, 
which is also an indication of the exacerbation of the situation in the country. According to 
Eurobarometer  for  the  same  period,  Bulgaria  occupies  the  ‘leading’  position  in  the  EU 
concerning gender stereotyping and sexism.98 

According  to  a  survey  conducted  in  2021  by  the  National  Statistics  Institute  (INS)  on  a 
panel  of  5 580  women,  36.3 %  of  women  aged  between  18  and  29  have  experienced 
violence at the hands of their previous or current partner during their adult life, compared 
with ‘only’ 12 % of women aged between 18 and 74.99 Although it is difficult to quantify 
this phenomenon, NGOs working on this issue estimate that this physical violence, which 
can even result in the victim's death, has affected several thousand women in recent years.  

96   The NGO is a registered network of 11 NGOs all working in the field of GBV in Bulgaria. 
97   Policy Brief, 2016, available in English at: 

https://csd.bg/fileadmin/user_upload/publications_library/files/23111.pdf and Domestic and Gender-Based 
Violence: Victims Support Model (Practical advice for victims and guidelines for work of professionals in the 
area of domestic and gender-based violence), 2016, available in English at: 
https://csd.bg/fileadmin/user_upload/publications_library/files/23115.pdf. 

98   Leviev-Sawyer, C. (2017), ‘Bulgaria, EU sexism champion: 81% say a woman’s most important job is taking 

care of home and family’ The Sofia Globe, 21 November 2017, available at: 
https://sofiaglobe.com/2017/11/21/bulgaria-eu-sexism-champion-81-say-a-womans-most-important-job-
is-taking-care-of-home-and-family/. See also: https://www.da-
ra.de/dara/study/web_show?v=1&offset=&max=&res_id=773078&lang=&mdlang=en&detail=true&q=&wid
get=&widgetclient=. 

99   National Institute of Statistics (2021) Survey on Gender- based violence, Izsledvane na nasilieto, osnovano 

na pol (Investigating gender-based violence) EU-GBV, Sofia, 2021, pp. 1-3. 

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There  have  been  no  other  prevalent  qualitative  data  and  quantitative  research  data  on 
violence against women in Bulgaria. Data collection on issues of violence against women, 
including regular research and monitoring and also risk assessment, are still problematic 
in Bulgaria. There are no special studies on programmes for perpetrators of violence. 

The role of prevention emerges as one of the main recommendations for remedying the 
situation,  as  well  as  the  increased  role  of  and  support  for  NGOs,  including  through 
specialised  services  for  women  victims  of  domestic  violence  and  other  forms  of  gender-
based violence, whose effective work and promising practices in the field are an asset and 
bring  hope.  Despite  the  unfortunate  process  and  outcome  (up  to  now)  around  the 
ratification of Istanbul Convention, at the end of 2018 and with the support of women’s 
NGOs,  the  Government  and  Parliament  initiated  amendments  to  the  Criminal  Code, 
providing for increased and strengthened penal protection from domestic violence – with 
qualifying and aggravating circumstances and increased penalties. The amendments that 
were adopted in 2019 are commented in detail in section 10.1.2 below. 

10.1.2 Overview of national acts on violence against women, domestic violence and issues 

related to the Istanbul Convention 

The main national acts regulating these issues are the Criminal Code;100 and the Law on 
Protection from Domestic Violence – (LPDV, adopted in 2005)101 as amended in 2023 (see 
below for further information).  

Other relevant legislation and rulings are: 

- 

- 

the  Regulation  on  the  implementation  of  the  Law  on  Protection  from  Domestic 
Violence102 from 2010, in process of review and amendment since the beginning of 
2024; and 

the  Ruling  of  the  Constitutional  Court  No. 13/2018 under  Constitutional  file 
No. 3/2018103 is promulgated in SG No. 65/07.08.2018. 

Important changes in legislation were implemented at the beginning of 2019 and entered 
into force in the Criminal Code from 25 February 2019.104 They are related to the following 
issues:  enhanced  penalties  for  homicide,  bodily  harm,  kidnapping,  illegal  constraint, 
compulsion, threat or stalking (systematic stalking and including stalking committed in the 
context of domestic violence), as well as other forms of violence against women, such as 
forced marriage. These changes widened the scope of the protection by means of criminal 
law  and  increased  the  punishment  for  coercion  to  marriage  and  cohabitation.  The 
procedure  in  case  of  domestic  violence  is  either  initiated  by  the  prosecutor  and  publicly 
prosecuted, or is of private-public nature in some instances –  a mixed procedure where 
the  complaint  is  initiated  by  the  victim  but  cannot  be  discontinued  by  her;  there  is 
protection for the victims in cases where the aggressor is released from detention or prison, 
etc.  

Amendments  and  addenda  to  other  laws,  such  as  the  Criminal  Procedure  Code,  were 
implemented through the Law on amendments to the Criminal Code, in order to guarantee 
the  right  of  a  victim  with  specific  needs  of  protection  to  be  informed  about  decisions 

100  Criminal Code (Наказателен кодекс), promulgated in SG 26/68, in force since 1 May 1968, amended, 
among others, by SG 67/2023, available in Bulgarian at: https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1589654529.  

101  Law on Protection from Domestic Violence (Закон за защита от домашното насилие – ЗЗДН ), promulgated 

in SG 27/2005, in force since 1 April 2005, last amended by SC 66/ 2023 and 69/ 2023, available in 
Bulgarian at: http://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135501151. 

102  Regulation on the implementation of the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence (Правилник за 

прилагане на ЗЗДН), promulgated in SG 45/2010, in force since 15 June 2010, available in Bulgarian at: 
https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/2135684122. 

103  Provisions promulgated in SG No. 65/07.08.2018. 
104  Provisions promulgated in SG No. 16/2019. 

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regarding the perpetrator on any ground: decisions to impose and modify detention orders, 
arrest or release from prison.  

According to the amended definition in the Criminal Code, a crime is considered to have 
been committed in conditions of domestic violence  

‘if  it  is  committed  through  exercising  physical,  sexual  or  psychological  violence, 
placing  the  person  in  economic  dependence,  coercive  restriction  of  personal  life, 
personal  liberty  and  personal  rights,  and  is  enforced  against  [a  parent  or  child,]  a 
spouse or ex-spouse, a person with whom one shares a child, a person with whom 
one is or has been in a de facto marital cohabitation, or a person with whom one lives 
or has lived in a common household.’105  

Previously, before the amendments to the Criminal Code from August 2023, there was a 
requirement  for  these  acts  of  violence  to  be  ‘systematic’,  which  required  three  prior 
instances of violence documented and inflicted by the same perpetrator in order for a public 
prosecution, or ex officio prosecution, to be opened against the abuser. 

With the amendments to the Criminal Code from 2023, the ground of sexual orientation 
was added as a protected ground in severe cases of hate speech. Sexual orientation as a 
motivation  of  the  perpetrators  was  introduced  as  a  qualifying  and  aggravating 
circumstance  in  criminal  provisions  related  to  the  crimes  of  murder,  bodily  injury  and 
stalking, which justifies more severe punishments. 

In the sphere of protection by civil law, as of 2019, a draft law for amendments to the Law 
on Protection from Domestic Violence has been in preparation by a working group in the 
Ministry  of  Justice,  upon  the  initiative  and  with  the  participation  of  NGOs,  such  as  the 
Alliance for Protection from gender-based violence, and representatives of governmental 
institutions.  The  draft  was  not  presented  for  public  discussion  and  consideration  by  the 
Council of Ministers until December 2020. In 2022 the  Government (in place in only the 
first  half  of  the  year)  updated  the  draft  law  and  introduced  it  to  the  Parliament.  Due  to 
political  instability,  the  draft  was  not  adopted  until  the  end  of  2022.  The  49th  National 
Assembly restarted the process upon the introduction of several draft laws on this issue, 
including a draft of the majority in the Parliament. As a result of this political process, the 
draft  for  amendments  to  the  Law  on  Protection  from  Domestic  Violence  (LPDV),  based 
mainly on the existing drafts developed since 2019, was adopted in August 2023. 

The majority of the amendments were promulgated in SG 66 from 2023 and entered into 
force  from  January  2024.  A  special  addendum  was  introduced  by  SG  69/2023  to  add 
intimate relationships to the scope of protection against domestic violence. 

The  changes  in  the  law  are  extensive  and  comprise  all  existing  provisions  and  the 
introduction of new ones. Only Articles 20, 26 and 27 of the LPDV out of 27 articles in total 
were not amended. 

Among the major changes are: 

- 

- 

‘emotional’ violence is no longer explicitly mentioned; 

the concept of ‘intimacy’ and intimate relationship is introduced: 

‘Domestic violence is any act of physical, sexual, mental or economic violence, 
as  well  as  the  attempt  at  such  violence,  the  forced  limitation  of  private  life, 
personal freedom and personal rights committed against persons who are in a 

105  Criminal Code (Наказателен кодекс), promulgated in SG 26/68, in force since 1 May 1968, Article 93(31), 

available in Bulgarian at: Bulgarian text is available at https://www.lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1589654529. 

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related relationship, who are or have been in a family relationship or in a de 
facto cohabitation or in an intimate relationship.’ 

According to Additional provision Article 1, item 6: 

‘“Intimacy”  is  a  set  of  voluntary  and  lasting  personal,  intimate  and  sexual 
relationships between two individuals - male and female, regardless of whether 
they  share  a  household  and  whose  origin,  content  and  termination  are  not 
subject to legal regulation by another law. Lasting within the meaning of the 
preceding sentence are relationships lasting at least 60 days.’ 

Article 4  paragraph  2  –    at  the  request  of  the  injured  person,  state  and  municipal 
authorities,  medical  institutions  and  legal  persons  carrying  out  activities  on 
prevention  and  protection  against  domestic  violence  are  obliged  to  forward  to  the 
relevant district court within 24 hours the application for initiation of proceedings for 
issuing a protection order; 

Article 5 item 4 – prohibiting the offender from making contact with the victim in any 
form, including by telephone, by  electronic or  ordinary mail and fax,  as well as by 
any  other  means  and  systems  of  communication  under  conditions  and  time  limits 
determined by the court; 

To the Council of Ministers – the creation of the National Council for Prevention and 
Protection  from  Domestic  Violence,  a  specialised,  permanent  collective  and 
consultative  body  for  the  implementation  of  the  state  policy  on  prevention  and 
protection from domestic violence through coordination, monitoring and evaluation 
of the policies and measures for prevention and protection. The Council is chaired by 
a  Vice-Prime  Minister  and  is  composed  of  representatives  of  different  ministries, 
representatives  of  NGOs,  experts,  etc.  The  activity  is  regulated  by  special  rules  of 
procedure; 

The competencies of the Council are: coordination, monitoring; development of the 
Coordination  Mechanism  and  the  National  Programme;  establish  a  national 
information system and a national register; prepares statistics, trainings, opinions, 
draft bills, monitoring and evaluation, funding, methodological guidelines; 

training 

The Council has a three-year programme for prevention and protection from domestic 
violence  which  provides  activities  and  respective  budget  for:  training  for 
professionals, 
and 
implementation  of  information  campaigns,  seminars  and  conferences,  specialised 
services for the provision of protection, assistance and support to victims of domestic 
violence  or  at  risk,  including  children  victims  and  witnesses  of  violence,  national 
telephone helpline, counselling centres, safe houses, and specialised programmes for 
perpetrators.  

establishments,  preparation 

educational 

in 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

10.1.3 National provisions on online violence including online harassment 

There are no specific national provisions on online violence yet. Protection can be obtained 
through civil and penal protection according to the law and the type of violence suffered. 

10.1.4 Political and societal debate 

It is worth mentioning the case of Débora, an 18-year-old Bulgarian woman whose case of 
violence, associated with domestic abuse triggered nationwide protests and acceleration of 
legal  reform  in  the  period  July-August  2023.  Débora  Mihailova,  from  the  city  of  Stara 
Zagora, was hospitalised in June 2023 after being beaten and cut multiple times with a 
knife, allegedly by her former boyfriend,  who was 26. The victim reported that the man 

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also broke her nose and shaved off her hair in the 26 June attack. Four hundred stitches 
were  needed  to  close  her  wounds.  The  perpetrator  was  arrested  but  released  on  5  July 
after 72 hours in police custody; he was prosecuted only for inflicting  ‘minor injuries’ on 
the young woman, a legal description that offended the victim and her family. 

As a reaction to that and to the inadequate initial reaction and handling of the case by the 
authorities, in mid-summer 2023, several thousand Bulgarian citizens demonstrated across 
the country. Beyond the specific story of this young woman, the aim was to protest against 
violence against women and the authorities’ handling of these crimes. 

Alerted by the family, the local and national press quickly revealed the affair, which led to 
a large-scale feminist and public mobilisation. As a result, on 30 July 2023, in the face of 
growing public discontent, the alleged aggressor G. Georgiev was again arrested, placed 
in police custody, and remanded. A call for rallies outside courthouses in every town in the 
country was posted on the web: on 31 July from 6pm, many Bulgarians gathered in front 
of the courts. Ten thousand people took part in a demonstration organised in Sofia, while 
several  thousand  gathered  or  marched  in  the  main  provincial  towns  (Stara  Zagora, 
Kazanlak,  Veliko  Tarnovo,  Lovech,  Burgas,  Sliven,  Ruse,  Silistra,  Vidin,  Vracha, 
Blagoevgrad,  Gabrovo,  Dobrich,  Razgrad,  Kyustedil,  Smolyan,  Pernik,  Targovishte, 
Svishtov, Haskovo, Dimitrovgrad, Svilengrad, Kardzhali, Yambol, Petrich, etc). Alongside 
the young demonstrators, older working people, often parents of children from Débora’s 
generation, took to the streets to show their anger and call for the authorities and society 
to become more aware and for stricter legislation on domestic violence.  

On 3 August 2023, Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee was convened for an extraordinary 
meeting and accepted at first reading the proposed amendments to the law on protection 
against  domestic  violence:  eight  years  imprisonment  for  severe  injuries  and  two  years’ 
imprisonment  plus  a  fine  for  minor  injuries.  On  7  August,  Parliament  met  in  a  special 
session to vote on the amended Law on Protection against Domestic Violence, extending 
the protection from domestic violence to all heterosexual couples in ‘intimate relationships’. 
Following the media coverage of the Débora affair, more women decided to report domestic 
violence, including by lodging complaints. 

Regarding trends and debates during the pandemic of COVID-19, during the period of the 
pandemic there was a considerable increase in cases of domestic violence in the country, 
registered  by  the  members  of  the  Alliance  for  Protection  from  GBV  and  other  NGOs  in 
different  cities and towns.  More hidden violence was identified due to  isolation and   the 
number  of  victims  was  almost  double  compared  to  similar  periods  in  the  two  previous 
years.  The  risk  of  femicides  increased  during  this  period.  Over  3 500  protection  orders 
under the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence were issued by the courts in Bulgaria. 
The  court  procedure  for  issuing  protection  orders  under  the  Law  on  Protection  from 
Domestic Violence was available during the pandemic; the procedure for issuing emergency 
orders for protection was available to victims even during the state of emergency (March 
to May 2020). The crisis centres of the Alliance – six specialised crisis centres for women 
and children, victims of violence – were all full during this period. The non-availability of 
crisis  centres  in  many  places  and  their  limited  capacity  was  among  the  main  problems, 
rather than the restrictions due to the pandemic. 

Until the end of 2022, there were two major national helplines for female victims of violence 
and specifically for domestic violence. One of them was run by the Alliance as a 24-hour 
helpline  for  specialist  support  for  victims  of  domestic  violence;  between  March  and 
December 2020 the number of calls to the helpline increased by 2.5 times. The state only 
partially supports the work of telephone lines. Due to the lack of support by the state, in 
2023 only one national helpline was operational. 

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10.2  Ratification of the Istanbul Convention 

The  decision  of  the  Council  of  Ministers  on  the  signing  of  the  Istanbul  Convention  was 
adopted on 16 April 2016 and was said to be done ‘in view of forthcoming ratification’. The 
Convention was signed by Bulgaria on 21 April 2016. 

There was strong civil society pressure to ratify the Istanbul Convention (IC) by civil society 
and those who wanted a decisive change in the fight against violence. Among the reasons 
advanced  by  the  Government  for  non-ratification  at  that  time  were  the  lack  of  full 
compliance of the Bulgarian legislation with the IC as well as financial reasons, as the state 
realised that ratification would have budgetary implications. The main problematic fields 
were,  among  others:  the  concept  of  rape  in  Bulgarian  law  which  was  not  in  compliance 
with the main standards of the IC, as it is not based on the concept of a lack of consent; 
the notion of rape in Bulgarian law is an act against the sexual integrity of women only; 
the  majority  of  criminal  acts  of  domestic  violence  (DV)  were  prosecuted  as  crimes  of  a 
private  nature  and  a  complaint  by  the  victim  is  required;  acts  like  stalking  were  not 
criminalised;  there  is  no  system  in  place  for  continuous  support  for  active  and  relevant 
NGOs working in the field; there is no special  policy  encompassing all forms of violence 
against  women  (VAW)  as  gender-based  violence  (GBV);  and  there  is  no  effective 
mechanism for integrated policies against VAW and DV.  

Reviews of the legislation were carried out by the Government, by experts from the Council 
of Europe and by civil society organisations. The independent reviews showed the need for 
amendments  to  the  criminal  law  and  to  civil  legislation  and  policies.  Since  2011,  NGOs 
have been exerting pressure on the Government to work on the necessary amendments 
and have offered their cooperation in order to achieve compliance much earlier. In June 
2016, extensive working groups (composed of representatives of institutions, magistrates 
and civil society) were formed by the Minister of Justice with a view to making suggestions 
for changes to civil law and criminal law respectively. The suggestions for amendments in 
order  to  be  in  compliance  with  the  IC  were  formulated  by  a  special  working  group  in 
December  2016-January  2017.  The  draft  laws  for  amendments  in  the  two  spheres 
remained pending in the Ministry of Justice. 

In  2017,  the  main  challenge  for  the  legislative  process,  for  services  for  women  and 
cooperation  with  the  institutions  in  relation  to  VAW,  was  that  in  May-June  2017,  upon 
national elections provoked by resignation of the previous Government, new elections were 
held and a new Government and senior administration were installed, the third consecutive 
Government for the year 2017. A very bad sign was that the ruling coalition comprised the 
so-called United Patriots – an ad hoc coalition of three nationalistic parties. It played a very 
negative role in the whole process around the ratification of the IC. 

Prior to the establishment of this new Government, the Alliance for Protection from Gender-
based  Violence106  had  continued  to  exert  pressure  for  the  ratification  of  the  Istanbul 
Convention, which was signed by Bulgaria at the end of April 2016. This activity reached 
its  peak  in  the  second  half  of  2017,  upon  the  formation  of  the  new  Government.  The 
Alliance  wanted  to  raise  awareness  in  society  concerning  the  need  for  protection  for  all 
groups of women, for every woman individually, and to ensure the provision of services, 
access to justice and financing for effective protection.  

After media reports in the summer of 2017 of several cases in which women were killed 
by  their  partners  or  husbands,  the  Alliance  prepared  a  special  campaign  and  lobbying 
campaign and issued a strong statement by openly calling these cases femicide cases and 

106  The Alliance is legally registered and its members in the country are: Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation 
Sofia and Haskovo, Women’s Association Ekaterina Karavelova – Silistra, SOS – Families at Risk Foundation 
– Varna, Demetra Association – Burgas, NAYA Association – Targovishte, PULSE Foundation – Pernik, Open 
Door Centre Foundation – Pleven, Association Dinamika Centre – Russe, Foundation H and D Gender 
Perspectives – Haskovo and Dimitrovgrad, and Knowledge, Success, Change Association – Dupnitza. 

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demanding  that  the  institutions  take  responsibility  for  their  failures,  take  action  and 
immediately  ratify  the  Istanbul  Convention,  even  before  the  adoption  of  the  prepared 
legislative changes for harmonisation.  

In addition, the Alliance called for strong penal sanctions for all cases of violence against 
women which result in injuries to women, often including long- term injuries. The petition 
was sent to all institutions at national and local level, by all the members of the Alliance. 
The campaign by the Alliance triggered  strong reactions in the media, as well as a very 
positive response from society as a whole. The campaign was provoked by tragic events 
and drastic violations of the standards of due diligence by the state. It was immediate and 
timely and very much to the point. It also called for security measures, control on weapons 
and the protection of the rights of all citizens.  

The  first  deadline  posed  to  the  Government  to  initiate  legislative  reforms  in  the  penal 
sphere  and  to  start  the  ratification  process  of  the  Istanbul  Convention  was  15  October 
2017. After a short delay, responses from the Government began in November 2017. Most 
importantly,  the  Government  recognised  the  need  to  first  ratify  the  Convention  by  late 
2017  or  early  2018  and  immediately  afterwards  to  finalise  the  necessary  legislative 
amendments  together  with  experts,  including  civil  society.  The  legislative  changes  also 
included  the  regulation  of  specialised  services  for  victims  of  violence.  This  was  an 
achievement by civil society and mainly by women’s organisations.  

As a result, the draft law for the ratification of the Istanbul Convention was introduced to 
the  Council  of  Ministers  on  3  January  2018  but  opposition  forces,  incorporated  into  the 
ruling coalition, and well supported by conservative waves from abroad, were on the rise 
and reacted aggressively. From the end of 2017, once information about the forthcoming 
ratification process was available, the majority of electronic media, depending on unknown 
sources, started attacking the Convention, portraying it as a tool for introducing the ‘third 
gender’ and a means to promote education on these issues in schools. They argued that 
this represented a great risk to Bulgarian children, a way to affirm the controversial term 
‘gender’  and  to  introduce  gender  ideology.  These  media  sources  argued  that  the 
Convention  was  not  in  fact  about  VAW,  but  concerned  trans  and  intersex  issues,  which 
they  regarded  as  ‘shameful  issues’.  The  notion  of  combating  gender  stereotypes  and 
stereotyped roles of men and women was also attacked as meaning that there was no limit 
to  self-determination  of  people  in  their  gender  identity,  including  in  different  genders, 
described  as  ‘third  gender’.  The  same  arguments  were  used  by  some  people  in  the 
Government, such as the representatives of the United Patriots in the Council of Ministers, 
and some other members of the Government who voted against the decision of the Council 
of Ministers to promote the ratification of the Istanbul Convention. 

Despite all this, at the beginning of 2018, on 11 January, the draft law for the ratification 
was introduced in the Bulgarian Parliament. In March 2018 it was referred by a majority in 
the Parliament to the Constitutional Court for a preliminary ruling on constitutionality. For 
this reason, the draft bill for ratification was withdrawn from the Council of  Ministers as 
well. By the end of July 2018, the Constitutional Court ruled by simple majority that the 
Convention  was  not  in  compliance  with  the  Bulgarian  Constitution  for  reasons  of  ‘going 
against the principle of legal certainty’. Although not being a convincing ruling and not fully 
in compliance with the Constitution, this decision had a big influence and had and still has 
very damaging effects on the whole issue of gender equality and the fight against violence 
against women.  

Therefore, Bulgaria remained just a signatory of the Istanbul Convention, which is currently 
a political document and not a legally binding instrument. 

According to the author of this report, the ruling was clearly politically influenced, and its 
arguments  are  weak  and  not  justified  by  the  Constitution  itself  or  by  international  law 
which is binding for Bulgaria, based on this same Constitution. 

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By wrongly assuming that: 

‘The rule of law in the formal sense (the state of legal certainty) requires the meaning 
of  legal  terms  to  be  clear  and  unambiguous.  The  principle  of  legal  certainty  and 
predictability precludes the existence of two parallel and mutually exclusive terms for 
“gender”.  The  ratification  of  the  Convention  would  lead  to  the  introduction  in  the 
national  legal  system  of  a  concept  that  is  contrary  to  the  one  established  in  the 
Constitution. …’ 

the Constitutional Court wrongly concludes: 

‘Contrary to this constitutional understanding of gender as a biological category, the 
term “gender”/“genre” as a social construct exists in the Convention individually and 
along with the term “sex”/“sexe”.’ 

As  stated  above,  this  situation  distances  the  scope  of  the  Convention  from  the  stated 
purposes  of  protecting  women  and  opens  up  room  for  its  contradictory  implementation, 
which is contrary to the rule of law in a formal sense (Article 4(1) of the Constitution).107 

As  more  of  these  ‘arguments’  were  given  above  in  the  section  about  general  concepts, 
presented here below are just several considerations. 

The decision was taken outside and beyond the specific questions asked on constitutionality 
prior to ratification and it is inadmissible, according to the author, to rule in this case that 
the Convention is unconstitutional as a whole. 

The principle of legal certainty as applied in the formal sense is applied incorrectly: first of 
all, this principle has two important elements – the formal element of strict legal certainty 
and the second and most important element – the legal certainty of protection of rights of 
citizens. This element prevails and should have prevailed in the ruling of the Constitutional 
Court. And here deliberately it was not discussed and deliberately citizens were left without 
any  protection  against  gender-based  violence.  On  the  other  hand,  the  arguments 
expressed  for  justifying  the  lack  of  legal  certainty,  the  deliberations  around  the  term 
‘gender’ are not based on any legal ground, the extension of ‘gender’ to gender ideology 
is  completely  deliberate,  arbitrary  and  without  any  specific  referral  to  legal  terms  and 
possible  contradiction  with  specific  legal  terms  and  notions,  which  are  internationally 
accepted. 

The  ruling  impacted  all  further  use  and  interpretation  of  the  terms  and  also  limited  the 
institutional and public debate on the issue of violence against women.  

Based on all these considerations, the author is of the opinion that the ruling can be revised 
by the Constitutional Court and that, in addition, the Government and the Parliament may 
decide to initiate again and finalise the ratification procedure by presenting their arguments 
and justification for doing so. 

However, since the ruling of the Court, the public authorities refuse to discuss ratification 
and also any reference to provisions of the Istanbul Convention. 

107  Constitutional Court, Judgment No. 13 Sofia, 27 July 2018, promulgated in SG No. 65/07.08.2018, unofficial 

translation. 

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11  Compliance  and  enforcement  aspects  (horizontal  provisions  of  all 

directives)  

11.1  General (legal) context 

11.1.1 Issues related to the pursuit of a discrimination claim 

There are no issues to mention in this context.  

11.1.2 Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals 

There are no current debates and legislative proposals. 

11.1.3 Gender mainstreaming 

Gender mainstreaming is regulated as a concept in the Gender Equality Law. According to 
Article 4(1)  of  the  Law,  state  policy  for  gender  equality  is  implemented  through  several 
approaches and one of  them is integrating the  principle  of gender equality in legislation 
and  in  all  policies  and  strategies,  programmes  and  plans  at  all  levels.  Gender 
mainstreaming is further defined as implementing analysis of the impact of legislation and 
policies  on  the  situation  of  women  and  men  for  the  purpose  of  undertaking  respective 
action for real equality/equality de facto. 

This  approach  is  also  mentioned  in  the  current  national  strategy,  the  new  Strategy  for 
Promotion of Gender Equality 2021-2030. 

11.2  Victimisation 

Victimisation  is  considered  to  be  a  form  of  discrimination,  according  to  Article 5  of  the 
Protection  against  Discrimination  Act.  Persons  who  have,  or  are  supposed  to  have, 
instigated an action against discrimination, or those who intend to instigate such an action, 
are  explicitly  protected  against  discrimination.  Persons  related  to  such  persons  are  also 
protected. Persons who have refused to discriminate are also protected from victimisation. 
This  is  according  to  the  definition  provided  in  the  Additional  Provisions  of  the  Act 
(paragraph 1(3)). 

11.3  Access to courts 

11.3.1 Difficulties and barriers related to access to courts 

There are no particular difficulties or barriers related to access to courts. 

All persons whose rights have been violated have access to the courts (with the application 
of  the  Civil  Procedure  Code  –  CPC)  or  to  the  Commission  for  Protection  against 
Discrimination  (with  the  application  of  the  special  procedure  under  the  special  law,  the 
Administrative Procedure Code and the CPC). Compensation can only be awarded by the 
courts. Article 71 of the PADA stipulates that each person whose rights have been violated 
under this law or other laws on equal treatment has the right to instigate a  claim before 
the district  court in  order  for the  court to: identify the violation;  order the defendant to 
discontinue the breach and to restore the situation, as well as to refrain from violations in 
the future; and award compensation for damages. 

Difficulties in access may be present in cases where the person discriminated against first 
resorts  to  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  to  confirm  the  act  of 
discrimination and, in such cases, despite the right to refer to the courts for compensation, 
this is often not sought or the procedure encounters obstacles. There are general obstacles 

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related to seeking compensation for damages due to acts of discrimination – questions of 
evidence and proof, with low amounts of compensation, if any.  

A positive element in the court procedure is the possibility for trade unions and civil society 
organisations to join the procedure as interested parties or to initiate a discrimination case 
on  behalf  of  a  person  who  has  been  discriminated  against.  When  the  rights  of  many 
individuals  are  violated,  the  organisations  mentioned  can  initiate  a  discrimination 
procedure before the court. These rights are regulated in Article 71(2) and (3) of the PADA. 

11.3.2 Availability of legal aid 

There is no specific category of legal aid available to victims of gender discrimination. Legal 
aid is available based on the general eligibility criteria and the required means test under 
the Legal Aid Act.108 The main principle is that legal aid in civil and administrative cases is 
provided based on documents presented by the interested party to the court showing that 
he/she has no means to cover the lawyer’s fees. The court takes into account the following 
circumstances when deciding about legal aid in civil and administrative matters/cases: the 
income of the person and her/his family; a declaration on the income status and property 
of the person; family status; health status; employment status; age; other circumstances 
(Article 23(3)).  

According to Article 22(1)(7) of the Legal Aid Act, legal aid is granted explicitly to victims 
of domestic violence, or sexual violence, or victims of trafficking, when they do not have 
sufficient means to be supported by a lawyer. 

11.4  Horizontal effect of the applicable law 

11.4.1 Horizontal effect of relevant gender equality law 

There  are  no  particular  difficulties  in  the  application  of  the  horizontal  effect  of  gender 
equality law in Bulgaria by the equality body and the courts. 

11.4.2 Impact of horizontal direct effects of the charter after Bauer  

The effect of the decision has not yet been discussed properly in Bulgaria. 

11.5  Burden of proof 

Currently the provision on the burden of proof corresponds with EU standards, including 
the case law. Until recently, Article 9 of the PADA was not in full compliance. Until March 
2015,  in  the  procedure  for  protection  against  discrimination,  persons  who  considered 
themselves to be  victims of discrimination had to  prove (instead  of  merely to  establish) 
facts from which it may be presumed that there had been discrimination (Article 9). Then 
the burden of proof falls upon the respondent and he/she has to prove that there has been 
no  breach  of  the  principle  of  equal  treatment.  Based  on  the  practice  regarding  cases  of 
discrimination  on  the  ground  of  sex  from  before  the  amendment,  including  in  cases  of 
harassment and sexual harassment, it can be concluded that the lack of full compliance in 
the definition of the burden of proof posed very high requirements, especially for women 
who claimed sex discrimination. Hopefully, the equality body and the courts will apply the 
burden of proof rules consistently. 

108  Legal Aid Act (Закон за правната помощ, ) promulgated in SG 79/2005, in force since 1 January 2006, 

available in Bulgarian at: http://www.lex.bg/ldoc/2135511185. 

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11.6  Remedies and sanctions  

11.6.1 Types of remedies and sanctions 

Upon  finding  a  discriminatory  act,  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination 
has  the  power  to  impose  coercive  administrative  measures  and  penal  administrative 
sanctions.  Coercive  administrative  measures  are  imposed  according  to  Article 76  of  the 
PADA and include: obligatory orders to employers or other staff to discontinue the breaches 
of the law and the discrimination practices, as well as impeding the enforcement of unlawful 
decisions and orders of the employer that might lead to discrimination. Penal administrative 
sanctions  are  regulated  in  Articles  78-82  of  the  Act  and  amount  to  fines  and  pecuniary 
sanctions for legal entities for identified acts of discrimination and breaches of the PADA – 
the  basic  sanctions  ranging  from  around  EUR 130  (BGN 250)  to  around  EUR 1 000 
(BGN 2 000).  Increased  sanctions  are  provided  for  repeated  acts  of  discrimination,  and 
also for non-compliance with the decisions of the equality body. 

According to Article 68 of the PADA, the decisions of the Commission for Protection against 
Discrimination  (CPD)  can  be  appealed  according  to  the  Administrative  Procedure  Code 
within 14 days. There is no deadline for complaining against a null and void decision of the 
CPD. 

Discrimination cases can be brought before the CPD or before the courts but compensation 
can  only  be  ordered  by  the  civil  courts  when  an  act  of  discrimination  is  identified 
(Article 71(1)(3)  PADA).  The  procedure  for  awarding  compensation  is  based  on  tort  law 
provisions and principles (Article 45 and following of the Law on contracts and obligations). 
There is no practice under the law for allocating compensation in cases of discrimination, 
especially  discrimination  based  on  sex.  This  fact  alone  is  a  barrier  for  victims  seeking 
compensation.  The  other  reason  is  that  in  Bulgarian  legal  practice,  the  amount  of 
compensation for moral damages, which in most cases is involved in discrimination cases, 
is very low. The author believes that the issue of compensation is still a challenge for both 
lawyers and the courts in the effective application of the anti-discrimination legislation. If 
compensation is awarded then enforcement is another issue but in this field both public 
enforcement and private bailiffs can be used.  

11.6.2 Effectiveness, proportionality and dissuasiveness 

In  the  author’s  opinion,  the  general  level  of  compensation,  as  well  as  compensation 
awarded  for  discrimination,  is  still  very  low  in  Bulgaria  and  is  not  proportionate  to  the 
damage suffered by the persons whose rights have been violated. As mentioned above, in 
practice,  there  is  no  case  law  on  compensation  awarded  for  sex  discrimination.  The 
sanctions imposed by the Commission for Protection against Discrimination are in many 
cases effective and proportionate but there are problems with their enforcement and their 
dissuasive effect. The fact that the decisions of the CPD are obligatory has to be used more 
effectively and awareness on their importance and value has to be increased. 

11.7  Equality body  

The  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  (CPD)  is  the  equality  body  in 
Bulgaria.109  

The status and competences of the CPD are regulated in Chapter 3 of the Protection against 
Discrimination  Act:  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  identifies 
violations, orders the prevention of or the halting of the violations and the restoration of 
the initial situation, issues coercive prescriptions, imposes sanctions, makes suggestions 
to  national  and  local  governmental  bodies,  provides  independent  support  to  victims  of 

109  The website of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination (equality body) is available at: 

www.kzd-nondiscrimination.com/. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

discrimination,  gives  opinions  on  drafts  for  normative  acts,  and  carries  out  independent 
research and monitoring. The CPD is a member of the National Council on Gender Equality. 

The Commission for Protection against Discrimination is not a body that deals specifically 
with  the  promotion,  monitoring  or  analysis  of  equal  treatment  based  on  sex.  These 
functions of the equality body or other similar bodies, required by the EU standards, have 
not yet been implemented in a consistent manner by any of the bodies mentioned.  

The  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  was  created  in  2005  as  an 
independent  jurisdiction  under  the  law,  and  its  mandate  covers  all  types  of  direct  and 
indirect discrimination prohibited by law and by international instruments to which Bulgaria 
is a party. The CPD has broad competences, including initiating discrimination cases on its 
own initiative and assisting victims of discrimination in bringing a claim. The administrative 
procedure before the CPD is very flexible and easy for petitioners to follow. The position 
and competences of the Commission are regulated in Chapter 3 of the Protection against 
Discrimination Act (Article 40 and following). More specifically, the competences of the CPD 
are  provided  in  Article 47  of  the  Act:  the  CPD  establishes  the  violations,  orders  the 
prevention of or the discontinuing of violations and the restoration of the initial situation, 
issues  coercive  penalties,  imposes  sanctions,  makes  suggestions  to  national  and  local 
governmental  bodies,  provides  independent  support  to  victims  of  discrimination,  gives 
opinions  on  drafts  for  normative  acts,  and  carries  out  independent  research  and 
monitoring. 

In  addition  to  discrimination  based  on  sex,  the  prohibition  encompasses  the  grounds  of 
race,  nationality,  ethnicity,  human  genome,  citizenship,  origin,  religion  and  belief, 
education, conviction, political affiliation, personal or social status, disability, age, sexual 
orientation,  family  status,  property  status,  or  any  other  ground  defined  by  law  or  in  an 
international treaty to which Bulgaria is a party (Article 4(1) of the PADA). 

The  CPD  is  not  a  body  that  deals  with  the  promotion,  monitoring  or  analysis  of  equal 
treatment based on sex and therefore the competence of the CPD is not sufficient for the 
fulfilment  of  all  the  requirements  for  an  equality  body  dealing  with  gender  equality 
according to EU standards.  

11.8  Social partners  

The social partners do not have a special role in gender equality, provided for by legislation. 
Besides  the  mention  of  workers  and  employees  organisations  as  part  of  the  National 
Council of  Gender Equality and as part of the regional and local mechanisms for gender 
equality policy, they have no other specific role in the field. The social partners have gender 
equality sections in their structures, participate in the consultative body on gender equality 
at the Council of Ministers and sometimes issue relevant research and statistics, although 
ideologically they do not always stand behind the concepts and positions according to EU 
standards.  In  the  author’s  opinion,  their  role  does  not  correspond  to  the  higher 
requirements of the EU standards, and namely those of the Recast Directive.  

Collective  agreements  in  Bulgaria  are  not  used  as  a  means  to  implement  EU  gender 
equality  law.  Collective  agreements  that  are  binding  for  the  respective  sectors  do  not 
generally have gender equality elements and do not specifically promote gender equality.  

11.9  Other relevant bodies 

Examples of gender equality interest groups include the Alliance for Protection from GBV, 
and the Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation  – BGRF (separately and as a member of 
the Alliance). These organisations present opinions, position papers, as in the process for 
ratification of the IC, support and protect victims in court and before  the equality body. 
These NGOs also organise support of other NGOs, institutions and agencies around gender 

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equality  issues.  As  mentioned  above,  NGOs  can  support  and  initiate  anti-discrimination 
cases, according to the PADA.  

Other examples of such actions are opinions officially provided to institutions and to the 
Constitutional Court. For example, the Alliance for Protection from GBV, with the support 
of each of the member organisations, presented a very extensive opinion in  2018 before 
the Constitutional Court for the ratification of the IC. The opinion was very well grounded 
on  the  relevant  international  and  national  standards;  despite  this,  it  was  not  taken  into 
account by the Constitutional Court in its ruling.110 

Several anti-discrimination cases before the equality body were supported by these NGOs, 
namely  the  Peshtera  case  about  the  discriminatory  advertisement  ‘The  season  of  the 
watermelons’ (see section 9.3 above). The cases before the Supreme Administrative Court 
against the use of sex as an actuarial factor in the supplementary obligatory social security 
scheme were also supported by the BGRF. 

Thanks to the support of the BGRF and the knowledge of its experts, three cases (out of 
four cases decided with Views of the CEDAW Committee for violations) related to different 
forms  of  violence  and  discrimination  of  women  and  girls  were  taken  under  the  Optional 
Protocol  to  CEDAW:  V.K  v  Bulgaria;  Jallow  v  Bulgaria;  V.P.P.  v  Bulgaria.111  A  fourth 
Bulgarian case was brought by other lawyers on the issue of domestic violence and was 
decided by the Committee in 2019: S.L. v. Bulgaria. 

Since 2004, the BGRF and partners have organised the ‘Women’s Human Rights Training 
Institute’ in Bulgaria. The Institute is a unique initiative and a first-of-its-kind programme 
aimed at building and developing the capacity of young lawyers from Central and Eastern 
European  and  the  Newly  Independent  States  (CEE/NIS)  for  litigation  on  women’s  rights 
issues, including in international and European law, on: 

- 
- 
- 

violence against women;  
sexual and reproductive health and rights; and  
employment discrimination. 

The  Institute,  organised  by  the  BGRF  in  cooperation  with  its  partners,  has  already 
successfully completed eight rounds and trained more than 140 lawyers.112 

Since 2013, the Alliance for Protection from GBV has been conducting training courses for 
different  stakeholders  involved  in  protection  against  GBV.  Over  250  specialists,  mainly 
from state institutions and also magistrates, were trained through the Academy. 

110  The English version of the website of the Constitutional Court is available at: https://www.constcourt.bg/en. 
111  Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) V.K. v Bulgaria, Communication 
No. 20/2008; Isatou Jallow v Bulgaria, Communication No. 32/2012; V.P.P. v Bulgaria, Communication 
No. 31/2011. 

112  BGRF: https://bgrf.org/articles/call-for-applications-for-the-womens-human-rights-training-institute-whrti-

20232025-633; the WHRTI provides the participants with advanced and in-depth knowledge on women’s 
human rights protection in the three areas noted above. The WHRTI improves their practical skills in writing 
and advocacy for development of strategic litigation in the region both at the national and international 
levels through the use of regional and universal human rights mechanisms such as the European Convention 
on Human Rights (ECHR), the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against 
Women (CEDAW), and the Optional Protocol to CEDAW as well as the International Covenant on Civil and 
Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Optional Protocol to ICCPR. The WHRTI also gives lawyers an opportunity to 
get acquainted with the EU standards in the field of equal treatment of women and men, including the case 
law of the Court of Justice of the European Union. WHRTI encourages the development of professional 
connections and networks among women’s rights lawyers in the region. Alumnae of the Institute include 
over 140 lawyers, including women lawyers from Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 
Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, 
Kazahstan, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, 
Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Tajikistan, Turkiye, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan, as well as several participants from 
Africa and Asia. 

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Despite the achievements of Bulgarian civil society in this field, and maybe just because of 
these  achievements,  since  the  end  of  2017,  these  NGOs  as  human  rights  and  women’s 
rights  defenders  have  been  subjected  to  attacks  by  conservative  and  nationalist  circles, 
through media attacks, hate speech, threats and even attacks in their offices; the situation 
continues. The attacks are motivated by the sole fact that the NGOs support human rights 
and women’s rights standards, as well as the adoption of the IC. They are blamed because 
they receive funds for that both from the state and from foreign sources. 

In the current 49th National Assembly, as well as in the previous one, one of the political 
parties, the far-right, nationalist (Възраждане) party introduced a draft law against foreign 
agents, which also targets non-governmental organisations. 

11.10 Evaluation of implementation 

Concerning the enforcement aspects of the anti-discrimination legislation, it can be stated 
that  the  law  is  in  compliance  with  the  EU  standards,  and  in  some  aspects  it  also  goes 
beyond these standards. The implementation could also be more effective, through raising 
awareness of the role and importance of the law and mechanisms for protection. 

11.11 Remaining issues 

There are no other remaining issues.  

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Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

12  Overall assessment  

The following transposition problems were mentioned in this report: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

There  is  not  yet  a  specific  body  dealing  with  gender  equality,  including  research, 
monitoring, coordination on a regular basis; the Advisory Council on Gender Equality 
had no regular functions, and even this format has been limited from 2020 until now 
to  a  maximum  of  one  in-person  or  online  meeting  per  year.  The  Commission  for 
Protection  against  Discrimination  has  very  little  practice  on  gender  equality  cases. 
Women  do  not  receive  the  continuous  guidance  and  protection  they  need  to  bring 
complaints  and  during  the  process.  Gender  discrimination  issues  are  not  well 
understood  either  by  the  Commission  for  Protection  against  Discrimination  or  the 
courts. 

Gender equality has been compromised by restrictive and conservative views, which 
were  also  unfortunately  expressed  by  the  Constitutional  Court  in  its  ruling  on  the 
Istanbul Convention. The Court was subject to political influence and was also trapped 
into the fake gender ideology theory with serious negative consequences for gender 
equality in Bulgaria. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  legislation  for  harmonisation  with  the  WLB  Directive,  the 
Directive has been transposed almost fully. Important gaps that remain are the low 
level  of  allowance  for  parental  leave  for  fathers.  An  additional  paid  parental  leave 
also for mothers of children up to 8 years can be suggested and adopted. Additional 
guarantees  to  maintain  the  employment  rights  of  persons  on  carers’  leave  are 
needed. 

Coverage for the protection of all persons who are on a carers’ leave still has to be 
expanded in relation to flexible working arrangements. 

Lack of knowledge and awareness, and no practice of positive action. 

Lack of recognition of the practice of sexual harassment, and more specifically of its 
gendered nature, and lack of sanctions for sexual harassment. 

No real measures against the gender pay gap, no substantial practice on equal pay 
of men and women. 

In the overall assessment, in addition to evaluations given in the different sections of the 
report,  it  can  be  stated  that  there  is  a  good  and  reliable  legal  basis  in  Bulgaria  for 
developing  further  practice,  policies,  and  mechanisms  for  protection  from  sex 
discrimination and for achieving real, substantive gender equality, and in compliance with 
the EU standard. However, gender equality policy and mechanisms should be developed, 
as they are still rather weak, which impacts on the implementation of legislation and on 
real protection of rights. A clearer definition of the role and competence of the courts vis-
à-vis that of the equality body is needed in cases of discrimination; additional mechanisms 
for support and legal aid of victims of discrimination are also needed. 

Judgment No. 13 from 2018 of the Constitutional Court had, and still has, very negative 
results and impact on the development of the legislation and policy, not only in relation to 
VAW and GBV, but also on all issues of gender equality in Bulgaria. If not further analysed 
and reviewed as soon as possible, this decision, which goes against EU standards and all 
universal standards, will maintain and reproduce gender stereotyping which is damaging 
for any gender equality issue in Bulgaria. 

84 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Country report – Gender equality – Bulgaria – 2024 

Bibliography 

- 

- 

- 

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на  жените  и  равнопоставеността  на  пазара  на  труда  (A  study  by  the  Bulgarian 
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in  Bulgarian  at:  https://bgrf.org/articles/проучване-на-фондация-
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