Has the monthly allowance for Ukrainian refugees increased from 1,200 to 2,400 Bulgarian lev, and has it become several times higher than the pensions received by Bulgarian pensioners? No, that's not true: Ukrainian refugees who sought shelter in Bulgaria do not receive this amount of aid. According to the Social Assistance Agency and the Bulgarian Council for Refugees and Emigrants, with temporary protection status refugees can apply for one-time financial assistance of up to 375 lev. Refugees who meet the requirements to receive financial social assistance get the same amount as Bulgarian citizens.
The claim appeared in a video on TikTok (archived here) published by @user58155482769811 on June 22, 2023.
The text above the pictures is (translated from Bulgarian to English by Lead Stories staff):
A few days ago the monthly allowance of Ukrainians went from 1,200 to 2,400 BGN. And Bulgarians with 40-46 years of work experience have a pension of 500 BGN.
Whom and what interests do Bulgarian MPs protect in parliament and why do they receive a monthly salary of around 15,000 - 20,000 BGN???
The Bulgarian text in yellow is (translated from Bulgarian to English by Lead Stories staff):
You low lives
You betrayed Bulgaria
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Jun 29 09:38:31 2023 UTC)
The temporary protection status grants Ukrainian refugees the same rights as Bulgarian citizens, including access to health care, work, education, social services and social benefits. This includes Ukrainian citizens with disabilities. The conditions for receiving social or one-time benefits as well as their amounts are the same as the ones for Bulgarians.
The amount of social benefits is determined based on the poverty line in Bulgaria for 2023, which is 504 lev, as well as through a detailed social assessment. The basis for eligibility to receive benefits is set at 30 percent of the poverty line, equivalent to 151.20 lev. Individuals and families whose income for the previous month is lower than a certain differentiated minimum income, calculated on this basis, would be able to receive monthly assistance.
Starting July 1, 2023, the minimum pension in Bulgaria will increase to 524 lev while the maximum pension or pension ceiling, which has remained unchanged since October 2022, will continue to be 3,400 lev.
According to an article from June 24, 2023, approximately 72,000 Ukrainians have temporary protection status, most of them children, of whom only 12,000 receive social benefits.
