The tourism industry is considering a class-action lawsuit against the state

Lawyers from migration centers and employers are considering a class-action lawsuit against the state over lost benefits. They criticize delayed procedures for issuing visas for seasonal workers from third countries, which the tourism industry expects, BNR reported.

The changes to the Aliens Act passed by Parliament on Thursday will not save the season. The staffing crisis could lead to the closure of hotels and restaurants in the height of summer, employers believe.

The express adoption of the legal changes took place after the quick reaction of the official minister of tourism, Evtim Miloshev. They refer to the procedures for granting the possibility of long-term and short-term seasonal employment, as well as the possibility of extending the period of stay of foreigners performing seasonal work.

The changes are important and long awaited, but they will not save the season, hoteliers comment. They are waiting for workers for May 10, but in the current situation, the optimistic forecast is that they will come in June, and the pessimistic one – only in July, which is unacceptable for them.

“We have applied for about 25 people from different countries, including Uzbekistan and even Nepal. There are very big delays in the process of issuing visas. Due to the entry of Schengen, there are administrative changes in the visa processing system… There is a backlog of many a large number of documents that cannot be processed at the consular offices themselves,” commented a hotelier, whose name was not provided.

According to him, the main reason for the delay is the lack of administrative capacity.

Another hotelier, who was also not represented, said visa procedures were delayed for months. He expects “several dozen people” to come to work at his place. He noted that the changes in the legislation do not solve the problem.

Employers on the southern Black Sea coast have submitted documents for the issuance of visas to nearly 6,000 people from Uzbekistan. However, not a single visa has been received so far.

In the Bulgarian embassy in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, until recently, they replaced the system for issuing visas with the Schengen one. They had two computers on which four people worked, said Plamen Dotov, a legal consultant at a migration center in Burgas.

“Personally, I do not know of a case of a visa being received so far. Appointments are already being given for June. These are people who were supposed to arrive at the end of April,” Plamen Dotov pointed out.

According to the Acting Minister of Tourism, Evtim Miloshev, the administration is working and is aware of the problem. He advised the media not to present apocalyptic predictions for the season, but to look more positively. According to him, the media should help tourism because it is very sensitive to bombastic news and even the weather forecast affects it.

If there is no adequate reaction from the state, a collective action for lost benefits is being considered, said Plamen Dotov.