News

20 October 2025

Following the intervention of Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva, a long-standing problem related to the recognition of Bulgarian river captains' certificates during inspections by European authorities was resolved.

The problem was caused by technical incompatibility of the QR code issued in Bulgarian professional qualification certificates, which could only be read by national authorities. This made it impossible for our captains to prove their eligibility to navigate the inland waterways of the European Union and hindered the performance of their work.

Following a complaint, the Ombudsman sent a recommendation to the Minister of Transport and Communications to conduct an investigation and issue an opinion on the measures taken to protect the rights of Bulgarian river captains and the recognition of their certificates by the European control authorities.

Following the Ombudsman's recommendation, the Executive Agency for Maritime Administration conducted an external check of all types of identification on the certificates – by QR code, CID, and holder's name. The Agency confirmed that the technical problems with the inter-register exchange between the Bulgarian and European systems have been completely resolved. At present, all seafarers mentioned in the complaint are now visible in the European Union database.

Following the intervention of the Ombudsman, the certificates of Bulgarian river captains are now automatically recognized during checks throughout the EU, which guarantees the recognition of their professional qualifications.

Bulgarian captains sent a letter of gratitude to the Ombudsman, stating:

"A few months ago, thanks to your help, our Captain certificates were recognized by the European authorities. You were instrumental in making the QR code recognizable to the European database. We sincerely thank you for everything you have done for us."

(I.P. and 15 other captains on Europe's inland waterways.)