On 2 February the Bulgarian Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA) was published in the State Gazette, implementing 1 year late the requirements of the European Whistleblower Protection Directive (the Directive). Companies will be required to ensure compliance with the new law within:

  • 2 May 2023 – for companies with 250 and more employees and for companies operating in certain sectors specified in the WPA regardless of the number of their employees (e.g. financial and credit institutions, investment firms, insurers etc.); and
  • 17 December 2023 – for companies with 50 – 249 employees
  • Companies (1) with less than 50 employees, (2) that do not operate in the sectors specified in the WPA are not subject to the requirements of the new law.

The key obligations for companies arising under the WPA include:

  • Establishing internal reporting channels where whistleblowers can report suspected breaches of certain EU and domestic legislation, including public procurement, financial services, money laundering, and terrorist financing. The WPA, in particular, extends the scope of the Directive by adding signals related to employment, tax and criminal law breaches.
  • Protecting the confidentiality by ensuring that each whistleblower’s identity remains undisclosed unless they explicitly consent or the company is obliged by law to disclose it. This protection also benefits the persons concerned in the signal (i.e. those referred to in the signal to whom the breach is attributed).
  • Protecting the whistleblowers against retaliation, including disciplinary measures, demotion, termination of employment, and other forms of discrimination.
  • Providing follow-up on signals and maintaining registers of all signals.

Most companies will likely need to review and adapt their existing internal reporting processes and procedures or to implement completely new processes within their organizations to comply with the WPA’s specific requirements. The good news is that under the WPA companies may use an internal whistleblowing channel established by the economic group to which they belong, if the channel meets the relevant legal requirements.

* The content of this article is not a legal advice and should not be relied or acted upon as such.