Art. 333(1) Labour Code: dismissal protection in Bulgaria
Art. 333(1) of the Bulgarian Labour Code: protected categories, labour inspectorate permission, consequences of breach and current Supreme Court practice.
Protection under Art. 333(1) of the Labour Code (КТ) is one of the most frequently contested provisions in employment disputes before the Supreme Court of Cassation. For the practising lawyer it raises three recurring questions: at what moment the presence of the protected status is assessed, when prior permission from the labour inspectorate is needed, and what the procedural consequences of its absence are.
In this analysis we systematise the legal framework, the protected categories under para. 1, the procedure before the Executive Agency “General Labour Inspectorate” (ИА ГИТ) and the established trends in the practice of the Supreme Court of Cassation (ВКС), including Decision No. 60092 of 7 June 2021 in civil case No. 3661/2019 of the ВКС, Fourth Civil Division, and Interpretative Decision No. 4/2013 of the General Assembly of the Civil Chamber (ОСГК) of the ВКС.
❓Which employees are protected from dismissal under Art. 333(1) КТ?
Source: КТ, Art. 333(1)
Legal framework: Art. 333 КТ
Art. 333 КТ establishes the so-called “advance protection” against dismissal. The protection is “advance” because it precedes the termination itself and makes the dismissal depend on prior permission from a state or trade union body. Without the permission, the employer has no right to issue an order terminating the employment contract of the protected employee.
Labour Code (КТ)
Art. 333(1)
The protection under para. 1 applies to exhaustively listed grounds for dismissal by the employer.
Official Bulgarian text
„В случаите по чл. 328, ал. 1, точки 2, 3, 5 и 11 и чл. 330, ал. 2, т. 6 работодателят може да уволни само с предварително разрешение на инспекцията по труда за всеки отделен случай: 1. работничка или служителка, която е майка на дете до 3-годишна възраст; 2. трудоустроен работник или служител; 3. работник или служител, боледуващ от болест, определена в наредба на министъра на здравеопазването; 4. работник или служител, който е започнал ползуването на разрешения му отпуск; 5. работник или служител, който е избран за представител на работниците и служителите по реда на чл. 7, ал. 2 и чл. 7а; 5а. работник или служител, който е член на специален орган за преговори, на европейски работнически съвет или на представителен орган в европейско търговско или кооперативно дружество; 6. работник или служител, който е избран за представител на работещите по безопасност и здраве при работа.“
The scope of the protection is narrowed in two ways. First, it is limited by the grounds for dismissal: permission is required only on the grounds listed in para. 1 and does not apply to other cases of termination (for example by mutual agreement, on the expiry of a fixed-term contract or on termination by the employee). Second, it is limited by the protected categories: the list in para. 1 is exhaustive and cannot be extended by interpretation.
Protected categories under para. 1: who is covered and who is not
Each of the seven categories of protected persons has its own evidential features. In employment disputes the most frequently contested cases are motherhood under item 1 (because of disputes about the moment the child turns 3), redeployment on health grounds under item 2 (because of the validity and term of the Territorial Expert Medical Commission (ТЕЛК) decision) and illness under item 3 (because of the specific list in Ordinance No. 5/1987).
Categories of employees protected under Art. 333(1) КТ
An exhaustive list: outside it, the protection does not apply.
Item 1: A mother of a child up to 3 years of age
Proved with a birth certificate; the protection ends on the day the child turns 3.
Item 2: An employee redeployed on health grounds (трудоустроен)
A valid ТЕЛК decision is required; the opinion of ТЕЛК under para. 2 is mandatory.
Item 3: An employee suffering from an illness under Ordinance No. 5/1987
The list includes ischaemic heart disease, active tuberculosis, cancer, occupational disease, mental illness and diabetes.
Item 4: An employee who has started permitted leave
Any kind of leave: annual, unpaid, sick leave, and so on.
Item 5: An employee representative under Art. 7(2) and Art. 7а КТ
The election is evidenced by the minutes of the general meeting.
Item 5а: A health and safety representative
Under Art. 27 of the Health and Safety at Work Act (ЗЗБУТ) and Ordinance No. 4/1998.
Item 6: A member of a special negotiating body or a European works council
Under Art. 7 of the Act on Informing and Consulting Employees in Multinational Enterprises.
Outside this list there is no protection under para. 1. So, for example, in the settled practice of the ВКС mayors’ deputies (кметски наместници) under Art. 46а of the Local Self-Government and Local Administration Act (ЗМСМА) do not enjoy the protection of Art. 333 КТ, because their relationship with the municipal administration is not an employment one but a service one. The same applies to persons whose employment relationship arose through a competition or election procedure with a separate procedure for termination.
Grounds for which permission is required
Permission from ИА ГИТ is needed only for the five grounds expressly listed in para. 1. This narrowing is a matter of principle: the list is exhaustive, and the rule of extensive interpretation does not apply to restrictive provisions.
| Ground | Provision | Permission required? |
|---|---|---|
| Closure of the enterprise / staff reduction | Art. 328(1), item 2 КТ | Yes |
| Reduction of the volume of work | Art. 328(1), item 3 КТ | Yes |
| Lack of qualities for effective performance | Art. 328(1), item 5 КТ | Yes |
| Change in the requirements for the position | Art. 328(1), item 11 КТ | Yes |
| Disciplinary dismissal where continuing is objectively impossible | Art. 330(2), item 6 КТ | Yes |
| Termination by mutual agreement | Art. 325 КТ | No |
| Expiry of a fixed-term contract | Art. 325(1), item 3 КТ | No |
| Disciplinary dismissal under Art. 330(2), item 6 (other than those listed) | Art. 330(2), items 1 to 5 КТ | No |
Cases in which the employer must ask for prior permission.
Procedure for prior permission before ИА ГИТ
The procedure for obtaining permission is administrative and follows the Administrative Procedure Code (АПК) in conjunction with Art. 333 КТ and the Labour Inspection Act. The request is submitted before the dismissal order is served and must be in writing with specific reasons for the ground. ИА ГИТ rules by a reasoned written act, which can be challenged under the АПК.
Procedure before the Labour Inspectorate
Establishing the protected status
The employer establishes that the employee falls into one of the categories under Art. 333(1) КТ before taking any step towards termination.
Written request to the relevant ДИТ
A written request is submitted to the “Labour Inspectorate” Directorate (ДИТ) for the place where the workplace is located, stating the specific ground under Art. 328(1) or Art. 330(2), item 6 КТ.
Opinion of ТЕЛК (under items 2 and 3 of para. 1)
In the cases under Art. 333(2) КТ, the opinion of the Territorial Expert Medical Commission must also be obtained before the dismissal. The absence of a ТЕЛК opinion is a separate ground of unlawfulness.
Ruling by ИА ГИТ
ИА ГИТ issues a reasoned written act (permission or refusal). The act is served on the employer; the employee is not a party to the proceedings under Art. 333 КТ.
Only after receiving the written permission can the employer issue and serve the termination order. Service is the moment the protection takes effect (see the ВКС practice).
Appealing a refusal
A refusal by ИА ГИТ to give permission can be appealed under the АПК before the administrative court. The appeal does not suspend the effect of the refusal.
Labour Code (КТ)
Art. 333(2)
The ТЕЛК opinion is an additional procedural requirement, not a substitute for the permission of ИА ГИТ.
Official Bulgarian text
„В случаите по точки 2 и 3 на алинея 1 на чл. 333 от КТ преди уволнението се взема и мнението на трудово-експертната лекарска комисия (ТЕЛК).“
Ask Pravko and get an answer with citations from the law.
ВКС practice: established trends
In the settled practice of the ВКС several stable positions emerge, which a lawyer must know before bringing a claim under Art. 344 КТ or defending an employer in proceedings challenging a dismissal.
When the protection takes effect: service, not issue
The first stable position concerns the moment at which the presence of the protected status is assessed. According to Decision No. 60092 of 7 June 2021 in civil case No. 3661/2019 of the ВКС, Fourth Civil Division, the assessment is made at the moment the dismissal order is served, not at the moment it is issued. This solution is a logical consequence of the fact that the termination order takes effect precisely from its service, and the prior permission must exist at that same moment.
Supreme Court of Cassation (ВКС), Fourth Civil Division
Decision No. 60092 of 7 June 2021 in civil case No. 3661/2019
The main reference point for when the protection takes effect.
Official Bulgarian text
„Моментът на действие на закрилата по чл. 333 КТ е моментът на връчване на заповедта за уволнение. Към същия момент се преценява и наличието на защитеното качество.“
The burden of proof lies on the employer
The second stable position concerns the distribution of the burden of proof. Once the employee has established the protected status at the moment of service, the burden of establishing that proper permission from ИА ГИТ exists passes to the employer. The employee cannot be required to prove a negative fact (that there is no permission).
A later permission does not cure the dismissal
The third stable position is that permission given after the order has been served has no legal value. The lawfulness of the dismissal is assessed at the moment it was carried out, and the absence of permission at that moment cannot be replaced by a later permission, even if it is issued on the same facts.
Mayors’ deputies are outside the protection
The fourth stable position, established in the practice of the ВКС, is that mayors’ deputies (кметски наместници) under Art. 46а ЗМСМА do not enjoy the protection of Art. 333 КТ. The same applies to other categories of officials whose relationship with the local self-government body is not an employment one but a service one within the meaning of the Civil Servants Act (ЗДСл) or a special law.
Trade union protection under Art. 333(4) КТ: the distinction
Beyond the “administrative” protection under para. 1, Art. 333 КТ also establishes trade union protection in paras. 3 and 4. It applies on the dismissal of an employee who is a member of a trade union leadership at the moment the order is served, and requires prior consent of the relevant trade union body (not of ИА ГИТ). The protection continues for six months after release from the trade union position.
Interpretative Decision No. 4/2013 of the ОСГК of the ВКС
| Criterion | Protection under Art. 333(1) КТ | Trade union protection under Art. 333(3) and (4) КТ |
|---|---|---|
| Body that gives permission | The Labour Inspectorate (ИА ГИТ) | The trade union body |
| Protected persons | 7 categories, items 1 to 6 | Members of a trade union leadership |
| Duration of the protection | While the protected status lasts | At the time and for up to 6 months after release |
| Form of the act | Written permission | Written consent |
| Express reproduction in the КТД required | No | Yes (Interpretative Decision No. 4/2013 of the ОСГК of the ВКС) |
| Appeal | A refusal is appealed under the АПК | Cannot be challenged by the employer |
The two regimes of protection under Art. 333 КТ, which practice often confuses.
Consequences of dismissal without prior permission
A dismissal carried out without the prior permission under Art. 333 КТ (where such permission was needed) is unlawful. The employee has the full set of grounds for a claim under Art. 344(1) КТ: a declaration that the dismissal is unlawful and its annulment, reinstatement in the previous job, compensation for the time spent without work, and correction of the ground for dismissal.
Labour Code (КТ)
Art. 344(1)
Official Bulgarian text
„Работникът или служителят има право да оспорва законността на уволнението пред съда и да иска: 1. признаване на уволнението за незаконно и неговата отмяна; 2. възстановяване на предишната работа; 3. обезщетение за времето, през което е останал без работа поради уволнението; 4. поправка на основанието за уволнение, вписано в трудовата книжка или в други документи.“
Labour Code (КТ)
Art. 225(1)
The amount of compensation under Art. 344(1), item 3 КТ.
Official Bulgarian text
„При незаконно уволнение работникът или служителят има право на обезщетение от работодателя в размер на брутното му трудово възнаграждение за времето, през което е останал без работа поради уволнението, но не повече от 6 месеца.“
Particular attention should be paid to the preclusive time limit for bringing a claim under Art. 344(1) КТ. It is two months, runs from the day of termination and cannot be restored. Missing the deadline leads to the claim being dismissed as time-barred, regardless of the obvious defects of the dismissal.
Labour Code (КТ)
Art. 358(1), item 2
A preclusive time limit that cannot be restored.
Official Bulgarian text
„Срокът за искове за прекратяване на трудовите правоотношения и за защита на работниците или служителите срещу незаконни уволнения е двумесечен. Срокът тече от деня на прекратяването.“
No possibility of cure
A practical checklist for lawyers
Before taking on a case to defend an employee in a claim under Art. 344 КТ, or advising an employer on the validity of a planned dismissal, go systematically through the following steps.
Checklist under Art. 333 КТ
For defending an employee and for defending an employer.
Establish which of the protected statuses exists at the moment the order is SERVED (not at the moment it is issued).*
Ask for written evidence of the protected status: birth certificate, a valid ТЕЛК decision, a certificate of election as a representative, an order for permitted leave.*
Check whether the dismissal is on a ground under Art. 328(1), items 2, 3, 5, 11 or Art. 330(2), item 6 КТ: permission is required only in these cases.*
For dismissal under items 2 and 3 of para. 1, check whether the opinion of ТЕЛК under Art. 333(2) КТ was obtained.*
Ask for a copy of the written permission of ИА ГИТ and check that it was issued BEFORE the order was served.*
Check whether the permission was given for the same ground on which the dismissal was carried out (a permission given for another ground cannot be used).*
Calculate the two-month preclusive time limit under Art. 358(1), item 2 КТ. It runs from the day of termination.*
For trade union protection, check the exact text of the КТД (Interpretative Decision No. 4/2013 of the ОСГК of the ВКС).
Without exact reproduction of the law in the КТД, the protection under para. 4 does not apply.
* Mandatory documents
Common mistakes in practice
Further procedural details on claims against dismissal, including tactics for gathering evidence, the distribution of the burden of proof and court fees, are covered in the related analyses on the Pravko blog.
Recommended additional sources and official publications: full text of the Labour Code (lex.bg), explanation by ИА ГИТ, Interpretative Decision No. 4/2013 of the ОСГК of the ВКС (PDF), Decision No. 60092 of 7 June 2021 of the ВКС, Fourth Civil Division, Ordinance No. 5/1987 on the diseases with special protection under Art. 333(1), item 3 КТ.
Pravko provides legal information but does not replace consultation with a lawyer. For important legal questions, consult a licensed lawyer.
⚠️ Important
Pravko provides legal information, but it does not replace advice from a lawyer. For important legal matters, consult a licensed lawyer.
