The directorate said on Facebook that its staff took part in an international operation against labour exploitation. Over one week, officials identified 248 victims of human trafficking and arrested 27 suspected traffickers.
The operation ran from 14 to 20 September 2026 under Swedish leadership. It was part of EMPACT, the European platform against criminal threats. Services from 34 countries, including Bulgaria, took part, along with Europol and the European Labour Authority (ELA). Border guards, tax officials and labour and social security inspectors also joined.
Checks focused on high-risk sectors: farming, construction, hotels, beauty salons and massage parlours. Some of the trafficking cases involved sexual exploitation, forced begging and domestic work. There were other types too.
Men make up 73% of the victims. They are most often exploited in construction (28%), hotels (21%) and farming (8%). Most women were found in beauty salons and massage parlours.
About 5% of the victims are minors. They were used for forced begging, construction work and sexual coercion. Most victims come from Vietnam, China, India and the Philippines.
The arrested suspected traffickers include citizens of Hungary, Vietnam, Montenegro and the Netherlands. Another 86 suspects were arrested for related crimes, such as illegal employment and prostitution.
Bulgaria received more than 60 reports of trafficking victims in the first six months of 2026, whether formally or informally identified. Vanya Georgieva, a senior expert at the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, told BTA in September. Of the victims, 17 are children.