Foreign Ministry’s Legalisations and Certifications Sector has Longer Hours of Operation
22 November 2017 News
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Legalisations and Certifications Sector has changed its hours of operation. The staff of the Sector is now at the disposal of citizens from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. every working day, and not between 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., as was the case so far.
Documents for an accelerated service can be submitted from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, and the processed documents can be claimed on the next working day between 9:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Documents for an express service will be accepted from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, and the ready documents can be received on the same working day, between 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Documents for an ordinary service can be submitted throughout the opening hours, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The change is intended to facilitate and speed up administrative service procedures for citizens. This is the underlying idea of the Customer Service Charter endorsed by an order of Deputy Prime Minister for Judicial Reform and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zahariva dated 14 November 2017.
The document, which is published on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at http://www.mfa.bg/uploads/files/Consular/Harta.pdf (available in Bulgarian only), details the objectives that the Ministry sets itself to optimise the administrative services offered and the standards which the Ministry maintains in order to ensure high-quality services for citizens. Under the standards laid down, every staff member must wear a badge displaying his or her photograph, name, position, administration and unit. Staff members are obliged to treat members of the public with courtesy, attention and respect, to be responsive and to honour their rights and personal dignity. They must take all the necessary actions for the appropriate provision of the services, meeting deadlines as applicable.
The Charter also informs customers of the types of administrative services available, the hours of operation and the addresses of the administrative services units at the Head Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and of the consular posts of the Republic of Bulgaria abroad.
Citizens can learn from the Charter about their consumer rights and the procedure for submitting alerts, suggestions and complaints in connection with administrative services.
Another option for feedback from service users is by collecting and analysing a questionnaire which is also accessible on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at http://www.mfa.bg/bg/pages/44/index.html (in Bulgarian only). The survey is anonymous, and the information gathered by it will be used to improve the quality of administrative services provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This is the latest in a series of measures taken by the leadership of the institution to reduce the administrative burden and ease customer service arrangements.