Zakon o ratifikaciji Sporazuma med Vlado Republike Slovenije in Vlado Republike Bolgarije o ponovnem sprejemu oseb (BBOPSO)

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia and the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria (hereinafter referred to as the Contracting Parties),
    with a desire to facilitate, in the spirit of good co-operation and on mutual basis, the readmission of persons, whose entry into or residence on the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party is contrary to the national law;
    have agreed as follows:

I. READMISSION OF CITIZENS OF THE STATES OF THE CONTRACTING PARTIES

Article 1

(1) Each Contracting Party shall, upon request of the other Contracting Party and without any formalities, readmit to the territory of its State any person, who does not or does not any longer, comply with the conditions for entry or stay, applicable on the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party, if it is ascertained or presumed, that such person has citizenship of the State of the requested Contracting Party.
    (2) Citizenship may be ascertained or presumed on the basis of the documents, mentioned in Annex 1 to this Agreement. Citizenship may also be presumed on the basis of other data.
    (3) The requesting Contracting Party shall, under the same conditions, accept back on the territory of its State a readmitted person, if it has been ascertained through further verification that at the moment of leaving the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party, the said person did not have citizenship of the State of the requested Contracting Party.

II. READMISSION OF CITIZENS OF THIRD STATES AND STATELESS PERSONS

Article 2

(1) Each Contracting Party shall readmit to its territory, upon request of the other Contracting Party and without any formalities, a citizen of a third state or a stateless person, who does not, or does not any longer comply with the conditions for entry or stay applicable on the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party, if it has been ascertained that such a person had entered the territory of the State of the Contracting Party after having sojourned in or travelled through the territory of the State of the requested Contracting Party.
    (2) Each Contracting Party shall, upon request of the other Contracting Party and without any formalities, readmit a citizen of a third state or a stateless person who does not, or does not any longer comply with the conditions for entry or stay applicable on the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party, if such a person has a valid visa or any other valid residence permit, issued by the requested Contracting Party.

Article 3

The obligation of readmission as provided in Article 2 shall not apply in case of:
    a) citizens of third states that have a common state border with the State of the requesting Contracting Party, and stateless persons who have a valid residence permit, issued by the competent authorities of such a third neighbouring State;
    b) citizens of third states or stateless persons who, before or after they left the territory of the State of the requested Contracting Party or after they entered the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party, obtained a visa or residence permit from the latter or entered its territory on the basis of existing agreement for visa free travel;
    c) citizens of third states or stateless persons who have resided for the last three months on the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party;
    d) citizens of third states or stateless persons who were rercognised by the requesting Contracting Party as having either the status of refugee on the basis of the provisions of the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees of 28 July 1951 and the provisions of the New York Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees of 31 January 1967, or the status of stateless person on the basis of the New York Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons of 28 September 1954;
    e) citizens of third states or stateless persons, actually returned by the requested Contracting Party to their state of origin or to any other third state;
    f) citizens of third states or stateless persons who have been granted a valid visa or any other authorisation for residence by the transit State after they had left the territory of the requested Contracting Party.

Article 4

(1) The requesting Contracting Party agrees to accept back to the territory of its State those citizens of a third state or stateless persons for whom it may be ascertained, after adequate verification carried out by the requested Contracting Party, that they do not comply with the clauses under Articles 2 and 3 of the present Agreement at the time of their departure from the territory of the State of the requesting Contracting Party.
    (2) If both Contracting Parties have issued a visa or a residence permit, responsibility will reside with the Contracting Party whose visa or residence permit was issued later.

III. READMISSION PROCEDURE

Article 5

(1) The requested Contracting Party is obliged to answer in writing the request for readmission within eight days after it was received. Any refusal of readmission must be founded.
    (2) Persons, to whom readmission is granted shall be readmitted within a maximum period of thirty days from the date of the receipt of the consent of requested Contracting Party. The said period can be extended by mutual agreement.

Article 6

In the case of return of persons in accordance with Article 1, paragraph (3) or Article 4, paragraph (1), the requested Contracting Party is obliged to confirm in writing the return of the person and to hand over all documentation received from the requesting Contracting Party in connection with the initial readmission of that person.

Article 7

The requesting Contracting Party shall cover the expenses of transportation of persons to be readmitted to the border of the State of the requested Contracting Party. The requesting Contracting Party shall also, if necessary, bear all expenses for the readmission of persons.

IV. TRANSIT IN CASE OF REJECTION

Article 8

(1) Each Contracting Party shall, at the request of the other Contracting Party, allow citizens of third states or stateless persons to transit in course of readmission through the territory of its State, if admission into the next possible States of transit and/or to the State of destination is assured. Transiting may be carried out by road, rail or air transport.
    (2) The requesting Contracting Party shall take full responsibility for the continuation of the travel of such person to the State of final destination and shall accept back such person, if for any reason the measure of rejection cannot be carried out.
    (3) The requesting Contracting Party shall confirm to the requested Contracting Party that the person for whom the transit was granted, has a travel document and a document for transportation to the State of final destination.

Article 9

(1) The requesting Contracting Party shall inform the requested Contracting Party in case the rejectted person needs an escort. The requested Contracting Party may, in connection with the transit:
    – dedide to appoint its own escort;
    – decide to appoint escort in agreement with the competent authorities of the requesting Contracting Party.
    (2) If transit is performed by the requesting Contracting Party’s designated airline company and with a police escort, the persons in transit may not leave the transit zones of the airports of the requested Contracting Party.
    (3) If transit is performed by the requested Contracting Party’s designated airline company the police escort is provided for by the competent authorities of this Contracting Party.
    (4) If transit must, exceptionally, be carried out by road or railway, the Contracting Parties shall agree about the necessity and modality of the escort.

Article 10

(1) The request for transit shall be exchanged directly between the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties.
    (2) The request should contain all data pertaining to the identity of the person to be transited, as mentioned in Annex 2 to this Agreement.

Article 11

Transit in course of readmission may be rejected:
    – if the citizen of a third state or stateless person is prosecuted in his/her final destination state, or in any other transit country, because of his/her race, religion, ethnicity or membership of a certain social group or because of his/her political opinion;
    – if the citizen of a third state or stateless person is threatened to be prosecuted or sentenced in the state of final destination or in any other transit country for criminal offences committed before the transit;
    – if the citizen of a third state or stateless person is declared “persona non grata” on the territory of the State of the requested Contracting Party or if that person’s transit passage represents a threat to national security, public order or health.

Article 12

(1) The requesting Contracting Party shall cover all the expenses of transit to the border of the state of final destination, as well as all possible expenses which may occur in the case of possible return.
    (2) The requested Contracting Party shall cover the expenses of police escort in the transit zones of airports on the territory of its State.

V. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 13

The Contracting Parties shall define through the diplomatic channels:
    – the competent authorities responsible for the treatment of applications for readmission or transit;
    – the airports and other international border crossing points that may be used for the readmission or entrance of persons in transit.

Article 14

Insofar as personal data have to be communicated in order to implement this Agreement, such information should contain the data, as mentioned in Annex 2 to this Agreement.

Article 15

(1) The provisions of the present Agreement shall not prevent the application of the provisions of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950.
    (2) The provisions of the present Agreement shall not prevent the application of the provisions of the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees of 28 July 1951, complemented by the New York Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees of 31 January 1967 and the New York Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons of 28 September 1954.
    (3) The provisions of the present Agreement shall not interfere with any obligations for the readmission or return of citizens of third states or stateless persons which derive from other international agreements in force for the Contracting Parties.

Article 16

(19 This Agreement is concluded for an indefinite period and shall enter into force thirty days from the date of receipt of the last note, confirming completion of the internal procedures realting to its entry into force.
    (2) Each Contracting Party may suspend this Agreement by notification to the other Contracting Party, with the exception of provisions regulating the readmission of the citizens of the States of the Contracting Parties, on important grounds, in particular on grounds of the protection of state security, public order or public health. The suspension shall become effective immediately.
    (3) Each Contracting Party may terminate this Agreement by notification to the other Contracting Party. The termination shall become effective on the first day of the second month following the month in which notification was received by the other Contracting Party.
    In confirmation of the above, the representatives of both Contracting Parties, duly authorised for this purpose, have signed the present Agreement.
    Done at Sofia on the 30th day of June 1998 in two copies in Slovenian, Bulgarian and English languages, all three texts being equally authentic. In case of any dispute or difference in the interpretation of the present Agreement, the English text shall prevail.

ANNEX 1
    to the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and     the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria on the readmission of persons

Citizenship may be ascertained or presumed on the basis of the following documents of the Republic of Slovenia:
    – citizenship certificate;
    – passport;
    – identity card;
    even if such documents were issued incorrectly or if they expired not more than three years previously.
    Citizenship may be ascertained or presumed on the basis of the following documents of the Republic of Bulgaria:
    – document of national identity;
    – passport or a substitute travel document with a photograph (laissez-passez);
    – military identity card of Armed Forces personnel with bearer’s photograph;
    even if such documents were issued incorrectly or if they expired not more than three years previously.

ANNEX 2
    to the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria on the readmission of persons

Insofar as personal data have to be communicated in order to implement this Agreement, such information should contain the following:
    a) the particulars of the person and, when necessary, of the members of the person’s family, such as: surname, given name, any previous names, nicknames or pseudonyms, aliases, date and place of birth, sex, current and any previous citizenship;
    b) passport, travel document, laissez-passer or any other identity document (number, date of issue, issuing authority, place of issue, period of validity, territory of validity);
    c) other details needed to identify the person;
    d) intineraries;
    e) entry permits issued by one of the Contracting Parties or a third state, their descriptions;
    f) if necessary, the need for special assistance to elderly or sick persons should be notified.