March 22 (SeeNews) - The European Commission said on Tuesday it gave the green light to Bulgaria's 12.78 million euro ($14.1 million) support scheme for tour operators that had to reduce or stop activities as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and related government restrictions to curb its spread.
The decision means that Bulgaria will reintroduce a measure, which was already approved by the Commission in July 2020 but expired at the end of 2021, it said in a statement. The scheme will be in the form of direct grants.
Under the scheme, tour operators are entitled to compensation of 35 euro per passenger who booked a travel package with them, including a flight to Bulgaria between June 1, 2021 and May 14, 2022.
The aid will not exceed 2.3 million euro per beneficiary and will be granted no later than June 30, 2022.
All tour operators that hold a valid operating licence in Bulgaria will be eligible to apply for the grants, regardless of their country of registration and the country of origin of the traveller.
($ = 0.9066 euro)