Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond

What Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond does

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond (DSRF) is a Denmark-based nonprofit (selvejende organisation) founded in 2007 that provides free legal aid, economic and debt counseling, and social-professional advice to financially vulnerable and socially marginalized citizens. The organization operates three physical offices — its main office in Aarhus, a full-service office in Copenhagen, and a debt-counseling-only office in Aalborg — supplemented by a national phone hotline, online contact forms, and a dedicated prison outreach program called Fængselsrejseholdet, which conducts monthly visits to most Danish prisons and (as of March 2025) detention facilities. Its core service lines cover tenant law, immigration law, social law, and family law; budget planning, creditor negotiation, and debt restructuring; and navigation of public systems for benefits, addiction treatment, psychiatric guidance, and housing. End clients are primarily Danish citizens below the fri proces income threshold (371,000 DKK for singles and 471,000 DKK for couples in 2024) and individuals with current or prior connection to the Danish prison service, with the organization serving 4,000-5,000 citizens annually.

The organization runs on a community-led model: approximately 85% of its 80-100 total workforce consists of unpaid volunteers and interns, supported by a small paid leadership team across each city. It is financed entirely through grants from a diversified base of public and private funders, including the municipalities of Aarhus, København, and Aalborg; state agencies such as Social- og Boligstyrelsen, Civilstyrelsen, and Danmarks Fængsler; and private foundations including Augustinus Fonden, Velux Fonden, Hoffmann & Husmans Fond, Danske Banks Fond, Lemvigh-Müller Fonden, and Aage og Johanne Louis-Hansens Fond. All services are provided free of charge to qualifying clients. Technology is not a differentiator — the platform consists of standard case and contact management systems — and the organization received full accreditation from the branch association RådgivningsDanmark in December 2023 (certificate formally presented February 2024, valid through 2027).

Distribution is multi-channel: physical offices, a national phone line, web-based contact form portal, partner referrals from municipalities, Kriminalforsorgen and the Retssikkerhedsnetværket network, and the Fængselsrejseholdet prison outreach program. Marketing is non-paid, relying on social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn), word-of-mouth, and the organization's reputation as one of Denmark's largest legal aid and debt counseling organizations. 2023 user evaluations showed an 89% above-average rating (on a 4% response rate), indicating strong client satisfaction among respondents.

Name

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond

Legal name

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond

Website

https://socialeretshjaelp.dk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond is a Danish nonprofit founded in 2007 providing free legal aid, debt counseling, and social advice to citizens below the income threshold for legal aid and to individuals connected to the Danish prison service, serving 4,000-5,000 citizens annually through three offices and a nationwide prison outreach program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Legal Aid Services

NAICS

Social Assistance (624), Health Care and Social Assistance (62), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Care & Long-Term Care Benefits Administration (BPAIAKAK)

Keywords

• Legal aid services
• Debt counseling
• Social counseling
• Nonprofit advisory
• Free legal services

Headquarters

HQ city

Aarhus

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Grants and Subsidies: The organization is a self-governing institution financed entirely through support from public pools and private foundations. Funding sources include Augustinus Fonden, Social- og Boligstyrelsen, Civilstyrelsen, Hoffmann & Husmans Fond, Danske Banks Fond, Danmarks Fængsler, Lemvigh-Müller Fonden, Aalborg Kommune, Københavns Kommune, Velux Fonden, Aarhus Kommune, and Aage og Johanne Louis-Hansens Fond. All advice is provided free of charge to clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond is a Danish nonprofit organization that provides free legal advice, economic and debt counseling, and social professional counseling to vulnerable citizens. Its core offerings are three advisory tracks — juridisk rådgivning (legal advice covering tenant, immigration, social, and family law), økonomi- og gældsrådgivning (economic and debt counseling including budgeting and creditor negotiation), and socialfaglig rådgivning (social counseling navigating public benefits and services) — delivered via three physical offices, a national phone line, online contact forms, and a prison outreach program (Fængselsrejseholdet).

Product overview

Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond operates as a non-profit legal aid and debt counseling organization offering three core counseling tracks: Legal Advice (Juridisk Rådgivning), Economic and Debt Counseling (Økonomi- og Gældsrådgivning), and Social Professional Counseling (Socialfaglig Rådgivning). Citizens access services primarily through a web-based contact form portal (portal.socialeretshjaelp.dk). The organization also operates Fængselsrejseholdet, an outreach project visiting Danish prisons and detention facilities. All counseling is free and funded by public grants and private foundations. The organization has offices in Aarhus, Copenhagen, and Aalborg and serves 4,000-5,000 citizens annually.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Juridisk Rådgivning (Legal Counseling) Free legal advice and guidance covering tenant law, immigration law, social law, and family law. Available for Danish citizens whose income falls below the threshold for fri proses (free legal aid) — 371,000 DKK/year for singles and 471,000 DKK/year for married or cohabiting applicants in 2024.
• Økonomi- og Gældsrådgivning (Economic and Debt Counseling) Free financial and debt counseling including budget planning, creditor negotiation, preparation of debt overviews, and guidance on debt relief or debt restructuring. Primary target group is people with current or previous connection to Danish prisons (Danmarks Fængsler). Available in Aarhus, Copenhagen, and Aalborg.
• Socialfaglig Rådgivning (Social Professional Counseling) Free social counseling helping citizens navigate the Danish public system in relation to benefits, addiction treatment, psychiatric guidance, housing, and family law matters. Acts as a bridge between vulnerable citizens and public authorities.
• Fængselsrejseholdet (Prison Travel Team) Outreach project that visits Danish prisons, detention facilities, and re-entry prisons monthly to provide free economic and debt counseling, legal advice, and social counseling to inmates and former inmates across Denmark.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4,000-5,000 citizens helped annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• RådgivningsDanmarkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 December 2023Branch association for nonprofit organizations providing free social counseling. DSRF received full accreditation of all advisory services from this organization. RådgivningsDanmark represents member organizations' interests and promotes professional and organizational development.
• Danmarks Fængsler (Kriminalforsorgen)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe organization's largest partner. Collaboration on the Fængselsrejseholdet project, which provides free economic and debt counseling as well as legal and social advice to inmates preparing for release. DSRF visits most of Denmark's prison facilities monthly, contributing to the resocialization of citizens after release.
• Vidensfunktionen (Den Nationale Vidensfunktion for Frivillig og Vederlagsfri Økonomi- og Gældsrådgivning)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational knowledge function for voluntary and free economic and debt counseling. DSRF is an active member, adhering to quality standards developed with Deloitte. Organization participates in newsletters and shares knowledge internally.
• Aarhus KommunemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in 'En vej ud af hjemløshed' (A Path Out of Homelessness) initiative. Collaboration with municipality and multiple local actors working on homelessness in Aarhus. Partners share knowledge and experiences to develop better and more effective initiatives against homelessness.
• RetssikkerhedsnetværketminorOthersNetwork for legal security. DSRF participates in this network alongside other legal aid organizations.
• Netværk for Digital InklusionminorOthersNetwork under Digitaliseringsstyrelsen (Agency for Digital Government) focused on digital inclusion.
• VærdigReformminorOthersReform initiative focused on dignity in social welfare.
• Udsatterådet for Region MidtjyllandminorOthersAdvisory council for vulnerable citizens in the Central Denmark Region.
• Netværk for Socialt AnsvarminorOthersNetwork for social responsibility.
• Zealand ErhvervsakademiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDSRF's Copenhagen office participates in internship programs with the academy. The economics and debt counseling department was nominated as finalist for Årets Zealand Praktik in 2024.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Gadejuristen: Copenhagen-based nonprofit providing free legal aid, counseling, and social support to homeless and socially marginalized citizens in Denmark. Highly comparable model: volunteer-driven, free services, and overlapping client population with DSRF.
• KFUM's Sociale Arbejde (KFUM Social Work): Danish YMCA-affiliated social work organization providing counseling and social support to vulnerable adults including people with addiction, homelessness, and debt issues. Overlaps heavily on social counseling and debt advice for vulnerable Danes.
• Kirkens Korshær: Danish church-based social welfare organization providing social counseling, debt advice, and support for vulnerable citizens including former prisoners. Comparable nonprofit social services and debt counseling portfolio, distributed across multiple Danish locations.
• Retshjælpen: Danish nonprofit legal aid organization offering free legal advice to citizens who cannot afford a lawyer. Direct competitor in the same free legal aid space with similar income-threshold eligibility and volunteer-based delivery.

Emerging players

• Ældresagen: Denmark's largest membership organization for elderly citizens, providing advice including legal and social guidance. Comparable on free advisory services for older Danes, though focused on a single age cohort.
• Børns Vilkår: Danish children's welfare organization offering counseling, advice, and support services to children and families. Comparable nonprofit advisory model for vulnerable populations, though targeted at a different demographic segment.

Broad incumbents

• Røde Kors Danmark (Danish Red Cross): Major Danish humanitarian organization with social support, debt counseling, and prison visitation programs (including in detention facilities). Overlaps with DSRF on social advice and the Fængselsrejseholdet-style prison outreach, but at significantly greater scale.
• Dansk Flygtningehjælp (Danish Refugee Council): One of Denmark's largest NGOs, providing legal aid and counseling specifically to refugees and immigrants. Comparable on legal advice and social support offerings, but operates at much larger scale and focuses on a narrower population.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/retshjaelp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/den-sociale-retshj-lp
• Instagraminstagram.com/densocialeretshjaelp
• Xx.com/DSRetshjaelp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Den Sociale Retshjælps Fond