Deystvie

What Deystvie does

Deystvie (legal name: LGBTI DEYSTVIE ASSOCIATION) is a Bulgarian non-profit organization that provides pro bono legal assistance and representation to LGBTIQ+ people in Bulgaria and abroad. Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Sofia, it operates the National LGBTI Legal Programme across five Bulgarian cities — Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, and Veliko Tarnovo — delivering free legal consultations and representation to beneficiaries facing discrimination, hate crimes, non-recognition of same-sex marriages, gender marker change requests, and other human-rights violations. The organization extends services to LGBTI Bulgarians living abroad through its Rainbow Justice programme and maintains a dedicated hate-incident intake platform at nohate.deystvie.org.

Deystvie's core "products" are its legal programs rather than technology platforms. The most strategically significant service is strategic litigation, which has produced binding precedents — notably the December 2023 Supreme Administrative Court ruling obligating Bulgaria to recognise same-sex marriages contracted abroad for EU free-movement residence rights — and a constitutional complaint pipeline routed through the Bulgarian Ombudsman to the Constitutional Court. The organization produces original content (books, reports, the "Think Freedom" documentary, and a Spotify podcast) and maintains outreach presences on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. There is no proprietary technology stack or software platform described beyond the Wix-hosted website and standard form-based intake tools.

As a non-profit, Deystvie has no commercial revenue model. Funding flows from international institutional donors — the EEA and Norway Grants (110,820 EUR for the National LGBTI Legal Programme), the EU Rights and Values programme, the Active Citizens Fund, the Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation, the Sigrid Rausing Trust, the Bulgarian Fund for Women, and the Single Step Foundation — supplemented by individual donations via PayPal and bank transfer (IBAN: BG20UNCR70001523122810). All legal services are provided free of charge. The go-to-market is community-led and direct-to-beneficiary, with no intermediaries or resellers.

Name

Deystvie

Legal name

LGBTI DEYSTVIE ASSOCIATION

Website

https://en.deystvie.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Deystvie is a Bulgarian non-profit providing pro bono legal assistance, strategic litigation, and advocacy to LGBTIQ+ people in Bulgaria, operating across five cities and supported by EU, EEA, and international foundation grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Rights Legal Aid Services

NAICS

Social Assistance (624)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

LGBTQ+ Rights & Advocacy Organizations (BPAGAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Gender Equality & Women’s Rights Advocacy (BPAGAFAD)

Keywords

• Legal aid services
• Civil rights advocacy
• Pro bono legal
• LGBTI legal assistance
• Human rights legal

Headquarters

HQ city

Sofia

HQ country

Bulgaria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel

Revenue model

1. Foundation and Trust Grants: Deystvie receives funding from international foundations and trusts including The Sigrid Rausing Trust and Open Society Institute - Sofia Foundation (OSI). These grants support the organization's operational costs and specific programmes.
2. EU Funding: The organization receives funding from the European Union, including the Rights and Values programme and the EEA and Norway Grants (110,820 EUR for the National LGBTI Legal Programme). Funding also comes through the Active Citizens Fund.
3. Donations: Deystvie accepts donations through PayPal and bank transfer (IBAN: BG20UNCR70001523122810). Individual donors can contribute to support the organization's mission of providing legal assistance to the LGBTIQ+ community.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Deystvie provides free pro bono legal assistance, consultation, and representation to LGBTIQ+ individuals in Bulgaria who face discrimination or human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Its services cover discrimination cases, same-sex marriage recognition, birth certificate registration for same-sex parents, gender marker changes, and hate crime reporting, delivered through the National LGBTI Legal Programme operating in five Bulgarian cities and complemented by strategic litigation before the Supreme Administrative Court and Constitutional Court.

Product overview

Deystvie is a Bulgarian LGBTI organization offering a unified suite of legal assistance services centered around its National LGBTI Legal Program, which provides free legal aid and representation to LGBTIQ+ people in Bulgaria. The organization operates through multiple channels: direct legal consultations and representation in courts, a dedicated incident reporting platform for hate crimes and discrimination, strategic litigation to establish legal precedent, advocacy initiatives before the Constitutional Court, and educational content including publications, films, and podcasts. Services are delivered across five cities in Bulgaria with support from international donors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• National LGBTI Legal Programme (Национална ЛГБТИ Правна програма) A free legal programme providing direct access to legal protection and assistance for the LGBTIQ+ community, operating in Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, and Veliko Tarnovo.
• Pro Bono Legal Assistance and Representation Free legal consultation and representation for victims of discrimination and human rights violations based on sexual orientation or gender identity, provided through the National LGBTI Legal Programme.
• Incident Reporting Platform (nohate.deystvie.org) A dedicated online platform that allows individuals to report discrimination incidents or hate crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity, feeding cases into Deystvie's legal aid workflow.
• Strategic Litigation Services Legal representation and strategic court cases designed to establish precedent for LGBTIQ+ rights in Bulgaria, including matters before the Supreme Administrative Court and Constitutional Court.
• Rainbow Justice A legal affairs programme specifically for LGBTI Bulgarians living abroad, providing assistance with the recognition of same-sex relationships, family rights, and cross-border family reunification under EU law.

Quantifiable outcome

• Supreme Administrative Court ruling in favor of same-sex couple seeking marriage recognition for residence permit purposes
• +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

One partnership is on record.

• Single Step FoundationkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Single Step Foundation collaborated with Deystvie and Assoc. Prof. Deyana Marcheva to submit a request to the Bulgarian Ombudsman to exercise constitutional powers and refer matters to the Constitutional Court regarding discrimination against the LGBTI community.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ILGA-Europe: European umbrella federation of LGBTIQ+ organizations advocating at EU level and coordinating member NGOs. Broader incumbent covering pan-European policy work that Deystvie plugs into as a Bulgarian member.

Others

• Open Society Foundations: Major international donor funding LGBTIQ+ rights litigation across CEE; ecosystem participant that both funds Deystvie (via OSI-Sofia) and shapes the strategic-litigation ecosystem Deystvie operates in.
• European Court of Human Rights: The supranational court whose rulings (e.g., on Bulgaria's recognition obligations) directly shape Deystvie's strategic litigation thesis and create the 2025 legislative-change deadline.

Direct peers

• ACCEPT Association: Romania's longest-running LGBTIQ+ NGO providing legal aid, advocacy, and community services. Closest direct peer in the same Balkan/ECE regional context with overlapping legal-services-plus-advocacy mandate.
• GENDERDOC-M: Moldovan LGBTIQ+ rights organization offering legal assistance, psychological support, and advocacy. Regional peer operating in a similarly restrictive post-Soviet legal environment adjacent to Bulgaria.
• Coming Out: Lithuanian national LGBTIQ+ rights organization providing legal aid, psychological counseling, and advocacy. Comparable mission and service mix to Deystvie in another restrictive CEE jurisdiction.
• Lambda Warszawa: Polish LGBTIQ+ organization providing legal assistance, psychological support, and advocacy. Closely comparable in scope — legal aid and strategic litigation for LGBTIQ+ individuals in a CEE country with hostile political environment.
• Háttér Society: Hungarian LGBTIQ+ NGO providing legal aid, strategic litigation, and advocacy services. Direct functional peer to Deystvie with similar pro bono legal model operating in a neighbouring restrictive CEE jurisdiction.
• Mozaika: Serbian LGBTIQ+ organization providing legal aid, case management, and advocacy. Direct regional peer serving a population facing comparable legal and social challenges to Bulgaria's LGBTIQ+ community.

Emerging players

• Labrys: Kyrgyz LGBTIQ+ organization providing legal support and advocacy. Emerging player operating in a similarly restrictive environment, useful as a regional comparison for legal-aid-only models.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@podcastdeystvie
• Facebookfacebook.com/lgbtdeystvie
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lgbtaction
• Instagraminstagram.com/lgbtaction

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Deystvie