Personal integration plan

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Refugees are provided with assistance in integrating into the Slovenian society for a maximum period of three years from the date of obtaining refugee status in Slovenia. To this end, a Personal Integration Plan is designed.¹ This is an agreement between the refugee and the ministry responsible for internal affairs on the implementation of the obligations arising from this plan.

The Personal Integration Plan is the basis for the implementation of assistance to the refugee in integrating into his/her new environment and covers:²

• learning the Slovenian language,
• estimation of the required number of hours of the Slovenian language for the successful completion of the proficiency test of the Slovenian language at the basic level,
• getting to know the culture, history and constitutional order of the Republic of Slovenia,
• education and training to improve employability,
• employment and work opportunities, accommodation,
• opportunities for active involvement in the local community.

The plan is prepared for a period of one year in Slovene and in the language of the refugee’s country. After six months, the Ministry evaluates the implementation of the personal integration plan and, if necessary, implements changes or supplements it substantially and temporarily.³

Language course and courses about culture, history and constitutional order

The Ministry provides financial resources to refugees for the payment of the following expenses:

• a Slovene language course of a maximum of three hundred hours,
• a course on learning about the culture, history and constitutional order of the Republic of Slovenia to the maximum extent thirty hours,
• a one-time basic examination of the Slovenian language proficiency test,
• public transport to the nearest authorized contractor to attend a Slovenian language course, to attend a course on learning about the culture, history and constitutional order of the Republic of Slovenia and for a one-time examination of the Slovene language proficiency at the basic level.

For specifically justified reasons, the Ministry may finance up to a maximum of one hundred hours of study of the Slovenian language.

As a rule, the Slovenian language courses are conducted within a period of six months from the date of acquisition refugee status, except where the refugees

• have completed education at any level in the Republic of Slovenia,
• have been enrolled in a regular education program in the Republic of Slovenia for at least three years,
• have already obtained a certificate of successful completion of the Slovenian language proficiency test at basic level,
• are unable to pass the knowledge exam due to health impairments that prevent everyday communication Slovene language at the basic level.

Refugees over the age of sixty and illiterate are provided with a tailored program that enables them to acquire knowledge of the Slovene language for the purposes of everyday communication.

1. Mojca Pajnik: Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Volume 33 Issue 5
2. report on the work of the Migration Office for 2017 (http://www.mnz.gov.si/fileadmin/mnz.gov.si/pageuploads/DUNZMN_2013/DUNZMN_2014/DUNZMN_2015/DUNZMN_2016/DUNZMN_2017/DUNZMN_2018/Porocilo_2017_ENG_1652018.pdfs/assistance-to-migrants-and-integration-support/)
3. https://www.filantropija.org/en/programs/migration