On this page

1. Governance

2. Cross-sectoral cooperation

Governance

According to the Government Decree No. 182/2022. (V.24.) [182/2022. (V.24.) Korm. rendelet], governmental activities related to youth volunteering (including school community service) belongs to the Deputy State Secretariat for Young People under the Ministry of Culture and Innovation (Kulturális és Innovációs Minisztérium). The Prime Minister's Office (Miniszterelnökség) is responsible generally for the legal and administrative supervision of volunteering. (For more information, please see 1.4)

Main actors

The governmental structure of volunteering is not explicitly geared towards youth volunteering but rather integrated into the broader civil and youth policy sectors. The Deputy State Secretariat for Civil and Social Relationships within the Prime Minister's Office is the primary authority responsible for the non-profit sector. It supervises the National Cooperation Fund (Nemzeti Együttműködési Alap) and manages the strategic development of volunteering.

The Deputy State Secretariat for Young People of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation focuses on the pedagogical and youth-development aspects of volunteering, particularly the school community service.

The Register of Voluntary Organisations in the Public Interest

The Ministry of Culture and Innovation, specifically its Department for Youth Affairs, is the responsible authority for maintaining and managing the official 'Register of Voluntary Organisations in the Public Interest' (Közérdekű Önkéntes Szervezeti Regiszter). Registration is a legal prerequisite - based on the Act LXXXVIII of 2005 on Public Interest Volunteer Activities -  for host organisations to provide information for volunteers. This enables organisations to provide benefits (such as tax-free cost reimbursements). The register is available on the Civil Information Portal (Civil Információs Portál), which also serves as the official platform for organisational details and professional activities. The Ministry of Culture and Innovation is responsible for the administrative, legal, and supervisory tasks of the volunteer register.

Civil Public Service Centres

Several non-governmental organisations rely on voluntary activities in general for their work. While various organisations engage in youth-related activities, the primary state-supported infrastructure for the sector is the network of Civil Public Service Centres (Civil Közösségi Szolgáltató Központok, CKSZKs). These are operated and controlled by the Deputy State Secretariat for Civil and Social Relationships, under the Prime Minister's Office. The NGOs that run these centres have offices in each county and in the capital. These centres support the professional work of the NGOs and monitor the use of the state funds, acting as a bridge between the government and the civil sector.

'The tasks of CKSZKs, among others, include the following: professional support for NGOs regarding their operation strengthening their sustainability and ensuring that the use of the state budget support is in line with the regulations.' (Civil Közösségi Szolgáltató Központok)

The primary services provided by the CKSZKs are to support civil organisations so that they comply with the administrative requirements; to inform these organisations about the available funds and applications; to provide practical help and individualised consultation for NGOs and to support and promote communication and cooperation within and with other sectors.

National Volunteer Centre Foundation

Another important NGO is the National Volunteer Centre Foundation (Önkéntes Központ Alapítvány) which aims

'to promote positive social processes through the implementation of volunteer-based programs that contribute to strengthening a society based on responsibility and participation.'

General distribution of responsibilities

The Civil Solidarity Forum Movement (Civil Összefogás Fórummozgalom) and its partner, the Civil Union Public Benefit Foundation (Civil Összefogás Közhasznú Alapítvány) are also important NGO actors worth mentioning in relation to the Hungarian civil society. The head of the Civil Union Public Benefit Foundation, as the president of the National Cooperation Fund (Nemzeti Együttműködési Alap), is responsible for the distribution of state funds to NGOs.

The National Cooperation Fund (Nemzeti Együttműködési Alap, NEA) is a budgetary appropriation that reflects the partnership between civil organisations and the government. It provides funding opportunities for civil organisations primarily through grant applications, aims at supporting the operation and development of the civil sector. The NEA is part of the central budget, with the Minister heading the Prime Minister's Office exercising decision-making authority. The professional oversight of the fund is carried out under the direction of the minister by the Deputy State Secretariat for Social and Civil Relationships. The Bethlen Gábor Fund Ltd (Bethlen Gábor Alapkezelő Zrt.) is responsible for the technical management of the grants.

Different thematic colleges administer the allocation. Thematic colleges mean that organisations employing young volunteers or promoting youth volunteering can apply for grants from these colleges. In the youth sector, the following colleges are relevant:

College for Social Responsibility (Társadalmi Felelősségvállalás Kollégium) includes non-profit organisations, services for umbrella organisations, representation and advocacy, charity, social activities, family support, care for older people, rehabilitation activities, support for disadvantaged groups, and other NGOs.

College for the Future of New Generation (Új nemzedék Jövőjéért Kollégium) supports NGOs dealing with education, skill development, advocacy for children and youth, health protection, disease prevention, healing, health rehabilitation activities, drug prevention, nature and environment protection. 

College for Social Environment (Közösségi környezet kollégium) supports civil society organisations active in public education, science and research. Its scope also includes audio and telecommunications, information technology and electronic communications. It also funds vocational and adult education, information dissemination and consumer protection. Furthermore, it focuses on settlement and community development, cultural activities, social dialogue and the protection of equal opportunities for women and men.

College for Mobility and Adaptation (Mobilitás és alkalmazkodás kollégium) supports civil society organisations working in the fields of safety of life and property, public safety, voluntary fire-fighting, rescue and disaster relief, protection of public order and road safety, leisure, hobbies and sport, and security of equal opportunities for women and men.

College for National Cohesion (Nemzeti összetartozás kollégium) aims to support cooperation, European integration and religious activity in the Carpathian Basin. It also supports the protection of the nationalities living in Hungary, human and civil rights, and other cultural activities (music, dance, folk music, folk dance), as well as traditionalism.

International cooperation and exchange of best practices

Hungary actively cooperates with international volunteering systems to facilitate the exchange of information and identify best practices. At the strategic level, the Ministry of Culture and Innovation contributes to the development of the EU Strategy on Intergenerational Fairness by proposing policy elements based on domestic successes, such as initiatives in which young people support the elderly. This participation allows Hungary to align its national volunteering goals with European social trends and to share its unique experience with other member states and international partners in the topic of large-scale student engagement in the school community service (iskolai közösségi szolgálat) (for more information on school community service, see 9.4).

On an operational level, cooperation is facilitated through the UN Youth Delegate Program and the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) framework. The '50 Hours for Others' ('50 óra másokért') online platform acts as a bridge in this exchange, linking mandatory domestic service with the UN Sustainable Development Goals to foster international professional dialogue on youth solidarity. Furthermore, through the Tempus Public Foundation, Hungary regularly participates in peer-learning activities and research-based monitoring (such as the Research-based Analysis of Erasmus+/YiA) to refine the quality of volunteer coordination and to implement international quality standards in domestic youth work.

Cross-sectoral cooperation

One of the horizontal objectives of the National Volunteer Strategy 2012–2020 (Nemzeti Önkéntes Stratégia 2012–2020) was to support cross-sectoral cooperation. The cross-sectoral cooperation in youth volunteering is primarily based on functional, horizontal coordination between ministries and their executive agencies. Since volunteering affects education, civil society, and social inclusion, several mechanisms ensure inter-ministerial alignment. The primary axis of cooperation exists between the Ministry of Culture and Innovation and the Prime Minister's Office. They coordinate the alignment of youth development goals with the general legal requirements of the Act LXXXVIII of 2005 on Public Interest Volunteer Activities. This is particularly relevant during the drafting of national strategies, where the Prime Minister's Office provides the civil-sector framework and the Ministry of Culture and Innovation integrates youth-specific priorities.

Operational coordination for school community service (iskolai közösségi szolgálat) is the most active area of cross-sectoral work, involving the Ministry of Interior (Belügyminisztérium), which is responsible for public education, and the Educational Authority (Oktatási Hivatal). They cooperate with host organisations (NGOs, hospitals, and social institutions) to ensure that the 50–hour mandatory service serves its pedagogical goals and performed with safety and according to legal standards across different sectors.

The Bethlen Gábor Fund Ltd, acting as a specialised agency under the Prime Minister's Office, coordinates with various departments to ensure that National Cooperation Fund grants are accessible to organisations across all thematic fields (such as environmental, social, or cultural).

Furthermore, the Tempus Public Foundation acts as a bridge between the European Union's volunteering frameworks (like the European Solidarity Corps) and the domestic youth policy handled by the Ministry of Culture and Innovation, ensuring that international quality standards are integrated into national measures.