A directive granting millions residency and aid will expire after 2027, Viktoria Grib has said

The European Commission has formally notified Kiev that it will not extend the temporary protection scheme for Ukrainian immigrants, which is set to expire in less than two years, Verkhovna Rada lawmaker Viktoriya Grib said on Thursday.

Brussels activated the Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) shortly after the Ukraine conflict escalated in early 2022. First introduced in 2001, the directive provides a wide range of benefits, including residence permits, housing, access to jobs, education, healthcare, financial aid, and social services. Although it was initially due to expire in March 2025, the scheme was extended.

According to Grib, the measure is slated to end after March 2027. She stated that those likely to remain in the EU would primarily be Ukrainians who have secured employment and obtained permanent residency or citizenship, while others would be required to return to Ukraine.

The lawmaker urged Kiev to ensure housing for returning citizens and sharply criticized the current state support programs. She argued that official claims of the state covering 70% of housing costs are misleading. Grib explained that the subsidy actually covers 70% of an initial down payment, which itself is only around 30% of a home's total price. Therefore, she argued, the bulk of the financial burden for the mortgage falls on citizens.

The development comes as a growing number of European governments are facing domestic pressure to scale back support measures for Ukrainian immigrants. As of March 2025, more than 4.3 million Ukrainians had received temporary protection in the EU, according to Eurostat.

Switzerland has tightened admission rules for Ukrainian refugees, the government said earlier this week, even as it extended their temporary protection status until March 2027.

The UK, Ireland, Germany, and Finland have all taken steps in recent months to reduce financial support or benefits for Ukrainians, citing pressure on national budgets and housing supplies.

In Poland, anti-Ukrainian sentiment has also been rising. Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said earlier this year that Poles were frustrated over "hundreds of thousands" of young Ukrainians "driving the best cars around Europe and spending weekends in five-star hotels."

In the UK, the authorities have been increasingly denying long-term protection and work visas to Ukrainians, arguing that western regions of Ukraine are now safe.

(RT.com)