Around 4.3M Ukrainians under temporary protection in EU: Eurostat

By Merve Berker

Approximately 4.3 million Ukrainians are under temporary protection in the EU member countries, according to official data released on Tuesday.

As of May 31, 2024, approximately 4.3 million non-EU citizens who fled Ukraine due to war held temporary protection status in the EU, the Eurostat said.

Germany hosts the most beneficiaries, with "1,332,515 people or 31.3% of the EU total," followed by Poland with "953,255 people or 22.4%," and the Czech Republic with "356,405 people or 8.4%," the data showed.

Compared to April 2024, the largest increases were in Germany, which saw an additional "14,250 beneficiaries or a 1.1% increase," the Czech Republic with an increase of "11,000 beneficiaries or 3.2%," and Romania with an increase of "3,715 beneficiaries or 2.4%."

The number of beneficiaries decreased in France, which saw a reduction of "1,005 beneficiaries or 1.6%," Poland with a reduction of "675 beneficiaries or 0.1%," and Latvia with a reduction of "15 beneficiaries or 0.03%."

The Czech Republic had the highest number of beneficiaries per thousand people at "32.9," followed by Lithuania at "27.2," and Poland at "25.9," with an EU average of "9.5 per thousand," the Eurostat stated.

Ukrainian citizens made up over "98% of the beneficiaries," with adult women comprising almost half at "45.6%," children accounting for almost one-third at "32.5%," and adult men comprising slightly more than a fifth at "21.9%."

These numbers reflect the attribution of temporary protection status based on the Council Implementing Decision 2022/382, which was established on March 4, 2022, in response to the mass influx of displaced persons from Ukraine.

On June 25, 2024, the European Council agreed to extend the temporary protection for these individuals from March 4, 2025 to March 4, 2026.