Ireland plans cash incentives for Ukrainians to voluntarily go back home
Ireland will pay substantial sums to Ukrainians for returning home (illustrative photo: Getty Images)
Ukrainians living in Ireland are set to be offered generous payments to return home, as the government plans to end accommodation agreements for refugees within a year, according to The Times.
The Irish government is discussing proposals for Ukrainian refugees. Irish ministers are leaning either toward ending the Temporary Protection Directive or toward an alternative option that would limit support only to people from the most affected regions of Ukraine.
Minister of State for Migration Colm Brophy said the government will take steps to terminate contracts under which around 16,000 Ukrainians have been accommodated.
"That is what we want to really end. We want to end the situation where the 16,000 that came at the very start, that have effectively been accommodated by the state since their arrival, that we would be pulling out of that. Because no other EU state is providing that," he said.
No more housing assistance
Brophy said Ukrainians will have to leave as the country terminates the contracts. According to him, the timeline, which still needs government approval, could be implemented within the next 12 months.
He also noted that officials are working on a return policy aligned with the directive's end. Under it, Ukrainians would be asked to return home and offered financial assistance to do so.
Currently, asylum seekers can apply for up to €2,500 per person or up to €10,000 per family to return to their country of origin.
The outlet notes that since February 2022, more than 125,000 Ukrainians have received temporary protection in Ireland. From July 2022 to March this year, nearly 28,000 host families received over €438 million in compensation for providing housing to 64,000 Ukrainian refugees.
Earlier, the media reported that Swiss authorities were considering a referendum to limit population, which could affect conditions for foreign residents.
At the same time, in Moldova, temporary protection for Ukrainians has been extended until March 1, 2027. Ireland has also automatically extended immigration permits until spring 2027.
