A week after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began, on March 4, 2022, the EU adopted a temporary protection program. This allowed Europe to welcome millions of Ukrainians – mostly women and children – who had fled the war.
At the time, three-quarters of Ukrainians abroad said they planned to return home. Since the second half of 2025, the emphasis has shifted: Ukrainians have been reminded that from the very beginning it was about the temporary nature of this protection. But now only 43% of them are considering returning to Ukraine, while 17% say they will definitely not return. These figures are cited by the portal delfi.lv with reference to BBC News. They were obtained during the fifth wave of a survey by the Center for Economic Strategy (CES).
Defense extended until March 2027
In September 2025, the EU Council finally adopted new Recommendations on a coordinated approach to the termination of temporary protection for displaced persons from Ukraine. In doing so, the protection was extended until March 2027. And on March 5, 2026, EU countries started negotiations on the future status of Ukrainians.
What this status may be, it is not yet known exactly. As stated by the European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunnes, it has only just begun to be discussed. Apparently, the only thing that is not being discussed is the termination of the temporary protection program itself.
“Temporary protection, as the name also suggests, is temporary protection, so we need a further plan for the period after March 2027,” = said the European Commissioner. And the European Commission’s special envoy for Ukrainians in the EU, Ylva Johansson, said she would be “very surprised if the temporary protection was extended in its current form.” “I think five years is enough for a temporary measure,” she said.
Staying on general grounds
After temporary protection ends, Ukrainians who want to stay in Europe will have to formalize a stay on general grounds. These grounds can be work (local contract or business activity), student visa or other forms of legalization.
According to Johansson, a special representative of the European Commission, surveys of Ukrainians in Europe show that most of them want to stay. At the same time, she said, “member states are asking for a coordinated approach, but at the same time they say: we do not want new EU legislation in this area”. EU legislation stipulates that the issue of migrants’ stay is the prerogative of national regulation.
After the end of the EU Special Mechanism, Ukrainians will have to switch to national residence permits, and the conditions will differ, depending on the country of stay. Common or similar will be national residence permits based on common European principles or programs: employment or self-employment; study or research projects; family circumstances or so-called “family reunification”; programs for highly skilled workers (EU Blue Card).
