Over 92,000 Ukrainians received temporary protection in Belgium between the start of the war and the end of last year, according to figures presented on Wednesday by the Director-General of the Belgian Immigration Office, Freddy Roosemont, during an Interior Committee session in the Chamber of Representatives.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union implemented an exceptional procedure to protect Ukrainian refugees. This status, extended until Spring 2026, exempts them from the standard asylum process and grants them immediate access to various forms of assistance.
Recent data from the European Commission reveals that 4.3 million Ukrainians benefit from this temporary status, with Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic hosting the largest contingents.
By the end of 2024, Belgium had granted temporary protection status to 92,257 Ukrainians. The highest influx occurred in the first year of the war, when 63,354 Ukrainians were granted temporary protection, compared to 15,626 in 2023 and 13,277 in 2024.
Not all beneficiaries reside in Belgium.
Legislator Darya Safai (Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie) advocated for a “more realistic social policy.” While welcoming the refugees, she argued that giving them full integration income was a mistake.
“The 2024 budget showed that the government spent no less than €335 million on subsistence for Ukrainians," she said. "These individuals could have been net contributors if we'd approached this more realistically.”
