Despite its status as an EU candidate country, Ukraine is becoming increasingly closed off to foreigners seeking refuge from persecution. A new study, “Updated Country Report: Ukraine,” was prepared by staff at the Right to Protection Charitable Foundation. It reveals alarming trends in the field of international protection.
Statistics for 2025 point to a deep crisis in the asylum system:
- A negligible number of applications: only 61 people sought protection throughout the entire year. By comparison, there were 106 such applications in 2024.
- Chances of obtaining status: 1 in 100: out of 128 decisions made, refugee status was granted in only one case. Another 9 people received subsidiary protection, while 118 applicants were officially denied.
- Who is seeking protection: The main countries of origin remain Russia (31 people), Tajikistan (9 people), and Belarus (7 people).
- Financial strain: The budget of the State Migration Service (SMS) has been cut by more than half—from 5.6 billion UAH in 2024 to 2.1 billion UAH in 2025.
- Empty centers: by the end of the year, only one person was living in temporary accommodation centers designed to hold 421 people.
Bureaucratic Obstacles and Judicial Maze
The main problem for foreigners in Ukraine is not even the case review itself, but the inability to file a claim. Immigration officials often refuse to register documents verbally, without issuing any written decisions. This automatically deprives a person of legal status and the right to assistance.
Authorities justify this strictness by citing martial law and national security concerns, particularly regarding citizens of Russia and Belarus. For example, the Migration Service frequently cites Article 9 of the 1951 Convention, treating applicants as a potential threat. When the agency blocks registration, foreigners are forced to go to court. Although people win most of these lawsuits, the proceedings drag on for months, during which asylum seekers remain vulnerable to the risk of deportation.
Surviving Without Government Assistance
The government has effectively stopped providing financial support to those awaiting asylum. No cash payments from the government are provided. Even the right to free medical care is limited. The country covers only emergency care, for which the foreign national must later reimburse the costs.
Thus, if an asylum seeker lacks documents, they cannot find employment and consequently have no means to support themselves. International organizations have become the primary “lifelines.” It is the UNHCR and similar funds that provide people with food, medicine, and legal assistance. They often provide food vouchers and grants for emergency household needs, without which most asylum seekers would find themselves below the poverty line.
Life in Detention: The Number of Detainees Is Rising
The report notes an increase in the number of foreigners held in temporary detention centers (TDCs). In 2025, 421 people were held there (compared to 377 in 2024). Most of them are undocumented individuals or those whose asylum applications were refused. Despite threats to their lives in their home countries, there have been documented cases of attempts to rapidly deport detainees to Russia and Belarus without proper judicial oversight.
Glimpses of Hope
Despite the system’s overall opacity, 2025 was a successful year for 30 recognized refugees who finally obtained Ukrainian citizenship. This is significant progress, as no such cases were recorded at all in 2023 and 2024. Additionally, 40 travel documents were issued to refugees and 66 to persons with subsidiary protection. This indicates that for those who managed to navigate all the bureaucratic hurdles, integration remains possible.
Read also:
“My boss asks why they are here”: what Germans and Ukrainians say about Merz’s demand to send the men back
