As of November 30, 2024, 4,234,490 citizens from non-EU countries held temporary protection status in EU nations, having left Ukraine due to the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022. This represents an increase of 36,010 or 0.9% compared to the previous month, according to Eurostat.
"The largest absolute increase in the number of beneficiaries was observed in Germany (+11,915; +1.0%), the Czech Republic (+5,820; +1.5%), and Poland (+4,045; +0.4%)," the agency reported.
It was noted that the number of individuals under temporary protection decreased only in Italy (-1,270; -0.8%), France (-695; -1.2%), and Luxembourg (-15; -0.4%).
According to Eurostat data, Germany continues to lead by a significant margin as the country with the highest number of Ukrainian refugees in the EU and worldwide, totaling 1,152,620 by the end of November, or 27.2% of the total number of beneficiaries in the EU.
Also in the top three are Poland with 987,930, or 23.3%, and the Czech Republic with 385,190, or 9.1%.
Following them with a significant gap are Spain – 224,290, Romania – 177,610, and Italy – 164,410.
At the same time, Eurostat clarified that the figures for Spain, Greece, and Cyprus include a portion of individuals whose temporary protection status is already invalid.
According to the agency's data, relative to the population of each EU member state, the highest number of temporary protection beneficiaries per thousand people in November 2024 was observed in the Czech Republic (35.3), Poland (27.0), Latvia and Estonia (25.5 each), while the corresponding EU average is 9.4.
It is also reported that as of November 30, 2024, more than 98.3% of temporary protection beneficiaries were Ukrainian citizens. Adult women accounted for nearly half (44.9%) of temporary protection recipients in the EU, children made up almost a third (32.0%), while adult men represented less than a quarter (23.1%) of the total. A year earlier, the shares were 46.3% for women, 33.3% for children, and 20.4% for adult men.
More than 100,000 individuals with temporary protection status at the end of November 2024 were also in Slovakia – 130,470, the Netherlands – 120,550, and Ireland – 109,180.
Between 50,000 and 100,000 were recorded in Belgium – 85,440, Austria – 84,600, Norway – 78,100, Finland – 68,780, Bulgaria – 67,540, Switzerland – 67,450, Portugal – 64,780, and France – 59,130 (data for children are mostly excluded – Eurostat).
Next are Lithuania – 48,010, Latvia – 47,650 people, Sweden – 46,000, Denmark – 38,920, Hungary – 38,890, Greece – 32,370, Estonia – 35,120, Croatia – 25,810, Cyprus – 22,090, Iceland – 3,970, Luxembourg – 3,840, Malta – 2,200, and Liechtenstein – 700.
Eurostat clarified that all the provided data pertains to the granting of temporary protection based on EU Council Decision 2022/382 of March 4, 2022, establishing the existence of a mass influx of displaced persons from Ukraine due to the military invasion of Russia, which led to the implementation of temporary protection. On June 25, 2024, the European Council decided to extend temporary protection for these individuals from March 4, 2025, to March 4, 2026.
According to updated data from UNHCR, the number of Ukrainian refugees in Europe as of January 16, 2025, was estimated at 6.303 million, and globally at 6.863 million, which is an increase of 49,000 compared to December 16.
In Ukraine itself, according to the latest UN data, there are 3.6 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), with approximately 160,000 people relocated from frontline areas in the east and south between May and October 2024 due to the escalation of hostilities.
As noted by Deputy Minister of Economy Sergey Sobolev in early March 2023, the return of every 100,000 Ukrainians home results in a GDP increase of 0.5%. At the same time, the National Bank revised its forecast for outflow from Ukraine in 2024 from 400,000 to 500,000. Meanwhile, the outflow estimate for 2025 was reduced from 300,000 to 200,000. The report confirmed expectations for the beginning of the return of Ukrainians home in 2026, but lowered the net inflow forecast from 400,000 to 200,000.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/web/products-eurostat-news/w/ddn-20250115-1