Ukrainian men of conscription age may be denied temporary protection in EU – media
The EU is discussing the possibility of not extending future temporary protection to new male applicants of conscription age.
Euractiv stated this in an article, according to Ukrinform.
The proposal emerged during discussions about the future of the EU Temporary Protection Directive (TPD), which allows Ukrainians to live and work across Europe without going through national asylum systems. The program, launched after Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, is currently in force until March 2027 after an extension agreed last year.
According to an internal EU Council document seen by Euractiv, among the options under discussion is extending temporary protection while narrowing its scope, in particular by "excluding men of conscription age" or people who left Ukraine on unlawful grounds.
Any such restriction would apply to new applicants seeking temporary protection status.
Last year, the European Commission urged member-state capitals to prepare for a possible gradual winding-down of the program. In 2024, it adopted recommendations for a "coordinated transition" to more stable legal statuses, but progress in this direction has so far been uneven.
The document notes that some governments have expressed concern that "an increasing proportion of recent arrivals consists of men of conscription age," with several countries arguing that the mechanism should be reviewed "also in the interest of Ukraine" - both to support the country's resistance against Russia and to help future reconstruction efforts.
The future of the system will be discussed by migration ministers at a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council this week, where they are expected to provide political guidance on next steps. Any future extension or revision would have to be proposed by the European Commission.
For now, the EC has declined to answer whether it will formally propose another extension. Asked about this, an EC spokesperson told Euractiv that discussions with national governments are ongoing.
As of March 2026, 4.33 million Ukrainians had temporary protection status in the EU, with the largest numbers in Germany (1.27 million), Poland (961,405), and the Czech Republic (379,820). They accounted for more than 98% of all people granted this status. Of them, 43.3% were women, 30.1% children, and 26.6% adult men.
As Ukrinform reported, according to Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, about 8 million Ukrainians are currently forced to stay abroad.
Photo: Ken Mürk / ERR