Ukrainian refugees in Poland will be able to change their ‘temporary protection’ status to ‘temporary residence’
The law regulating the conditions of stay for Ukrainian citizens in Poland is awaiting the president's signature. It provides that refugees who currently enjoy temporary protection due to the war will be able to switch to a temporary residence status. At present, almost one million Ukrainians benefit from such protection in Poland.
This was reported by Polskie Radio.
“The right to work, the right to education, and social benefits derive from the right of residence, so the form of legalisation is key. We are moving in the direction of encouraging Ukrainian citizens who currently have legal grounds for residence as war refugees to change their status, for example, in relation to education or the labour market. We will make this tool available to them in January or early February at the latest,” said Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration Maciej Duszczyk.
Ukrainian refugees will not have to visit an office to apply for a change of status: “They will need to register in a special information system. They will enter their details on the website and fill out a short form. This form will be automatically forwarded to the provincial authorities, who will check the available data against the information provided by the applicant. If everything matches, the person will be asked to provide fingerprints and will be issued a three-year residence permit.”
Another project, which will soon be added to the government's agenda, provides for the gradual phasing out of assistance tools for refugees from Ukraine. Currently, almost one million Ukrainian citizens, mainly women and children, benefit from temporary protection in Poland.
Lithuania, Poland, and Latvia are ready to jointly close their borders with Belarus.
