Cyprus has highest ratio of Ukrainian nationals given protection in EU

Cyprus had the highest ratio across EU member states of Ukrainian citizens granted temporary protection for February 2023, Eurostat data revealed on Monday.

The ratio for Cyprus – per 1,000 people – amounted to 1.1, followed by Czechia at 0.9.

The figure translates to 1,035 Ukrainian refugees given temporary protection status in February 2023, of which 295 are children, marking an increase from the previous month.

In January, 935 Ukrainians were granted temporary protection status in Cyprus. The trend across the EU is mixed, with 19 nation states seeing a decrease in the number of temporary protection statuses given to Ukrainian nationals. The remaining countries have seen the figures go upwards.

According to Eurostat, the largest decreases were observed in Poland (-3,540 compared with January 2023), followed by Germany (-3,080), Czechia (-2,630) and Romania (-1,035). Meanwhile, Ireland (+540) and Finland (+520) recorded the most significant increases.

In absolute numbers, the highest number of temporary protection statuses given to Ukrainian refugees were granted by Germany, amounting to 25,125. This was followed by Poland at 24,905 refugees, Czechia with 9,775and Romania with 7,920.

Eurostat specified that as of 28 February 2023, the total number of Ukrainian beneficiaries of temporary protection in the EU countries for which data are available were highest in Germany (1,000,530) and Poland (989,080). These cumulative figures include not only the protection statuses granted in February 2023 but also those granted before that month.