The Czech Republic has been responding to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine since the end of February by accepting Ukrainians as political refugees. Since the beginning of the war, 290,489 refugees have registered with the Czech Republic’s foreign police. Photo credit: Freepik
Czech Republic, 13 June (BD) – The number of temporary protection visas issued by the Czech Republic to Ukrainian refugees since the start of the Russian invasion is close to 370,000. The Interior Ministry has registered 369,464 so far, according to information published on the Ministry’s Twitter. Some refugees in the Czech Republic are moving to other countries, or returning home. In real terms, authorities estimate that there are between 280,000 and 300,000 refugees in the Czech Republic, though the exact number cannot be determined.
Temporary protection visas allow their holders to stay in the country for up to one year. They also give refugees access to public health insurance, education and the labour market. According to statistics, children under 15, who account for nearly 30% of refugees, are not required to register. Young people between the ages of 15 and 18 account for less than 7%, while the elderly over the age of 65 account for 3.5%. Among adult Ukrainians, more than two-thirds are women.
During the past week, the government approved an amendment to the “lex Ukraine”, allowing measures taken by ministries and administrative authorities to allocate residential facilities to Ukrainian refugees to continue after the state of emergency, which will last until the end of June.
At the same time, a European system for registering refugees from Ukraine is being prepared, which should enable faster detection of duplicate reporting of refugees throughout the European Union.
