​The government wants to fundamentally change the program, according to which the owners of housing in Romania paid the costs of food and accommodation for citizens of Ukraine within the limits of 20 lei/day/person staying for food and 50 lei/day/person accommodated for accommodation, with the reason for the increase in rental prices, which directly affects Romanians.

On Friday, March 24, the Ministry of Internal Affairs presented for public discussion a draft of an emergency order, which it wants to correct the negative impact of the so-called 50/20 program, introduced by GEO 15/2022.

• SEE DRAFT GEO AND KEYNOTE HERE

The state spends more than 350,000 euros every day. How does this apply to Romanians?

The explanatory note to this draft regulation cites the Prime Minister’s Office’s report on support measures for 2022, which shows that last year the state paid more than €106 million of public funds for this program, which amounts to a daily expenditure of more than €352,000 .

• “Situations that arose in practice (..) emphasized the fact that payment of food expenses of foreign citizens or stateless persons in special situations originating from the zone of armed conflict in Ukraine, placed with individuals, was considered as an attractive source of income for many home owners looking for tenants, thus fueling the real estate market in areas sought after by people from the armed conflict zone in Ukraine, leading to a reduction in supply and, implicitly, an increase in free market rents, with a direct impact on citizens Romanians who wish to access this housing modality,” the explanatory note reads.

A little more than 5,000 Ukrainians signed up. The state cannot provide for the costs

The report also highlights the fact that slightly more than 5,000 Ukrainians have found work, registered in the General Register of Workers (REVISAL), so it is necessary to define measures to facilitate their access to the labor market in Romania.

In the event of non-implementation of the measures provided for by this draft normative act, it will be impossible to provide funds for payment of food and accommodation for persons arriving from the zone of armed conflict in Ukraine.

Measures: Fixed amount of 2,000 lei/month per family or one person during a specified period

The measure proposed by the GEO project is that “families and single persons from Ukraine receive assistance during one period of a maximum of 4 consecutive months, starting with a one-time amount of 2,000 lei per month, to cover living expenses, provided from the budget of the district inspectorates of Emergency Situations/Emergency Inspection of Bucharest-Ilfov”.

After the end of the period of 4 consecutive months, Ukrainians who have not yet left Romania will receive a one-time allowance of 2,000 lei/month until the end of 2023, which is provided from the budget of the County Emergency Inspections/Emergency Inspections of Bucharest – Ilfov. The conditions and mechanism for assigning one-time assistance are established by a decision of the Government.

In addition, after the end of a period of 4 consecutive months, Ukrainians who are not working will have free access to services and measures provided for by Law No. 1000. 76/2002 on the system of unemployment insurance and employment promotion, as amended.

• The amount of 2000 lei/month will be provided for each family or single person if there is no family.

A family is a set of persons, which includes a spouse, father (parents) and/or their minor children, as well as a person who brings up and takes care of one or more minor children.

These provisions will not apply to persons placed in temporary accommodation and humanitarian aid camps or other accommodation established by the Bucharest County/Municipal Emergency Committees, nor to persons requesting or enjoying international protection in Romania.

The draft GPI also provides that natural persons who accepted foreign citizens or stateless persons in special situations who arrived from the zone of armed conflict in Ukraine before the date of entry into force of this emergency order will benefit from the adjustment of the amount for food and accommodation, if they submit requests to in this sense, in accordance with the previous settlement mechanism approved by Government Resolution No. 336/2022.

Requests must be submitted within 30 days of the entry into force of this emergency order.

The 50/20 deal: how it affected the price of rent

HotNews.ro reported in a previous article that the 50/20 program put a lot of pressure on cheap real estate, as owners received more money through the program than if they rented it long-term at the market price.

• “I will give an example: a villa for rent appeared in the Pitesti district the other day. The villa accommodates up to 16 people. Do the math: 16 people x 50 lei/day means 800 lei/day or 24,000 lei per month, which is almost 5,000 euros per month.
• Or let’s take the case of a 2-room apartment where 3 people come (mom, dad and a child, although usually they have two children each). Three people x 50 lei/day means 150 lei per day, or 4,500 lei per month. Almost €1,000/month, with an average rent of €300, if we are talking about Bucharest,” said Georgian Marcou, real estate broker, owner of Green Angels agency.

Read more: How Ukrainian refugees “moved” the rental market in the cities where they settled in Romania / How much Zelensky collects from renting a villa in Tuscany