By the end of this month, Romania is to receive the first money from the European Commission to cover some of the costs caused by the refugee crisis, after the Ministry of the Interior (MAI) signed on Monday financial contracts worth 39.1 million euros.

The money comes from the Fund for Asylum, Migration and Integration (FAMI) – €12.1 million and from the Facility for Border Management and Visa Policy Support (IMFV) – €27 million.

“The purpose of the emergency aid is to cover the budgetary efforts of the EU member states that were most affected by the refugee crisis in Ukraine. Thus, the European Commission took into account the costs incurred by the state authorities for the reception of Ukrainian citizens under the terms of the Decision on temporary protection of March 4, 2022 and regarding activities related to the control and facilitation of border crossings at the relevant external borders of the EU,” MAI reported, citing Agerpres.

According to the quoted source, in order to facilitate quick access to these funds and to limit red tape, the European Commission has chosen financing not related to costs (“not related to costs”), especially since the actual actual costs can fluctuate significantly. .

In addition to Romania, four more EU member states – Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic – received non-refundable external funds from Ukraine in the context of the refugee crisis.

“Since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, the MAI has taken a proactive approach and through the Directorate of Non-refundable External Funds, as the Home Affairs Authority, has taken a number of steps with the European Commission to cover the costs incurred by Romania for the reception of refugees from Ukraine,” the press release states.

On July 12, the European Commission sent an information letter regarding the approval of two applications requesting external grants through FAMI and IMFV. Those interested can find updated information on the website www.fed.mai.gov.ro.