Ukraine refugees who moved to the European Union and then decided to return to their homeland will be able to return to the EU at any time during the war. This was stated by European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson during a visit to Kyiv on Tuesday 2 August.

“We will always be ready to accept Ukrainians in need with an open heart,” said the EU commissioner.

Citizens of Ukraine can move freely within the territory of the European Community and work there. They are also entitled to health care, housing and children and education. As clarified by the dpa agency, Ukrainians traveling to Ukraine on a permanent basis must renounce their temporary protection status. At the same time, if they return, they can register at any time to renew it.

More than 6 million from Ukraine have moved to other European countries

According to the UN Refugee Agency, more than 6 million people have moved from Ukraine to other European countries.

Ylva Johansson, for her part, said that at the Kyiv railway station she saw a long line of Ukrainians with children and luggage returning to their homeland. The European Commissioner considers it “a big step forward” that so many people have decided to “go home and rebuild Ukraine”.

Nearly 1 million refugees registered in Germany as a result of the war in Ukraine

Since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 915,000 refugees from the war have been registered in the Central Register of Aliens in Germany. Of these, according to the German Ministry of Internal Affairs, 890,605 are citizens of Ukraine. At the same time, the agency does not know the actual number of refugees from Ukraine who entered Germany, as well as the number of Ukrainians in Germany. Ukrainians can cross Germany’s borders with their documents. In addition, those who live with friends or relatives and do not request government assistance are also not included in official statistics.