Montenegro restricts access to temporary protection for Ukrainian men of military age

The government of Montenegro has established new conditions for granting temporary protection to Ukrainian men of military age: it will now be available only to those who were residing in Ukraine before their arrival and have either fulfilled their military duty or been exempted from it.

This was reported on the country’s official government website.

The new rules do not apply to Ukrainians who have already received temporary protection in Montenegro.

“The stated restriction will not apply to persons from Ukraine who are already benefiting from temporary protection in Montenegro.”

The Montenegrin authorities explained that the changes are aligned with European Union Council Decision No. 2026/1912 of July 30, 2026, on extending temporary protection for Ukrainian citizens until March 4, 2028. The new conditions thus concern Ukrainians subject to mobilization who are abroad or planning to remain abroad. The statement notes that the decision is presumably linked to a shortage of personnel in the Ukrainian army.

Earlier, UNIAN reported that the Danish parliament also changed the rules of stay in the country for Ukrainian men between the ages of 23 and 60 who are subject to mobilization. This concerns amendments to the so-called special law for Ukrainians adopted in Denmark after Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. Danish Minister for Immigration and Integration Morten Bødskov stressed that the country’s rules are not intended to be used as a means of evading mobilization. The amendments affect those who have or had a residence permit under the special law and who are still registered as residents of Denmark.

In addition, it was previously reported that although temporary protection for Ukrainians in the EU has been extended until 2028, under certain circumstances they may lose their legal grounds for staying in EU member states. According to the EU Council document, temporary protection can be revoked for violations of border-crossing rules, breaches of legislation, or the use of forged documents. Deportation does not necessarily entail return to Ukraine — those deported may be sent to third-country hubs on general grounds.