EU proposes to deny protection to Ukrainians of conscription age arriving in Europe from March 2027

The European Commission has officially presented a proposal to extend temporary protection for Ukrainians until March 4, 2028, but with a significant caveat: persons who are prohibited from leaving Ukraine due to military obligations will not be able to obtain this status upon new arrival.

This was announced in Brussels by European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner.

Brunner clarified that the restriction will apply only to newly arrived individuals — those who end up in the EU after the new rules come into force. Ukrainians who have already received temporary protection will retain it after the program is extended by one year.

Commenting on the proposal, the European Commissioner stressed that it was the result of negotiations with the Ukrainian side and EU member states, primarily those hosting the largest numbers of Ukrainian refugees.

“This issue was widely discussed with our Ukrainian partners, our Ukrainian friends, and also, of course, with our member states. In order to maintain the credibility of the protection system and its alignment with the legitimate needs of Ukraine, we are proposing a targeted adjustment. Our proposal provides that temporary protection is not granted to newly arrived persons who are not permitted to leave Ukraine due to their military obligations under Ukrainian law, and this is exactly what Ukraine asked us to do, and this is exactly what we are doing,” — Brunner said.

At the same time, the official’s words leave it unclear exactly how the EU will determine whether men have legally departed from Ukrainian territory. Previously, Ukraine had discussed a scheme under which Europe would deny protection only to those who had illegally crossed the Ukrainian border.

News that the European Commission would present a proposal to extend temporary protection became known the day before. During preliminary discussions, the idea had already been raised of not extending the status to new applicants — men of conscription age arriving in the EU after the new rules take effect.