Only 7% of internally displaced persons in Ukraine are ready to return home within the next six months

A new report on the situation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine has shown that, after more than three years of conflict, most people forced to leave their homes still see no possibility of returning.

Only 7% of respondents said they were ready to return within the next six months — a figure experts call critically low.

The study’s data shows that 83% of IDPs continue to move from place to place within the country, unable to find stable housing. Meanwhile, 15% face obstacles even within Ukraine — from bureaucratic hurdles to the lack of housing or jobs in the regions to which they have relocated.

Social ties are also under severe strain: 38% of displaced persons are separated from their loved ones — in 62% of cases due to internal displacement, and in 15% due to forced migration abroad. Just over half of respondents (55%) have been able to keep their families intact.

The economic picture for IDPs is equally troubling. Only 28% are able to support themselves and their families independently. The majority — 63% — live off state benefits and pensions, while another 10% require constant support from social services. Economists warn that Ukraine’s economy is struggling to cope with the burden of large-scale internal displacement, and without comprehensive reforms the situation will only worsen.

Experts stress that the slow recovery of destroyed regions, lack of housing, job shortages, and weak social infrastructure are key factors preventing people from returning home. All of this is creating a dangerous trend: millions of Ukrainians are beginning to settle permanently away from their hometowns, potentially losing connection with them for years — or even forever.