Germany squeezes benefits for Ukrainians as arrivals surge
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A Ukrainian flag is seen attached to a burnt car at the site of a heavily damaged residential building in Ternopil, Ukraine, on Nov 19, following a Russian attack.
PHOTO: AFP
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BERLIN – Ukrainian Timofiy has no regrets about leaving his homeland for Germany, despite government plans to squeeze the benefits available to migrants from the war-torn country.
The 20-year-old from Zhytomyr, who did not want to give his full name, arrived in Berlin this week with his friends Nikita and Dmytro.
Timofiy said he left Ukraine because he did not see a future there, admitting that he felt “the fear of death”.
“Maybe I’m not a great patriot, but what I want is the opportunity to flourish somewhere,” he told AFP, at a bus stop in the rain near a major accommodation centre for Ukrainians.
Timofiy and his friends feel “a little fear, but mostly hope”.
They are among thousands of young Ukrainian men who have fled their country since Kyiv changed its rules in late August
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz last week complained
Germany’s Interior Ministry in October told AFP that about 1,000 young Ukrainian men were arriving every week, up from 138 in the last week of August.
The influx comes amid worsening conditions for the Ukrainian army and civilians, including a spate of deadly bombings on the country’s energy infrastructure.
Migration crackdown
Many find it hard to believe that peace is imminent, despite the latest US proposal to stop the nearly four-year war.
The German government is hoping that a new law agreed by the Cabinet this week to reduce financial support available to new migrants from Ukraine will help stem the flow of new arrivals.
The change is one of several moves intended to crack down on migration as Mr Merz seeks to curb the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany.
Migrants from Ukraine had previously been granted a special refugee status in Germany, meaning they were entitled to higher benefits than asylum seekers from other countries.
But under the new law, that status will be removed so that Ukrainians who arrived after April 1 can receive only the standard benefits available to other asylum seekers.
Instead of €563 (S$850) a month, they will now receive €441, lose automatic access to healthcare and be subject to stricter monitoring to ensure they accept employment.
Germany has taken in around a million Ukrainian refugees since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
About 672,000 of them are on social benefits, according to the Interior Ministry.
Between April 1 and Sept 30, about 83,000 entered Germany and 28,000 applied for social assistance.
‘Taking advantage’
Ms Alla Dudka, 57, who came to Germany from Odesa in March 2022 and now lives in the western German town of Ingelheim am Rhein, said she worries about the government decision.
During her first months in Germany, the financial support she received “enabled me to really focus on integration – not just on survival”, she said.
She received benefits for around 2½ years, but now works part-time as a charity worker.
“From my own experience, I know that this initial support does not lead to dependency, but rather makes integration possible in the first place,” she said.
Timofiy said he and his friends have no objection to the new rules.
“This country has helped (Ukrainians) a lot, but some people are taking advantage of this generosity too much, in that they don’t try to work and become independent,” he said.
“I would like to be able to work... (and) stay and live in Germany if possible.” AFP
