Background information

Against the background of the Russian aggression against Ukraine, the EU Ministers of the Interior to activate the so-called Mass Influx Directive on 4 March 2022. Due to this decision, section 24 of the German Residence Act is applicable for Ukrainians fleeing the war; easing access to residency permits and the German labour market significantly.

Content of measure

Until 31 August 2022, Ukrainians fleeing the war, are not obliged to register for a (temporary) residency permit in Germany. However, they can register with the foreigners' authorities and be granted a temporary residence permit for protection immediately (in accordance with section 24 of the German Residence Act). Once the temporary residence permit is issued, the competent foreigners' authority can also grant Ukrainian refugees permission to work - allowing them to take up any gainful employment in Germany (be it as an employee or a freelancer or a self-employed person). However, restrictions for certain professions remain in place in which professional credentials must be recognized first by the competent authorities (e.g. for doctors or teachers).

Use of measure

According to the Central Register of Foreigners (AZR), around 1,062,000 Ukrainians lived in Germany at the end of July 2022, 906,000 more than at the end of February.

The German Federal Employment Agency reports that in August 2022 there were 545,591 Ukrainian citizens entitled to receive basic unemployment assistance (Arbeitslosengeld 2) in Germany, including those who had not yet fulfilled the 3 month qualifying period before receiving benefits.

The Federal Statistical Office reported that over 1 million Ukrainians lived in Germany at the end of October 2022. The majority of those Ukrainian persons having arrived in Germany since February 2022 are women and children.

The Federal Office of Statistics reports that on 31 December 2022, there were 1.01 million Ukrainian people seeking protection in Germany. Compared to the previous year, the proportion of Ukrainian refugees in Germany rose from 2% at the end of 2021 to 33% at the end of 2022. Overall, the number of people moving from Ukraine to Germany has been decreasing since August 2022. Preliminary results show that 27,000 new arrivals were registered in March 2023, compared to approximately 430,000 in March 2022.

According to the Federal Office of Statistics, there were 1,157,000 Ukrainian citizens living in Germany, as of 30 November 2023. This is over seven times more than at the end of February 2022. The net immigration in December 2023 was at +7,000, with around 17,000 Ukrainians moving to Germany and around 10,000 leaving Germany, which is the lowest number of Ukrainians arriving in Germany since before the start of the war.

As of 31 August 2024, there were 1,235,000 Ukrainian citizens living in Germany (Destatis). The net immigration in August 2024 was at +10,000, with around 20,000 Ukrainians moving to Germany and around 10,000 leaving Germany.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Migrants or refugees in employment	Does not apply to businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government EU (Council, EC, EP)	Local funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Unknown	Unknown
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Unknown
• Main level of involvement: N/A

Involvement

In general, social partners are consulted on all major legislative changes regards social and labour market issues.

Views and reactions

At the end of March 2022, the Confederation of German Employers' Associations (BDA) welcomed the decision to grant a temporary residence and working permit immediately. The Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB) similarly welcomed the eased rules and calls for further steps, such as fast recognition of foreign professional credentials.

Sources

• 30 March 2022: BDA calls for fast integration of Ukrainian refugees (arbeitgeber.de)
• 11 April 2022: DGB statement on Ukranian refugee integration (www.dgb.de)
• 17 May 2022: Eased rules for Ukrainian refugees (www.germany4ukraine.de)
• 11 August 2022: BA-Statistik, Grundlagen: Hintergrundinfo – Auswirkungen der Fluchtmigration aus der Ukraine auf den deutschen Arbeitsmarkt, August 2022 (statistik.arbeitsagentur.de)
• 16 June 2023: Number of Urkainian refugees reaches over one million (www.destatis.de)