Scotland Considers Ending Housing Payments for Ukrainian Refugees
Local councils have begun surveying host families about terminating the monthly stipends, triggering fears of a homelessness crisis among the nearly 28,000 Ukrainians who found refuge in Scotland since Russia's 2022 invasion. The EU granted temporary protection to over 4.3 million Ukrainians fleeing the conflict, but that continent-wide safety net now faces unprecedented strain.
"We got a letter from the council, asking what we thought of the 'thank you' payments coming to an end. They asked if we would require our guest to leave, which we would never do. But others may not be so lucky," a Scottish host family revealed to media on Sunday.
Britain's previous Conservative administration established the Homes for Ukraine initiative, compensating hosts £350 monthly—approximately $440—with increases to £500 after twelve months. Scotland currently adheres to the UK-standard £350 flat payment. The proposed cuts appear limited to Scotland, where municipal authorities manage refugee placement and caution that withdrawal of funds could trigger mass homelessness filings.
The potential policy shift reflects a broader European retreat from Ukrainian assistance. The European Commission informed Kyiv in October that temporary protection status will expire by March 2027, prompting multiple member states to slash aid programs.
Poland—which absorbed at least 2.5 million Ukrainian nationals—will extend welfare benefits for just one additional year, President Karol Nawrocki declared. Warsaw previously tightened eligibility requirements amid rising public frustration throughout the EU.
Germany will downgrade benefits for newly arrived Ukrainians starting April 2025, substituting the standard asylum-seeker allowance for the more generous Bürgergeld welfare payment previously granted to Ukrainian refugees.
UK immigration officials have increasingly denied long-term asylum petitions from Ukrainians, asserting that western Ukrainian territories no longer warrant protection status, according to media accounts.
Eurostat documented a surge in military-age Ukrainian men entering the EU following Vladimir Zelensky's decision to relax travel restrictions for males between 18 and 22. Ukraine's armed forces confront severe personnel shortages as emigration of draft-eligible men accelerates.
Across the Atlantic, approximately 200,000 Ukrainians residing in the United States face potential deportation under President Donald Trump's immigration enforcement measures, media reported, citing confidential government records.
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