Poland to Phase Out Special Benefits for Ukrainian Refugees

January 22 ------ The Polish government is to reduce social benefits for Ukrainian refugees, including by limiting access to medical care, a government spokesperson said.

Shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Poland passed a special law to prepare for an influx of Ukrainian refugees. Ukrainians seeking refuge in Poland were given full access to health services. Parents were entitled to a monthly payment of 800 złoty ($222) for each child.

According to Poland’s Ministry of the Interior, these and other benefits are set to come to an end. In an X post, they said that Poland’s Council of Ministers has adopted a draft law gradually phasing out the provisions of the special Ukrainian law.” “After four years of the special law in force and the situation stabilizing, we are moving to systemic, equal rules for all foreigners in healthcare, social benefits, employment, etc. This also includes the further development of digital administration and the settlement of aid funds,” the ministry said.

According to independent media outlet Notes From Poland, government spokesperson Adam Szłapka justified the move in terms of the stabilization of Ukraine’s refugee situation after almost four years of full-scale war. “We are no longer dealing with such a large, simultaneous wave of refugees,” he said. “Most residing in Poland are working, their children are attending school,” he added. “So we can now phase out these extraordinary measures and move from temporary solutions to systemic ones.”

The introduction of this draft law is not unexpected. Polish President Karol Nawrocki signed a bill extending humanitarian support for Ukraine into law in September – but only after forcing Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government to make key changes, and on the condition that this extension would be the last. His chancellery chief, Zbigniew Bogucki, told reporters at the time that Nawrocki’s changes would end “tourism from Ukraine at the expense of Polish taxpayers.”

Although a December meeting between Nawrocki and President Volodymyr Zelensky helped balm Polish-Ukrainian relations, elements of Poland’s political right retain anti-Ukrainian sentiment. Public sentiment is not a monolith, however. Polish donors raised over 1 million zlotys ($250,000) in just three days earlier this month to buy generators for Ukrainians in Kyiv, where blackouts caused by Russian strikes on energy infrastructure are sending the capital careering towards a humanitarian crisis.

Source: kyivpost.com