Latvia granted just over 5,000 such protection statuses, Estonia nearly 4,000 and Lithuania more than 17,000.
Temporary protection is a procedure provided only in the event of a mass influx or imminent mass influx of displaced persons from third countries who are unable to return to their country of origin.
In May 2022, the number of Ukrainians receiving temporary protection increased in four EU Member States, with the largest increases recorded in Romania and Denmark (+9 575 and +1 040 respectively, compared with April 2022). In contrast, the numbers dropped in eighteen EU Member States, with the largest decrease observed in Poland (-329 535 compared with April 2022), followed by Bulgaria (-41 610) and France (-14 535).
Compared with the population of each Member State, the highest ratio of Ukrainian citizens granted temporary protection in May 2022 was recorded in Lithuania (6.1 granted temporary protection per thousand inhabitants), followed by Cyprus (3.5) and Bulgaria (2.9).
Predominantly Ukrainian females seeking protection in the EU Member States
The largest number of Ukrainian children (persons under 18 years old) granted temporary protection was recorded in Poland (30 170 children, or 31% of Ukrainians granted protection in Poland in May), followed by Romania (8 235, or 40%) and Bulgaria (7 175, or 36%).
In the EU Member States for which data are available, the majority of Ukrainians granted temporary protection were females, including girls. The largest number of females who received temporary protection were reported by Poland (67 465, or 70% of the Ukrainians granted protection in Poland in May), Romania (13 785, or 67%) and Bulgaria (13 475, or 68%).
Among males granted temporary protection in the EU Member States, at least a third were boys below 18 years old.
Over a million Ukrainians in Poland
Based on the available data as of 31 May 2022, the largest number of Ukrainians benefitting from temporary protection in the EU was recorded in Poland (1 142 375 Ukrainians with temporary protection). Poland was followed by Bulgaria (111 895) and Slovakia (76 510).
While the overwhelming majority of persons receiving temporary protection were Ukrainians, there were also citizens of other countries who received such status in the EU Member States, e.g. 825 Nigerians in Portugal or 205 Russians in Poland.
This information comes from data on temporary protection published by Eurostat.