Today the Council of the European Union has adopted a decision to extend the Temporary Protection Directive until March 2026. Temporary protection provides immediate and collective protection to a large group of displaced persons from non-EU countries who arrive in the EU and who are not in a position to return to their country of origin. The temporary protection mechanism was triggered on 4 March 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and was due to expire on 4 March 2025.
The system alleviates the pressure on national asylum systems because applications do not have to be examined individually. The EU’s temporary protection legislation sets minimum standards of protection. The actual level of assistance can vary from one member state to another. People benefiting from temporary protection enjoy the access to the following rights:
- residence
- access to the labour market
- access to suitable accommodation or if necessary, receive the means to obtain housing
- medical assistance
- social welfare assistance
- access to education for children
Ireland opted-in to the Temporary Protection Directive in 2003. It is currently provided for in section 60 of the International Protection Act 2015. The section provides permission to reside in the State and this permission is valid for one year at a time and are renewable. The section also sets out a number of exclusion and revocation grounds.
In May 2024, EMN Ireland published new research on the implementation of the Temporary Protection Directive in Ireland. It found that beneficiaries of temporary protection in Ireland can face difficulties accessing employment and education. This is largely due to a lack of English language proficiency, compounded by insufficient English language support provision for adults. The report also demonstrates that accessing certain services is a challenge for beneficiaries, with particular issues related to accessing healthcare and suitable accommodation.
See more:
