The number of Ukrainian refugees in the EU continues to grow: where they are most numerous

Unsplash

Germany and Poland are taking in hundreds of thousands of migrants.

September and October 2025 became record-breaking in terms of the number of Ukrainian refugees who received temporary protection in the countries of the European Union. According toEurostat data , more than 153,000 Ukrainian citizens received the status during these two months: 79,525 in September and 74,175 in October, which was the highest monthly figures of the year.

Where Ukrainians with temporary protection are concentrated

  • Germany - 1,229,960 people (28.6 per cent of the EU total)

  • Poland - 965,005 people (22.5%)

  • Czech Republic - 393,005 people (9.1 per cent)

When counted per thousand inhabitants, the Czech Republic leads with 36 persons per thousand inhabitants, followed by Poland (26.4) and Estonia (25.5), while the EU average is 9.5.

Who receives protection

  • Adult women - 43.8 per cent

  • Minors - 30.8 per cent

  • Adult men - 25.5 per cent

The surge in the number of new applicants was linked to a Ukrainian government decree adopted at the end of August 2025, which allowed men aged 18-22 to leave the country without hindrance.

As of 31 October 2025, there were around 4.3 million non-EU nationals who had left Ukraine and were granted temporary protection status in the European Union. Ukrainians accounted for more than 98.4 per cent of all persons granted this status.