The Ombudsman's representative named the main problems of IDPs: housing, work, and reduction of benefits

Olha Altunina, spokesperson for the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for the Rights of Citizens Affected by Armed Aggression, spoke about this in an interview with Socportal

What assistance can displaced persons receive today?

According to Olha Altunina, the state currently supports over a million internally displaced persons through financial assistance programmes, social services, and housing compensation. The most vulnerable categories of IDPs — children, people with disabilities, and low-income families — continue to receive a monthly living allowance. There are separate support programmes for families with children, including the ‘Municipal Nanny’ scheme, which provides a monthly allowance of up to 8,000 hryvnias for the care of a child under the age of 3. Housing support measures include rent subsidies, utility subsidies, and compensation for destroyed or damaged housing.

Despite the efforts undertaken by the Government to support IDPs, meeting their needs remains a major challenge due to the scale of population displacement, limited resources, and a reduction in international support, notes Altunina.

Why have some displaced persons lost their benefits?

Following the start of the full-scale invasion, housing assistance was provided to a wide range of IDPs regardless of income level. However, from March 2024, the government changed its approach and moved to a more targeted support model. The criteria for assessing financial circumstances and the grounds for terminating payments were also tightened. According to Altunina, many displaced persons have felt the consequences of these changes.

A significant proportion of IDPs lost their regular state support; the number of appeals against refusals increased due to a formalistic approach to income assessment; and there was inconsistent application of the Procedure by Pension Fund authorities across different regions.

At the same time, following numerous appeals, it has been possible to preserve the right to assistance for some vulnerable groups and to extend the scope of its renewal for families with children and people with disabilities.

According to her, one of the most common reasons is failure to undergo the annual physical identification, which is mandatory for IDPs, citizens in the occupied territories, and Ukrainians abroad. Daily functioning of the individual and the timely submission of documents.

In the event of failure to undergo the relevant assessment or late submission of the necessary documents, pension payments are temporarily suspended until the person’s disability status is confirmed, notes Altunina.

What are displaced persons complaining about?

The Commissioner’s Office regularly receives complaints regarding issues with social benefits. These relate to delays in payments, the automatic termination of benefits, or the lack of clear explanations for why claims have been rejected.

Some of the problems are linked to the significant workload on the Pension Fund’s bodies and a shortage of staff following the transfer of the administration of many benefits from social protection bodies to the Pension Fund of Ukraine, explains Altunina.

According to her, the Ombudsman’s Office systematically draws the attention of the Pension Fund and the relevant ministry to the risks of violations of IDPs’ rights.

Housing remains the most pressing issue

Among the main mechanisms for providing housing for IDPs, the Derzhmolodzhytlo housing programme and the “єОселя” programme are currently in operation.

IDPs can obtain a mortgage at 3% or 7% per annum, depending on the programme and the applicant’s category. Also, in 2026, the government allocated 6.6 billion hryvnias for housing vouchers for IDPs from temporarily occupied territories.

However, the scale of the need far exceeds the capacity of state programmes.

In 2026, funding for housing vouchers will be sufficient for approximately 3,300 families, whilst more than 37,000 applications have already been submitted, notes a representative of the Ombudsman.

According to her, the problem lies not only in the shortage of housing stock.

The problem lies not only in the housing shortage, but also in the lack of a unified, comprehensive approach to analysing the needs of various categories of displaced persons — young families, pensioners, people with disabilities, large families, etc.

According to Olga Altunina, most IDPs are forced to rent flats, which makes them particularly vulnerable to rising rents. Furthermore, there is a shortage of social housing in Ukraine, and many temporary accommodation sites were created as short-term solutions.

Due to a lack of alternatives, people have been living there for years. Many such facilities are not suitable for long-term residence and require renovation, accessibility improvements, and appropriate conditions for people with disabilities and families with children.

Another ongoing issue is the lack of sufficient accommodation in communities that have already taken in a significant number of displaced persons.

Jobs are available, but they are hard to find

From 2024, the state will reduce payments to those IDPs who can work, thereby encouraging economic self-reliance. However, as Altunina notes, it is often not easy for displaced persons to find work. Among the main barriers are:

• a mismatch between IDPs’ qualifications and available vacancies;
• a significant regional concentration of IDPs in communities with a limited labour market;
• a shortage of jobs offering competitive pay;
• the difficulty of balancing work with caring for children, elderly relatives, or people with disabilities;
• insufficient provision of jobs with accommodation;
• the risk of informal and temporary employment;
• limited access to retraining and career guidance;
• the difficulty of integrating into the local labour market for older people and people with disabilities.

According to data from the State Employment Service of Ukraine, in the first months of 2026, employers advertised over 111,000 vacancies; however, the structure of demand is predominantly concentrated in the sectors of transport, trade, healthcare, and manufacturing and technical professions. Those with higher education or who previously worked in the public sector, management, or specialised industries.

The war has significantly transformed the labour market in Ukraine. On the one hand, the labour market is experiencing a shortage of staff in a number of sectors; on the other hand, IDPs are often unable to find employment due to a mismatch between vacancies and their skills, geographical restrictions, or an inability to adapt quickly to new conditions, notes Olha Altunina.

The Ombudsman’s representative notes that cutting social support without developing effective employment mechanisms can only exacerbate the social vulnerability of displaced persons.

To address the issue, she says, a comprehensive approach should be adopted, encompassing not only employment support but also interlinked mechanisms:

• the development of affordable housing;
• support for care and social services;
• career guidance;
• retraining programmes;
• support for entrepreneurial activity;
• support for employers;
• local employment programmes at community level;
• digital services for skills assessment and job search;
• special solutions for women with children, older people, and people with disabilities.

“A positive practice is the development of digital platforms combining housing and employment support, in particular the ‘Shelter. Work’ platform, as well as the expansion of job vacancies with the possibility of providing accommodation,” notes Olga Altunina.

Do IDPs face discrimination?

Although the Commissioner’s Office has received few official complaints regarding discrimination in the labour market, the problem does exist. According to Altunina, employers sometimes prefer candidates with local registration, considering IDPs to be less reliable workers due to their status.

In IDP communities, there are frequent reports of prejudice on the part of employers, where IDP status is perceived as a sign of ‘temporary residence’, which, in the employer’s view, allegedly reduces the employee’s reliability. In practice, this can manifest itself in preference being given to candidates with local registration or who have permanent accommodation in the community, says a representative of the Ombudsman.

It is also common for highly qualified people to be forced to accept positions of a lower level and pay.

Many IDPs have higher education and qualifications, yet in host communities, vacancies are often for lower-skilled roles or at pay levels that do not match their professional experience. This creates a situation of hidden unemployment and forced professional downgrading,” notes Olga Altunina.

Thus, despite the existence of several support programmes, the main problems for displaced persons remain housing, employment, and stable access to social benefits. It is precisely these issues, according to the Ombudsman’s Office, that require systemic solutions and additional resources from the state.

The situation in the occupied territories

It is estimated that between 3.5 and 5 million Ukrainian citizens currently reside in the temporarily occupied territories. Olga Altunina notes that fundamental human rights are being systematically violated there. According to the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, between January and April 2026, 815 civilians were killed and 4,174 wounded. In April alone, there were 238 fatalities and 1,404 injuries.

The humanitarian situation in the temporarily occupied territories remains critical due to constant shelling, hostilities, restrictions on freedom of movement, the destruction of civilian infrastructure, and a lack of adequate access to basic services.

Among the key issues, the Ombudsman’s representative cites forced passportisation, the seizure of property, ideological influence on children and young people, and the militarisation of education.

The Russian Federation continues the practice of so-called nationalisation of property in the temporarily occupied territories, is tightening the security forces’ control over the transfer of residential property, and is forcing the population to promptly re-register their property in accordance with Russian legislation. In particular, in March 2026, D. Pushilin, by his ‘decree’, obliged owners of flats located outside the so-called DPR to coordinate powers of attorney for the sale of their homes with a collegial property management body, which includes, in particular, FSB officers who are effectively granted the right of veto, Altunina explained.

She also pointed to the intensification of ideological influence on children and young people. In particular, this involves early career guidance for schoolchildren with the aim of preparing potential applicants for specialist educational institutions, the creation of ‘youth’ and cultural-educational centres for the formation of Cossack organisations, and the development of cadet education in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

There are more than 3,500 ‘cadets’ studying on the Crimean peninsula alone, noted the representative of the Ombudsman.

Socportal previously reported on a new study concerning Ukrainian migrants, which reveals exactly who has left, how Ukrainians are integrating in Europe, and what might influence people’s decision to return home. It also looked at what the state can do to facilitate this and whether those who have become part of the Ukrainian diaspora abroad are helping the country.

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