The Diplomat
Spain has exceeded 180,000 temporary protections to Ukrainian refugees since the activation of this extraordinary protection mechanism after the beginning of the Russian invasion, according to the latest data from the Office of Asylum and Refugees (OAR) of the Ministry of Interior, published yesterday.
The activation of the Temporary Protection Directive – which grants residence and work permits immediately – was unanimously approved on March 4, 2022 at the EU Interior Ministers’ Council, for the first time since the creation of this mechanism in 2001. Spain launched the urgent application and processing procedure six days after its approval. Last March, the European Commission informed the Council of Interior Ministers of the extension of temporary protection until March 2024.
Until this past July 7, the Asylum and Refuge Office and the National Police have processed and granted a total of 180,785 protections, the Ministry of the Interior specified in a press release. Sixty-two percent of the people who have obtained this protection in Spain are women (112,591) and 38 percent are men (68,194). By age group, 32 percent are under 18 years old; 26 percent, between 19 and 35 years old; 35 percent, between 36 and 64; and seven percent are over 65 years old.
In addition, most of the people who have obtained temporary protection, 98.1 percent, are citizens of Ukrainian nationality, while the remaining 1.9 percent are citizens of other nationalities who were legally residing on Ukrainian territory when the war broke out. The Valencian Community (50,066), Catalonia (41,343), Andalusia (25,952) and Madrid (24,972) are the autonomous communities where more temporary protections have been processed and granted.
According to Interior, the mechanism activated by the OAR allows to grant temporary protection in an agile and simple way within a maximum period of 24 hours from the application. The procedure is initiated in the National Police stations spread throughout the national territory and in the authorized reception centers, where National Police officers, supported by interpreters, are in charge of taking the identification data of the Ukrainian citizens. This request is subsequently processed by the OAR of the Ministry of the Interior and resolved within a maximum of 24 hours.
All processed temporary protections entail a residence permit and, for those of legal age, a work permit. In addition, under the provisions of the General Directorate of Traffic, displaced persons who obtain temporary protection may legally use their driving licenses.
