The Czech Republic has initiated a policy change regarding temporary protection for Ukrainian men of draft age. In the first week following the implementation of these new regulations, dozens of such individuals were denied the status of temporary protection.
On August 5, the Czech Ministry of the Interior announced that it would no longer grant temporary protection to newly arrived men of draft age from Ukraine unless they could provide proof of having fulfilled their military obligations. This shift follows a decision by the European Union, published in the Official Journal of the EU on August 4.
Veronika Votočková, a specialist in migration and asylum issues at the Ministry of the Interior, explained, “There is a Ukrainian electronic military ticket. Colleagues at workplaces know what to look for, including how the record of military duty looks. If necessary, compliance can be confirmed with a Ukrainian exit stamp, but we prefer an excerpt from the ticket, as it is more reliable.”
Currently, more than 360,000 Ukrainians reside in the Czech Republic, with over 130,000 being men. Recently, men of draft age have constituted a significant portion of new refugees arriving in the country.
