Most of the Ukrainian refugees who decided to return home came from countries directly bordering Ukraine. In particular, a significant number of returns were recorded from Poland, where almost half of the Ukrainians who emigrated there decided to return home. Find out more about other countries from which refugees who left southern Ukraine are leaving and returning

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Refugees from the southern regions of Ukraine are returning from abroad despite the risks associated with the proximity of their homes to the war zone. The motives for these returns, as well as the living conditions in the occupied territories and the risks they face, were investigated by Radio Svoboda Pryazovia News project.  

Read more about why Ukrainian refugees are returning home and becoming IDPs in the article.

Do refugees who left southern Ukraine return from abroad?

Currently, there are approximately six million citizens outside of Ukraine, many of whom maintain close ties to their home country and intend to return. 

According to a study conducted by the analytical platform Vox Ukraine in January of this year, 64% of Ukrainians who remain abroad plan to return to Ukraine.

 Of those who have already returned, the majority want to stay in the country, with only 7% considering leaving again, although these plans can change quickly. It was also found that 53% of adult refugees were able to find work abroad, but almost a third believe that their jobs are less qualified than the ones they had in Ukraine.

Read here how many refugees want to return to Ukraine after 2 years of war.

Remember! When planning a trip to Ukraine, first of all, you need to take care of the appropriate insurance policy, because any foreign insurance automatically terminates after crossing the Ukrainian border. In this case, we recommend that you take out insurance specifically covering military risks, which will cover not only standard medical care/treatment/diagnosis, etc. but also accidents and injuries caused by passive or direct military risks.

You can take out such insurance on the Visit Ukraine website. Follow the link and choose an insurance policy with the appropriate coverage and indemnity amount for the required period.

What motivates Ukrainians to return home?

The primary reason for emigration is the desire for security. However, the desire to return home is motivated by a number of factors, including proximity to family and friends, better employment opportunities in Ukraine, and challenges with integration into a new culture.

Analysts call for viewing Ukrainian refugees as a valuable asset, not a loss. Many of them have acquired new skills that can be useful for the country's recovery. It is important to maintain ties with Ukraine and promote Ukrainian culture abroad, which is beneficial for both refugees and Ukraine in the context of attracting support from the democratic world.

Anastasia Fitisova, Research Manager at IMPACT's Long-Term Solutions Department, revealed that since the beginning of March 2022, the organization has been analyzing the mood among Ukrainians who have left the country because of the war.

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In particular, 30% of families from Zaporizhzhia region who left decided to return to their homes.

"We are generally surveying everyone, everyone who has left the territory of Ukraine. In early March, we collected data from people who crossed the border, who stayed in places of temporary residence, in collective centers, for example, in Poland, in Moldova. We collected the contacts of these people and then tried to track their fate through telephone interviews. If we talk about Zaporizhzhia, the trend in Zaporizhzhia is the same - 30% of families who left Zaporizhzhia region returned home," the researcher said.

In Kherson region, a fifth of families returned, and in Mykolaiv region - every third.

"In general, according to our research, 37% of those who went abroad after the full-scale invasion have returned to their homes," she summarized.

The expert notes that one of the main motivations for Ukrainians to return from abroad is the desire to be with their families and a deep emotional attachment to their home country.

"About 10% do not return to their homes, but settle in other places in Ukraine, thus becoming internally displaced persons. Among those who emigrated to Poland, half of the families - 49% - decided to return. Similar trends are observed among refugees from Romania (46%), Moldova (43%) and Slovakia (40%). At the same time, the number of returns from more distant countries, such as Germany and the Czech Republic, is much lower - 13% from Germany and 17% from the Czech Republic. This may indicate that Ukrainians who initially emigrated to these countries had less intention of returning and were more eager to integrate into the new society. Perhaps this also indicates a more effective policy of integration of refugees from Ukraine in these countries," the researcher says.

Fitisova adds that refugees continue to return to Ukraine, and their decisions are often spontaneous.

We remind you! The imposed martial law on the territory of Ukraine does not prohibit entry, but it does impose some other restrictions. Read what you need for a safe trip and what nuances you should consider when planning a trip to Ukraine during the war in our previous article.

Want to know more? Read the latest news and useful materials about Ukraine and the world in the News section.

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