The Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) announced today that Portugal has granted approximately 58,700 temporary protection titles to Ukrainian refugees since the start of the conflict, a decrease from the previous year.
A source from SEF informed PP that this security service has already initiated the automatic six-month renewal of temporary protections that have since expired.
In this week’s SEF report on temporary protection for Ukrainians, the number of permits decreased from 59,089 to 58,789. This represents a decrease of 303 permits from the 17th of April.
The Foreigners and Borders Service stated in a statement that, of the 58,789 temporary protections granted to Ukrainian citizens and foreigners residing in Ukraine, 34,448 were granted to women and 24,630 were granted to men.
According to SEF, Lisbon remains the municipality with the highest number of temporary protections granted, 12,253, followed by Cascais with 3,821, Porto with 2,974, Sintra with 2,007, and Albufeira with 1,463.
According to the SEF, 14,195 temporary protections for minors were counted out of a total of 58,786.
SEF also indicates that it has conveyed to the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) the situation of 739 unaccompanied minors from Ukraine who arrived in Portugal without their parents or legal guardians and for whom there is no “current or imminent danger.
In these instances – in the majority of cases, the child arrived in Portugal with a relative – the case is referred to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the appointment of a legal representative and the possible initiation of a protection procedure for the child.
SEF has also conveyed to the Commission for the Protection of Children and Young People the situation of 15 unaccompanied minors who arrived in Portugal with someone other than their parents or proven legal guardian; these cases represent “imminent or current danger.”
Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, has so far resulted in the displacement of more than 14.6 million people, including 6.5 million internally displaced and more than 8.1 million to European countries, according to the most recent data from the United Nations, which ranks this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
Currently, at least 18 million Ukrainians require humanitarian assistance, while 9.3 million require food assistance and housing.
Since the beginning of the war, the United Nations has confirmed the deaths of 8,534 civilians and 14,370 injuries, while emphasizing that these numbers fall far short of reality.
