Following the EU Response to the Russian Invasion of Ukraine? The Implementation of the Temporary Protection Directive in Poland

• Authors: Maja Łysienia

Abstracts

EN

In 2022, upon the unexpected activation of the Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) by the Council Implementing Decision 2022/382, the Member States had to revive the EU law that had not been used for over 20 years. Poland adopted a new law that was aimed at offering extended rights to Ukrainian nationals and their family members. Other persons enjoying temporary protection under EU law were offered general protection available in Poland since 2003. This contribution sets out to answer the question of whether Poland followed the TPD and the Council Implementing Decision 2022/382 in its two-way response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The article is based on a comparative analysis of Polish and EU law, doctrinal views concerning temporary protection and available information about domestic practice. It focuses on the following areas of interest: eligibility for temporary protection, residence permits, accommodation, family reunification, returns and measures after temporary protection ends, and remedies. The analysis conducted showed that Polish law on temporary protection is not fully compatible with the respective EU law. In the selected areas of interest, Poland either did not thoroughly follow the Council Implementing Decision 2022/382 or did not meet the minimum standards arising from the TPD.

Keywords

EN

temporary protection; implementation; Ukraine; Poland; EU law

• Publisher: Ośrodek Badań nad Migracjami Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego oraz Polska Akademia Nauk
• Journal: Central and Eastern European Migration Review
• Year: 2023
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 180-200

Dates

published

2023

Contributors

author

Maja Łysienia

• Association for Legal Intervention, Poland
• Warsaw Bar Association, Poland

• https://orcid.org/0000000169168707

References

• Beirens H., Maas S., Petronella S., van der Velden M. (2016). Study on the Temporary Protection Directive. Final Report. Brussels: Study for the European Commission.
• Białas J., Jagura J. (2022). Opinion of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights on Incompliance of Certain National Regulations Concerning Temporary Protection with Relevant Provisions of the European Union Law. Warsaw: Helsińska Fundacja Praw Człowieka. https://bit.ly/3ZAWQV7 (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Carrera S., Ineli-Ciger M., Vosyliute L., Brumat L. (2022). The EU Grants Temporary Protection for People Fleeing War in Ukraine. Time to Rethink Unequal Solidarity in EU Asylum Policy. CEPS Policy Insights No 2022-09. https://bit.ly/3fIHUDj (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Chlebny J. (ed.) (2020). Prawo o Cudzoziemcach: Komentarz. Warsaw: C.H. Beck.
• Chlebny J. (2022). Łączenie Rodzin Cudzoziemców. Warsaw: C.H. Beck.
• Costello C., Foster M. (2022). (Some) Refugees Welcome: When is Differentiating Between Refugees Unlawful Discrimination? International Journal of Discrimination and the Law 22(3): 244–280.
• ECRE (2023). Movement To and From Ukraine Under the Temporary Protection Directive. Brussels: European Council on Refugees and Exiles. https://bit.ly/3K4XVyZ (accessed 13 June 2023).
• European Commission (2022a). Communication from the Commission on Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of Council Implementing Decision 2022/382 Establishing the Existence of a Mass Influx of Displaced Persons from Ukraine within the Meaning of Article 5 of Directive 2001/55/EC and Having the Effect of Introducing Temporary Protection 2022/C 126 I/01. C/2022/1806. https://bit.ly/3C8Lmyw (accessed 13 June 2023).
• European Commission (2022b). Update of the List of Residence Permits Referred to in Article 2(16) of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Union Code on the Rules Governing the Movement of Persons Across Borders (Schengen Borders Code). 2022/C 304/05. https://bit.ly/3fIcIUC (accessed 13 June 2023).
• FRA (2022). National Legislation Implementing the EU Temporary Protection Directive in Selected EU Member States (August 2022 update). Vienna: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. https://bit.ly/3CzltJH (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Gluns D., Wessels J. (2017). Waste of Paper or Useful Tool? The Potential of the Temporary Protection Directive in the Current ‘Refugee Crisis’. Refugee Survey Quarterly 36(2): 57–83.
• Golec M., Kołodziej T., Pietrzak T., Sukiennik A. (2022). Poradnik dla Uchodźców z Ukrainy. Warsaw: Wolters Kluwer.
• Grzelak-Bach K. (2022). Zasady Legalnego Pobytu Cudzoziemców z Ukrainy Według tzw. Specustawy. LEX/el.
• Grześkowiak M. (2019). Transpozycja Zasady Non-Refoulement do Polskiego Systemu Ochrony Uchodźców. Studia Iuridica 76: 199–217.
• Ineli-Ciger M. (2018). Temporary Protection in Law and Practice. Leiden, Boston: Brill Nijhoff.
• Ineli-Ciger M. (2022). Five Reasons Why: Understanding the Reasons Behind the Activation of the Temporary Protection Directive in 2022. https://bit.ly/3RHYiRI (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Jarosz S., Klaus W. (eds) (2023). Polska Szkoła Pomagania Przyjęcie Osób Uchodźczych z Ukrainy w Polsce w 2022 Roku. Warsaw: Konsorcjum Migracyjne, OBMF and CeBaM. https://bit.ly/3UbeRs3 (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Jaroszewicz M., Krępa M. (2023). Stabilisation of Emergency Measures: Poland’s Refugee Reception System One Month After the Russian Attack on Ukraine, in: M. Ineli-Ciger, S. Carrera (eds), EU Responses to the Large-Scale Refugee Displacement from Ukraine: An Analysis on the Temporary Protection Directive and Its Implications for the Future EU Asylum Policy, pp. 163–176. San Domenico di Fiesole: European University Institute. https://bit.ly/3U4ii3X (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Kerber K. (2002). The Temporary Protection Directive. European Journal of Migration and Law 4(2): 193–214.
• Kienast J., Tan N.F., Vedsted-Hansen J. (2023). Preferential, Differential or Discriminatory? EU Protection Arrangements for Persons Displaced from Ukraine, in: M. Ineli-Ciger, S. Carrera (eds), EU Responses to the Large-Scale Refugee Displacement from Ukraine: An Analysis on the Temporary Protection Directive and Its Implications for the Future EU Asylum Policy, pp. 383–399. San Domenico di Fiesole: European University Institute. https://bit.ly/3U4ii3X (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Klaus W. (ed.) (2022). Ustawa o Pomocy Obywatelom Ukrainy w Związku z Konfliktem Zbrojnym na Terytorium Tego Państwa. Komentarz. Warsaw: Wolters Kluwer.
• Klaus W., Górczyńska M. (2022). Administration and Law, in: M. Bukowski, M. Duszczyk (eds), Hospitable Poland 2022+, pp. 85–94. Warsaw: WiseEuropa. https://bit.ly/3KvGpoJ (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Kołodziej T. (2022). Regulacje Specustawy i Ochrony Czasowej – Aspekty Praktyczne Legalizacji Pobytu Osób Uchodzących z Ukrainy. LEX/el.
• Komenda Główna Straży Granicznej (2023). Straż Graniczna: Informacja Statystyczna za 2022 r. http://bit.ly/3K8Jl9J (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Konfederacja Lewiatan (2022). Pismo z Dnia 8 Marca 2022 r. https://bit.ly/3Mf8wbi (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Küçük E. (2022). The Odd Couple: Free Choice of Asylum and Temporary Protection. https://bit.ly/3EzZOTh (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Küçük E. (2023). Temporary Protection Directive: Testing New Frontiers? European Journal of Migration and Law 25(1): 1–30.
• Łysienia M. (2022). Seeking Convergence? A Comparative Analysis of the Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union on Seeking Asylum. Zurich: sui generis. https://bit.ly/3ydnVTp (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Łysienia M. (2023). Asylum Information Database (AIDA). Temporary Protection. Poland. Brussels: European Council of Refugees and Exiles. https://bit.ly/3qbTKLi (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Milios G. (2023). The Right to Family Reunification under the Temporary Protection Directive and Council Decision 2022/382: Preserving Family Unity for the Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection, in: M. Ineli-Ciger, S. Carrera (eds), EU Responses to the Large-Scale Refugee Displacement from Ukraine: An Analysis on the Temporary Protection Directive and Its Implications for the Future EU Asylum Policy, pp. 225–235. San Domenico di Fiesole: European University Institute. https://bit.ly/3U4ii3X (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Nagy B. (2023). About-Face or Camouflage? Hungary and the Refugees from Ukraine, in: M. Ineli-Ciger, S. Carrera (eds), EU Responses to the Large-Scale Refugee Displacement from Ukraine: An Analysis on the Temporary Protection Directive and Its Implications for the Future EU Asylum Policy, pp. 148–162. San Domenico di Fiesole: European University Institute. https://bit.ly/3U4ii3X (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Noll G., Gunneflo M. (2007). Directive 2001/55 Temporary Protection. Synthesis Report. London: University of London, Academic Network for Legal Studies on Immigration and Asylum in Europe.
• Nordic Council of Ministers (2022). Implementation of Temporary Protection for Refugees from Ukraine – A Systematic Review of the Nordic Countries. http://bit.ly/3Gb1UIT (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Peers S. (2015). Temporary Protection, in: S. Peers, V. Moreno-Lax, M. Garlick, E. Guild (eds), EU Immigration and Asylum Law (Text and Commentary): Second Revised Edition, Volume 3: EU Asylum Law, pp. 571–598. Leiden and Boston: Brill Nijhoff.
• Płonka-Bielenin K. (2022). Pomoc Obywatelom Ukrainy ze Strony JST na Podstawie Specustawy. LEX/el.
• PRAB (2023). Beaten, Punished and Pushed Back. https://bit.ly/432pqlm (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Prantl J., Kysel I.M. (2022). Generous, but Equal Treatment? Anti-Discrimination Duties of States Hosting Refugees Fleeing Ukraine. https://bit.ly/3EkjDxA (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Pudzianowska D. (2021). Karta Polaka: New Wine in Old Bottles. Ethnopolitics 20(1): 12–24.
• Rada Ministrów (2003). Projekt Ustawy o Udzielaniu Cudzoziemcom Ochrony na Terytorium Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej. Druk nr 1304. https://bit.ly/3fGJ1Dq (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Rada Ministrów (2022). Rządowy Projekt Ustawy o Pomocy Obywatelom Ukrainy w Związku z Konfliktem Zbrojnym na Terytorium Tego Państwa. Druk nr 2069. https://bit.ly/3CvUdvE (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich (2022). Trudności Uchodźców przy Ponownym Wjeździe do Polski po Powrocie do Ukrainy. Odpowiedź MSWiA. http://bit.ly/3Mf065N (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich (2023a). Aplikacja Potwierdzająca Status Uchodźcy z Ukrainy Nie dla Osób Poniżej 13. roku życia. Marcin Wiącek Pisze do MSWiA. http://bit.ly/436wA84 (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich (2023b). Uchodźcy z Ukrainy są Błędnie Pozbawiani Statusu Uprawniającego do Opieki Medycznej i Pomocy. Interwencja RPO. http://bit.ly/3Kg37jI (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Sadowski P. (2023). Czy Zakres Podmiotowy Prawa Polskiego jest Zgodny z Decyzją Wykonawczą Rady (UE) 2022/382 w Sprawie Masowego Napływu Wysiedleńców z Ukrainy? Studia Iuridica 2022 (94): 339–353.
• Sąd Najwyższy (2022). Opinia do Projektu Ustawy o Pomocy Obywatelom Ukrainy w Związku z Konfliktem Zbrojnym na Terytorium Tego Państwa (druk nr 2069). https://bit.ly/3Mn7NVD (accessed 13 June 2023).
• SIP (2022a). Uwagi Stowarzyszenia Interwencji Prawnej do Ustawy z dnia 12 Marca 2022 r. o Pomocy Obywatelom Ukrainy w Związku z Konfliktem Zbrojnym na Terytorium Tego Państwa. Warsaw: Stowarzyszenie Interwencji Prawnej. https://bit.ly/3g1LLeC (accessed 13 June 2023).
• SIP (2022b). People Who Fled from Ukraine Should Be Allowed to Re-Enter Poland – SIP’s Opinion. Warsaw: Stowarzyszenie Interwencji Prawnej. https://bit.ly/3MqBzZB (accessed 13 June 2023).
• SIP (2023). Poland’s Temporary Protection Law is Incompatible with EU Legislation. We Write to the European Commission. Warsaw: Stowarzyszenie Interwencji Prawnej. http://bit.ly/3Uabp16 (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Skordas A. (2022). Temporary Protection Directive 2001/55/EC, in: K. Hailbronner, D. Thym (eds), EU Immigration and Asylum Law: Article-by-Article Commentary, pp. 1177–1228. Third edition. München: C.H. Beck.
• Skordas A. (2023). Temporary Protection and European Racism, in: M. Ineli-Ciger, S. Carrera (eds), EU Responses to the Large-Scale Refugee Displacement from Ukraine: An Analysis on the Temporary Protection Directive and Its Implications for the Future EU Asylum Policy, pp. 419–435. San Domenico di Fiesole: European University Institute. https://bit.ly/3U4ii3X (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Thym D. (2022). Temporary Protection for Ukrainians: The Unexpected Renaissance of ‘Free Choice’. https://bit.ly/3yk781b (accessed 13 June 2023).
• UNHCR (2022). The EU Temporary Protection Directive in Practice 2022. https://bit.ly/3CBzAON (accessed 13 June 2023).
• Vitiello D. (2022). The Nansen Passport and the EU Temporary Protection Directive: Reflections on Solidarity, Mobility Rights and the Future of Asylum in Europe. European Papers 7(1): 15–30.

Identifiers

DOI

10.54667/ceemr.2023.14

Biblioteka Nauki

2233815