Changes to social welfare and accommodation for Ukrainians to come into effect next month

Will apply to new arrivals and will not affect those already in the State

Social Protection Minister Heather Humphries is to progress the legislation to reduce payments for Ukrainians from €232 to €38.80 per week.  Picture: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin

Changes to social welfare and accommodation for newly-arrived Ukrainians in the country are expected to come into effect in early February.

Heather Humphreys, the Minister for Social Protection, is to progress the legislation to reduce payments for Ukrainians from €232 to €38.80 per week. 

If it passes committee stage, it is understood the change to payments will be effective from early February. 

The policy change to offer newly-arrived Ukrainians just 90 days in State accommodation before they have to find their own place to stay will also kick in then.

Ukrainians will still have access to child benefit and additional needs payments if they meet eligibility requirements. 

There is no change for the Ukrainians who have already arrived in the State.

Migration strategy

It comes as Cabinet ministers will meet on Thursday at the Cabinet committee on Ukraine and discuss a new government strategy on migration.

It is understood Integration Minister Roderic O’Gorman is to give a presentation to ministers and update them on his plan to acquire, build, and lease six new reception centres. 

A government spokesperson said after Mr O’Gorman brings the memo to cabinet in the coming weeks, work will begin on site selection for new centres but there is no timeline for when this will occur. 

The spokesperson said they “hope to get this off the ground quickly” and believes some of the new centres will be in operation before the end of the year and the Government will “move fairly soon” on sites.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Michael McGrath said the main pressure around asylum accommodation is not financial but "community acceptance".

He said the Government has made provision within the budget for Mr O'Gorman's department in relation to accommodation for Ukrainians and also for international protection applicants, already part of the budgetary framework.

He said: "There are always budgetary parameters. That said, we recognise we have international obligations and we need to meet those obligations.

"We are in the month of January and we are not anticipating any supplementary estimates at this point in the year.

“We just have to see how it develops but we have made significant provision within the budget for 2024.

“It is an area that is under ongoing pressure. 

"But I think the main pressure is not so much financial but community acceptance and finding the right locations and being able to actually get centres open,” Mr McGrath added.