The head of the Christian Democratic and Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) faction in the Bundestag Torsten Frei believes that the Ukrainians refugees should stop receiving civil benefits and replace them with standard payments that all other refugees from other countries receive. He stated this to the newspapers of the editorial group Funke.
Currently, Ukrainians, as an exception to the rule, receive Bürgegeld benefits from the German state. This type of assistance is usually provided to German citizens and residents who have lost their jobs or found themselves in financial difficulties. Payments per person range from 506 EUR to 563 EUR, for teenagers from 15 to 18 years the transfer is 471 EUR. As a rule, these benefits are accrued until the applicant, who previously registered on the labor exchange, finds a new job. In addition, Bürgergeld implies access to all medical services, insurance premiums are paid by the state.
„We finally have to take an honest look at the situation,” Fry said. “Bürgegeld payments to war refugees create completely the wrong incentives.“ According to him, many Ukrainians of military age avoid service while in Germany. “The need for reform in refugee support is also evident given the small number of Ukrainian women who have found work in Germany. In the neighboring countries, the majority are already working, unlike those in our country”, according to a representative of the opposition bloc.
According to the German authorities, about 700,000 Ukrainians in Germany receive Bürgergeld, of which approximately 480,000 are of working age. Germany now occupies a leading position among EU countries in terms of the number of Ukrainians granted temporary asylum here: according to official statistics at the end of last year, they were over 1 million.