The Ukrainian refugee crisis began with the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. As of September 2025, the UNHCR has recorded 5.7 million Ukrainian refugees around the world, with 90% of this figure residing in various European countries outside of Ukraine. Older reports by the International Organization for Migration in May 2022 show approximately eight million Ukrainians as internally displaced persons. By 20 March 2022, nearly one-quarter of Ukraine's total population had been displaced due to active military hostilities with Russia. About 90% of all Ukrainian refugees are women and children; by 24 March, more than half of all children in Ukraine had left their homes, of whom a quarter had left the country as well. Men between the ages of 18 and 60 have been banned from leaving the country under Ukrainian martial law, which came into force a few hours into Russia's first military offensive into Ukraine. This ongoing escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War has caused the largest refugee crisis in the 21st century and the fourth-largest refugee crisis in modern history as a whole, with the highest refugee flight rate globally. It is also the first European refugee crisis since the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s and the largest one to have occurred in Europe since World War II.
The vast majority of Ukrainian refugees initially entered neighbouring countries to the west of Ukraine (Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova). Around three million of these people then moved further west to other European countries. As of May 2025, the UNHCR reports that the countries in which the largest numbers of Ukrainians had applied for asylum, or other temporary protection, are Germany (1.2 million), Poland (1 million), and the Czech Republic (0.4 million). As of September 2022, Human Rights Watch has documented that Ukrainian civilians, particularly children, have been forcibly transferred to Russia. The OHCHR has corroborated this claim, stating that "There have been credible allegations of forced transfers of unaccompanied children to Russian-occupied territory, or to the Russian Federation itself." The United States Department of State estimated that at least 900,000 Ukrainian citizens (including children) were forcibly transferred to Russia in the first six months after the invasion. Around the same time in late 2022, more than 4.5 million Ukrainians had returned to Ukraine, owing to the withdrawal of Russian troops from all fronts but the Donbas and parts of southern Ukraine.
The European Union (EU) has allowed entry to all Ukrainian refugees, and it has also invoked the Temporary Protection Directive to grant displaced Ukrainians the right to stay, work, and study in any EU member state for an initial period of one year. In August 2026, the EU introduced a requirement for newly granted temporary protection to Ukrainian applicants to comply with their military obligations in Ukraine.
Refugees before the 2022 invasion
Before the invasion, the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and the war in the Donbas, both of which are aspects of the Russo-Ukrainian War, had already resulted in over two million refugees and internally displaced persons since 2014. They have been referred to as Europe's forgotten refugees by some media, due to their cool reception in the European Union, comparatively low asylum claim success rate, and media neglect.
More than a million of the pre-2022 refugees, mainly from Donbas, had gone to Russia between 2014 and 2016, while the number of people displaced within Ukraine had grown to 1.6 million people by early March 2016.
Journey
Transportation
For many refugees heading westward, trains played a vital role in the journey within Ukraine and into neighboring countries. Oleksandr Kamyshin, the CEO of Ukrainian Railways, which operates the majority of train services in Ukraine, estimated that within three weeks of the start of the invasion, the network had transported 2.5 million passengers. He also said at its peak, the network transported 190,000 people a day.
To ensure trains can travel as safely as possible, the network had to constantly adapt to situations on the ground, such as if tracks are damaged by bombs or if they are no longer under Ukrainian control. Trains have to move slower because they are often overloaded to fit as many people as possible, as well as minimising the risk of hitting damaged tracks. At night, trains also turn off their lights to reduce the chance of being targeted.
Railway companies in several European countries, including Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Switzerland, allowed Ukrainian refugees to travel by train for free.
Other refugees traveled by motor vehicles or on foot. In some border crossings, traffic jams of several kilometres long formed. Air travel was not available in Ukraine as the country closed its airspace to civilian flights on the day of the invasion.
Staging grounds and border crossings
The city of Lviv in the west of Ukraine became a key staging ground for refugees. Shortly after the Russian invasion, up to 100,000 refugees were arriving in the city every day, which prior to the invasion had a population of 700,000. From Lviv, trains transport refugees to border crossing points such as Medyka, Poland and Uzhhorod, close to the border with Slovakia and Hungary. From Medyka, most refugees continue to Przemyśl, Poland, and onward to the rest of Europe.
Other major border crossings included Siret, Romania; Ocnița and Palanca, Moldova; Beregsurány, Hungary and Vyšné Nemecké, Slovakia.
Number of refugees
Numbers of refugees can change quickly and are often only estimates. Movements from country to country are not necessarily registered officially. Ukrainians are allowed to travel to some countries in Europe without a visa and may be allowed to stay in the country for a longer period, without special permission. Elsewhere, they have to apply for asylum. Due to the Schengen arrangements, having entered any Schengen country, refugees can travel on to other Schengen countries without any visas or border checks.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated on 27 February 2022 that in two months there would be 7.5 million internally displaced people in Ukraine, 12 million people would be in need of healthcare and the number of people fleeing the war could reach 4 million. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated that the situation was Europe's fastest growing refugee crisis since the Second World War. By early November, according to the UNHCR, the number of Ukrainian refugees recorded across Europe was around 7.8 million. The countries receiving the largest numbers of refugees as of May 2025 were Germany (1.2 million), Poland (1 million), and the Czech Republic (0.4 million).
The communications chief of the UN High Commission for Human Rights called the speed of the exodus of refugees from Ukraine "phenomenal".
A study by the UN agency International Organization for Migration released on 21 March 2022 found that 13.5% of displaced people had also been displaced in 2014–2015. The study found that 60% of refugee households were traveling with children, and of the nearly 10 million people displaced within and outside Ukraine on that date, 186,000 were nationals of a third country.
Countries
Neighbouring countries
Neighbouring countries are listed in order of the number of refugees who have entered them; others are listed alphabetically.
Poland
As early as 15 February 2022, Poland was expecting a possible Russian attack on Ukraine. The Polish government asked communities to prepare for up to a million refugees. By 25 July, more than 1.2 million Ukrainian refugees had been recorded in Poland. Poland greatly reduced the usual border formalities and said that various identity documents would be accepted.
Assembly points for refugees have opened in every district of Poland. Local authorities are providing free accommodation, food, and other necessary supplies. Apart from that, a huge number of citizens and organisations are voluntarily offering assistance, free accommodation and other help. Websites with information for refugees are also in Ukrainian. The government is preparing legal changes that would simplify the employment of Ukrainians in Poland, since currently a working visa is required as Ukrainians are from outside of the EU.
President of the European Council Charles Michel visited the Polish-Ukrainian border crossing on 2 March and praised Polish efforts "to guarantee safe passages for Ukrainians, for European citizens" and those from other countries "without any discrimination." In a later interview for France Inter he denounced alleged claims of racism of Ukrainian and Polish serviceman as "Russian propaganda" and part of Russia's information warfare. (See also § Racial discrimination.) Many observers believe that most are likely to stay in Poland and other Central European countries because "tight labor markets, affordable cities and a pre-existing diaspora have made those countries more appealing alternatives for Ukrainians, who find options slimmer in Europe's west".
The number of refugees arriving to Poland have been unparalleled in Europe. Modelling estimates show that by 1 April, Ukrainian people (including refugees but also those previously living in Poland) made up between 15% and 30% of the population of each of the major Polish cities. For example, Ukrainians accounted for 10% of the total population of Wrocław before the war and this figure had increased to 23% by April 2022.
As of May 2025, there were almost 1 million Ukrainian refugees in Poland. The migration has resulted in a 50% rise in the population of Rzeszów, the largest city in south-eastern Poland. Warsaw's population has increased by 15%, Kraków's by 23%, and Gdańsk's by 34%. Ukrainian refugees have the legal right to reside and work across the European Union. They are also entitled to the same benefits as Poles, including health insurance, free public education, and child allowance.
Less than a month after the invasion, the Polish government established the Aid Fund, run by Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, which funds all actions and programs aimed at assisting and integrating Ukrainian refugees. The European Investment Bank has made a €600 million loan to the Aid Fund, after authorizing an initial €2 billion loan in June. The fund is distributed by Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK) to local governments and other public bodies that welcome and house Ukrainian migrants.
In January 2025, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk supported proposals to reduce benefits for Ukrainian refugees in Poland. From 1 July 2026, Ukrainian refugees, including the elderly, were no longer provided with free refugee accommodation to encourage Ukrainians to return home after four years of support, or to support themselves financially. The cost of the support was estimated at 40 billion złoty (£8 billion).
Romania
As of 27 May 2022, the Romanian government had reported 989,357 Ukrainians entering Romania. Romanian Defence Minister Vasile Dîncu announced on 22 February 2022 that Romania could receive 500,000 refugees if necessary; the first refugees arrived two days later. On 15 March 2022, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bogdan Aurescu reported that about 80,000 remained in the country.
Some ethnic Romanians are among the Ukrainians who have fled to Romania.
Russia
At the start of the full-scale war, there was already a large number of Ukrainian refugees in Russia, as more than one million Ukrainians, mainly from Donbas, had fled to Russia between 2014 and 2016.
Estimates of the number of Ukrainian refugees in Russia vary significantly. According to the Russian government 1.2 million Ukrainians were in a "refugee-like situation" in Russia in June 2023. A 2023 report by the Civic Assistance Committee, a Russian human rights organisation, concluded that reliable statistics on refugees do not exist in Russia but estimated the number at approximately 1.2 million based on government payouts to refugees and migration control data.
According to the Ukrainian authorities, Russian troops in the territories of Ukraine occupied by Russia are engaged in the forcible deportation of people from Ukraine to Russia, passing them off as refugees. In March, the Ukrainian foreign ministry alleged that 2,389 Ukrainian children had been abducted from Russian-occupied territory in Donetsk and Luhansk, and transferred to Russia, as well as "several thousand" residents of Mariupol. Near the end of April it was reported that Ukrainian officials believed the number of Ukrainian children forced from eastern Ukraine and entered into the Russian adoption system totalled around 150,000. It had been previously reported by Russian media on that children without parents in Donetsk were being placed with Russian parents through their adoption network.
Amnesty International reported that "The abusive and humiliating process known as 'filtration' is a shocking violation of international human rights and humanitarian law. Our research shows that many displaced Ukrainians end up inside Russia or Russia-occupied territories involuntarily, even if they are not physically forced to move. Deportation and forcible transfer of civilians in occupied territory are prohibited by international humanitarian law and can constitute war crimes or crimes against humanity."
Hungary
From the start of the Russian invasion up to 26 July 2022, 1,041,762 refugees from Ukraine had arrived in Hungary. As there are no border checks within the Schengen area, Hungary does not know how many people have moved to other Schengen countries. 500 people from third-party countries arrived by train in Budapest and asked the police for help; these were mostly students or migrant workers from Asia and Africa who had been living in Ukraine.
On 21 August 2024 a law came into force in Hungary, restricting support to those Ukrainian refugees who have come from one of currently 13 regions in Ukraine which are, directly affected by military action. Those from the listed regions remain eligible for state support, which includes free housing and a basic monthly sum. Based on UN refugee agencies estimates, some 2,000 to 3,000 people will lose access to subsidised accommodation and will find it difficult to secure alternative properties to rent. Human rights groups said the worst affected are Roma from the Transcarpathian region, who are living in shelters which will now close.