Accessing my benefits

What is temporary protection and why apply for it?

Temporary protection is an exceptional measure set up in EU countries for displaced persons from Ukraine in order to formalise their administrative situation and give them access to benefits. If you are eligible, temporary protection entitles you to:

• A temporary residence permit (Autorisation Provisoire de Séjour – APS) for 6 months, renewable up to 3 years,  
• Schooling for minors, 
• Obtain a specific financial allowance, the asylum seeker’s allowance (Allocation pour Demandeur d’Asile – ADA), whose amount is determined based on your family composition, resources and accommodation,
• Obtain family allowances, i.e. financial aid granted to families to partially compensate for the expenses incurred for the livelihood and education of their children,
• authorisation to exercise a professional activity,
• Access to full financial coverage of your treatments, by benefiting from universal health cover (Protection Universelle Maladie – PUMa) and solidarity complementary health insurance (Complémentaire Santé Solidaire – CSS),
• Support to obtain housing.

Without temporary protection, you can stay in France for up to 90 days if you are Ukrainian.

Am I entitled to temporary protection?

If you are Ukrainian, you can benefit from temporary protection if you were a resident in Ukraine before 24 February 2022 and can prove your nationality and identity (valid passport or which expired less than two years ago, or a valid identity card or which expired less than two years ago, or a Ukrainian consular certificate).

If you are not Ukrainian, you can also benefit from temporary protection if you are in one of the following situations: 

• You have international protection or equivalent national protection from the Ukrainian authorities,
• You have a valid permanent residence permit issued by the Ukrainian authorities and you are not able to return to Your country of origin,
• You are a family member of a person falling under one of the above cases (family members are: spouse, unmarried minor children and dependent parents).

What steps do I need to take to obtain temporary protection?

Go to the Prefecture of the department where you live or are staying, along with the documents in your possession justifying your situation and accompanied by the members of your family (spouse and children).

You can consult the list of prefectures in France.

Are you not entitled to temporary protection?

If you are not eligible for temporary protection, you can apply for a residence permit or asylum. 

To apply for asylum, you must contact a facility for initial reception of asylum seekers (Structure de Premier Accueil des Demandeurs d’Asile – SPADA). These facilities are managed by different associations, such as the French Red Cross, and their mission is to assist you in these types of processes. They will help you to fill in the asylum registration form and will give you a summons for the appointment which will take place within 3 days (10 days in case of high demand).

If you are located outside Paris or the Ile-de-France region, you can go directly to the SPADA of the department. You can consult the list of SPADAs in France.

If you are located in Paris or the Ile-de-France region, you must first contact the French Office for Immigration and Integration (Office Français de l’Immigration et de l’Intégration – OFII) by telephone on 00 33 1 42 500 900, in order to obtain an appointment in a facility for initial reception of asylum seekers (SPADA).

All children under the age of 18 have free access to the education system, even if they do not have temporary protection status. In France, children go to school from the age of 3. Schooling is compulsory for children aged 3 to 16. Children who do not speak French are also welcomed in schools. If you wish to enrol a child aged 3 to 5 in nursery school, 6 years to 10 years in primary schools, or 11 years to 18 years in lower or upper secondary school, please consult the instructions of the French Government.