Ukraine and the International Women's Day

On a day which should be for celebrating the International Women's Day, we cannot remain indifferent to the circumstances in which Ukrainian women find themselves, with the primary aim of fleeing the war zones and seeking a safe haven.

With this in mind, we are once more providing information on the exceptional measures adopted by Portugal which can help Ukrainian citizens to settle here and find the conditions for re-establishing their lives.

The Council of Ministers approved Resolution No. 29-A/2022 with the aim of establishing measures for granting temporary protection to people displaced from Ukraine as a result of the armed conflict.

Given the specialty and urgency to act in a pragmatic way, the proofs available to certify the eligibility conditions are simplified and softened, including the exemption of presenting a criminal record certificate.

Citizens of Ukraine and their family members - even if of other nationalities - are granted temporary protection with the automatic granting of a residence permit for a period of 1 year (with possible renewal).

In all protection requests, the Immigration and Borders Service (Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras - SEF) will automatically communicate to all entities and bodies, namely for the purpose of automatic attribution of:

• social security id
• taxpayer number, and
• national health system id.

In addition, citizens covered by the protection regime may benefit from:

• Adequate accommodation
• Support and means of subsistence
• Medical assistance with emergency care and basic treatment
• Access to public education for minors
• Social benefits under the non-contributory regime

Cerejeira Namora, Marinho Falcão established a team to assist Ukrainian citizens and their families, providing a dedicated service through the email ukraine@sociedadeadvogados.eu