Almost 25,000 Ukrainian refugees already received temporary protection in Belgium

The Belgian Immigration Office has already granted a temporary protection certificate to a total of 24,434 refugees from Ukraine. On Tuesday, more than 1,000 more people were registered, reports Director-General of the Immigration Office Freddy Roosemont.

At the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Ukrainians could register at the Bordet registration centre, a former hospital in Brussels. At the beginning of March, the NGO Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen ('Flemish Refugee Action') criticised the "chaotic and difficult" registration in Bordet. "Our teams on site again saw only very limited supervision and information for those queuing. People stood in line for hours without information or drinking water", they stated. 

Meanwhile, the new and larger registration centre at Heyzel in Brussels has been open for more than two weeks. The number of people registering there is now lower. "It has been a little calmer for a few days now", says Director-General Roosemont. "But we still expect a large influx". That depends on how the situation in Ukraine evolves, according to Roosemont. According to him, the online registration is going very smoothly. Two out of three people make an appointment online. As a result, there are no long queues anymore.

© BELGA PHOTO - Fedasil workers give information at the Heyzel registration centre for Ukrainian refugees