Fact Check: Do Ukrainians Travel to Vienna Just to "Collect" Minimum Benefits?
According to the posts (examples: 1, 2, 3) and the "obviously partisan" online platform, Ukrainians travel to Vienna once a month to "collect" the minimum income and then live off this money in Ukraine. The evidence for this is said to be several Flixbus trips from Vienna to Kyiv.
Ukrainian refugees only receive basic support
Assessment: Ukrainian refugees are not entitled to minimum income in Austria but only receive basic support and family allowance. The maximum rates in basic support are significantly below the minimum income. When traveling to their home country, Ukrainians risk losing their residence rights as well as the permanent or temporary withdrawal of basic support.
Verification: In Austria, EU or EEA citizens only have a right to minimum income if they are employed in Austria or have lived in Austria for more than five years. Similarly, third-country nationals generally have the right to minimum income if they have lived legally in Austria for more than five years. Asylum seekers are entitled to minimum income from the moment they are granted refugee status. Asylum applicants do not have the right to minimum income. None of this applies to refugees from Ukraine.
On March 4, 2022, the EU Directive 2001/55/EC on granting temporary protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons was applied to refugees from Ukraine. In Austria, the temporary right of residence is regulated by the "Displaced Persons Regulation" of March 11, 2022. Ukrainian refugees thus receive a temporary right of residence in Austria, which was recently extended for another year until March 4, 2026. This right of residence is documented by a "Displaced Persons ID".
Financial support exclusively through basic support
Due to this temporary right of residence, it is not necessary for Ukrainians in Austria to apply for asylum. Ukrainian refugees are mainly financially supported through basic support. Foreigners in need of help and protection receive benefits that ensure the coverage of daily basic needs. These include, among other things, food, accommodation, medical care, and clothing assistance.
The Ministry of Social Affairs has not yet responded to a request from APA-Faktencheck for details. The Federal Chancellery has now clarified to APA-Faktencheck that Ukrainian refugees, in addition to basic support, are also entitled to family benefits. This is regulated in an amendment to the Family Burden Equalization Act (FLAG 1967). Since the center of life for displaced persons is not established in Austria, a "fiction of the center of life" applies for the duration of their stay, according to the Federal Chancellery, which fulfills this eligibility requirement. For such Ukrainians, the entitlement to family allowance according to Paragraph 55, Section 57 FLAG 1967 exists until October 31, 2025, at the latest.
With the "Displaced Persons Card," Ukrainian refugees are allowed to travel visa-free for tourism within the Schengen area for 90 days within a 180-day period. However, if they leave Austria not just temporarily but relocate to another country, their right of residence may lose its validity prematurely. Travel to their home country is also permitted for Ukrainians, but the Ministry of the Interior informed upon APA request that these trips must be reported. Furthermore, it is stated that entitlement to basic services only exists when residing in the federal territory.
Minimum Security Significantly Higher
The maximum rates in the basic services are significantly lower than the minimum security in all federal states and vary from state to state. In Vienna, affected individuals receive 150 euros per year for clothing, in the form of vouchers, regardless of the type of accommodation. Students receive 200 euros per year for school supplies as needed. In supervised accommodation, meals (food) are either provided or one receives 6.50 euros per day.
Additionally, each person receives 40 euros pocket money per month and 10 euros leisure money per month. In private accommodations, an individual receives a rent subsidy of 165 euros per month, and families receive a rent subsidy of 330 euros per month. For food money, an amount of 260 euros per person per month is provided for adults, and 145 euros per person per month for minors.
Assuming a Ukrainian woman lives alone in private accommodation and receives basic services, she receives 425 euros per month. The amount is far from the 1,572 euros per person per month claimed in the Facebook post. Moreover, the amount in the post refers to the maximum minimum security, which only applies in the case of a simultaneous contribution to housing costs - and because it is a matter for the states, not throughout Austria - the mentioned 1,572 euros, without this subsidy, it is currently capped at 1,209 euros and, as already explained, is not applicable for Ukrainians.
Flixbus Claim Circulates Since 2022
The transport company Flixbus indeed offers several trips from Vienna to Kyiv and return trips daily. When comparing the amount of basic services with the ticket prices offered for a Flixbus trip to Kyiv, the claimed thesis seems less lucrative. The prices for a trip range between 60 and 120 euros. A trip to Kyiv and back could therefore consume almost half of the monthly basic services. Additionally, the entitlement to financial support decreases by the duration of the stay abroad.
The APA already published a fact check on the bus trips to Kyiv in September 2022, and even then, they were used as alleged evidence of social fraud by Ukrainian refugees. At that time, a spokesperson for Flixbus informed the APA upon request that the company was not aware of any irregularities regarding the travel behavior of Ukrainians.
(APA/Red.)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.