---
title: "Speaker of the Czech Parliament Calls for Full Abolition of Temporary Protection and Payments to Ukrainian Refugees"
description: "The Speaker of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, Tomio Okamura, called for the complete abolition of the temporary protection regime and all payments to Ukrainian refugees, demanding that the unemployed return to their homeland after the war."
date: 2026-08-20T05:10:04.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/czech-parliament-speaker-calls-for-full-abolition-of-temporary-protection-and-payments-to-ukrainian-refugees
tags: [czech-republic, ukraine-refugees, temporary-protection, tomi-okamura, spd-party, eu-migration]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Speaker of the Czech Parliament Calls for Full Abolition of Temporary Protection and Payments to Ukrainian Refugees

![Silhouette of a person holding a Ukrainian blue and yellow flag at a rally in Prague against a historic clock tower, protest over the cancellation of temporary protection for Ukrainian refugees in the Czech Republic](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/20/cheshiya-otmenit-viplaty-ukraincam-okamura/cheshiya-otmenit-viplaty-ukraincam-okamura-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- The Speaker of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, Tomio Okamura, called for the complete abolition of temporary protection and all payments to Ukrainian refugees.
- In his view, employed Ukrainians should switch to ordinary residence permits, while the unemployed should return to Ukraine after the war.
- The already existing restrictions apply only to new applicants; current recipients are protected until 2028.
- From August 5, new requirements for men aged 23–60 to confirm military duty have been in force in the EU, and according to Eurostat data, the number under protection in the EU continues to grow.

The Speaker of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, Tomio Okamura, leader of the "Freedom and Direct Democracy" (SPD) party, made a sharp statement calling for the immediate and complete abolition of the temporary protection regime, as well as all social payments to Ukrainian refugees. On the CNN Prima NEWS channel he stated: "I am in favor of the immediate and complete abolition of temporary protection and payments for all Ukrainians." According to him, Ukrainian citizens who are already employed should switch to ordinary residence permits on general terms, like other foreigners, while all those who do not have a job are obliged to return to their homeland immediately after the end of the war.

### The Speaker's Statement and His Argumentation

Okamura positions the already existing restrictions as his own political success. In particular, he claims that it was thanks to the efforts of his SPD party that men of conscription age were deprived of the automatic right to obtain temporary protection in the European Union. The SPD leader believes that the measures adopted are insufficient, and proposes to go significantly further than the current EU rules: not merely to limit the intake of new male applicants, but to completely abolish the entire temporary protection regime in the Czech Republic and cease any payments to its current recipients. Thus, his initiative goes beyond current European practice and affects existing beneficiaries.

### What Has Already Been Adopted in the EU and the Czech Republic

It is important to distinguish Okamura's rhetoric from the norms actually in force. The new requirement to confirm the fulfillment of military duty applies exclusively to future applicants. Ukrainians who already have valid temporary protection at the time the decision is adopted and continuously maintain this status are not obliged to confirm the fulfillment of military duty — their protection is guaranteed until 2028. In practice, the changes are already working: from August 5, dozens of Ukrainians did not receive temporary protection in the Czech Republic because they could not documentally confirm the fulfillment of military duty. On August 16, Czech authorities additionally clarified the list of required documents, with the requirements varying depending on the applicant's age.

### Contradictory Data

Notable inconsistencies can be traced in the statements of the parties and in the statistics. On the one hand, Okamura calls the tightening of the rules "his success" and attributes it to the efforts of SPD, but in fact this change is part of a Europe-wide decision: from August 5, across the entire European Union, the new requirements apply to men aged 23 to 60, who must provide confirmation of the fulfillment of military duty or the right to leave Ukraine. That is, the initiative is not exclusively Czech. On the other hand, despite the rhetoric about the "too large" number of refugees and calls to abolish payments, according to Eurostat data, the total number of Ukrainians under temporary protection in EU countries continues to grow. This creates a contradiction between political rhetoric and the actual dynamics.

### Practical Consequences and the Status of the Proposal

Okamura's proposal at this time remains a political statement, not an adopted legislative decision. Current recipients of temporary protection in the Czech Republic retain their status until 2028, and the new requirements apply only to future applicants and are differentiated by age. Nevertheless, the public position of the Speaker of the lower house of parliament, who holds a key institutional position, is capable of influencing the country's further migration policy and the discussion within the EU about the future of the temporary protection regime. Observers should bear in mind that there is a significant gap between declarative calls for full abolition and the guarantees actually in force for those already protected.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Czech Republic Demands Abolition of All Payments to Ukrainian Refugees](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/chehiyi-vimagayut-skasuvati-vsi-viplati-ukrayinskim-1787201858.html) - Подтверждает заявление Окамуры об отмене временной защиты и выплат, а также его аргументацию о переходе занятых на ВНЖ.
- [Czech Republic May Abolish Payments to Ukrainians: Who Will Be Affected by the Proposal](https://ura-inform.com/politika-ru/2026/08/20/chehiya-mozhet-otmenit-vyplaty-ukrainczam-kogo-zatronet-predlozhenie/) - Уточняет, что предложение касается будущих заявителей, а текущие получатели защищены до 2028 года; отражает дифференциацию требований по возрасту.
- [An EU Country Demands the Abolition of All Payments to Ukrainian Refugees: What Is Known](https://tsn.ua/ru/svit/v-strane-es-trebuyut-otmeny-vseh-vyplat-ukrainskim-bezhentsam-chto-izvestno-3152183.html) - Подтверждает общеевропейский характер требований с 5 августа для мужчин 23–60 лет и данные о росте числа под защитой по Евростату.
- ["There Are Too Many of Them": Czech Republic Calls for Depriving Ukrainians of Temporary Protection](https://www.obozrevatel.com/novosti-mir/ih-slishkom-mnogo-v-chehii-prizvali-lishit-ukraintsev-vremennoj-zaschityi.htm) - Подтверждает риторику Окамуры и контекст ужесточения правил для новых заявителей в Чехии.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: What exactly did Tomio Okamura propose regarding Ukrainian refugees?
**A:** He called for the immediate and complete abolition of the temporary protection regime and all social payments to Ukrainians in the Czech Republic. According to him, the employed should switch to ordinary residence permits, while the unemployed should return to Ukraine after the end of the war.

### Q: Will the proposal affect those Ukrainians who already have temporary protection?
**A:** According to the norms in force, the new requirements to confirm military duty apply only to future applicants. Ukrainians who already have valid protection and continuously maintain their status are not obliged to confirm the fulfillment of military duty — their protection is guaranteed until 2028. Okamura's proposal itself, however, remains a political statement for now, not an adopted decision.

### Q: Are the tightened rules an exclusively Czech initiative?
**A:** No. From August 5, similar requirements have been in force across the entire European Union and apply to men aged 23 to 60, who need to confirm the fulfillment of military duty or the right to leave Ukraine. At the same time, Okamura attributes the initiative to the efforts of his SPD party, which is a subject of contradictory assessments.