photo by VasenkaPhotography
On February 24, 2022, Russia started invading Ukraine. The cities of Ukraine on the eastern and northern sides of Ukraine, near the border of Russia and Belarus, and on the south, facing Crimea, have been bomb-attacked from the air and on the land every day, claiming a huge number of lives including ordinary citizens. As of early April, more than 4 million Ukrainian people escaped into Poland, Rumania, or other neighboring countries on the west side, and became evacuees. Although the number of Ukrainian people who evacuated to Japan after the Russian invasion hasn’t reached 400, the Japanese government announced that Japan would accept Ukrainian evacuees and started getting prepared to accommodate them.
Aid for Ukraine announced by the Japanese government so far
Presently, the Japanese government has announced the following commitments have been made by Japan.
- Provided protective gear, winter clothing, food, cameras, lighting instruments, hygiene products, medical tools, etc.
- Donated $100 million as an emergency humanitarian relief (through international organizations for refugee protection. The government also announced another donation of $100 million).
- Provided at least a $100 million loan.
- Permitting visa extension for Ukrainian nationals in Japan
- Accepting Ukrainian evacuees
etc.
Announcement of the acceptance of evacuees
Among the measures to support Ukraine which were announced by the Japanese government, the extension of the term for visa and the acceptance of evacuees is conducted within Japan. As of the end of March, a little more than 300 Ukrainian people entered Japan for evacuation, but all of them are families and relatives of Ukrainian residents who currently reside in Japan. Therefore, the Japanese government declared that they would implement the following measures to enhance the system to accommodate evacuees from Ukraine who have no relatives in Japan.
Guiding at the airport
- Evacuees who have relatives in Japan: Wait at a testing facility for 3 days. If they have a negative COVID-19 test result on the 3rd day, they will move to the accommodation provided by /her relative.
- Evacuees who have no relatives in Japan: Wait at a testing facility for 3 days. If they have a negative COVID-19 test result on the 3rd day, they will move to a temporary accommodation provided by the Japanese government.
Providing mid-to-long term accommodation
Evacuees who have no relatives in Japan will stay in temporary accommodation provided by the Japanese government. While they stay in the temporary accommodation, they will be provided with meals, communication aid, etc., and interviewed by the staff from the Foundation for the Welfare and Education of the Asian People and the Immigration Services Agency to decide on their mid-to-long term accommodation in Japan, and their jobs if they wish to work.
Providing a base for living
After mid-to-long term accommodation is selected for evacuees, they will move into the new accommodation and receive benefits to cover their living expenses, medical costs, etc.
Contact for consultation
FRESC Help Desk
FRESC by the Immigration Services Agency provides consultation services for evacuees from Ukraine. FRESC normally provides consultation services for all foreign residents on everyday life, visa, job, etc., but they also advise on issues relating to the current Ukraine situation. They have a phone number that can be called from overseas for people who haven’t arrived in Japan yet.
FRESC Help Desk
TEL: 0120-76-2029 (Domestic, free of charge), +81-3-5363-3042（from overseas or IP phone, fees are charged）
Operating hours: 9:00 – 20:00 (Mon-Fri), 9:00 – 17:00 (Weekend and public holidays)
Languages: 19 languages including Simple Japanese, English, and Russian
Local government office
Not just the national government of Japan, but local governments also provide consultation services for those who wish to accommodate their families and relatives from Ukraine or evacuees from Ukraine, and those who are willing to support evacuees from Ukraine. Their consultation covers accommodation in Japan, everyday life, Japanese lessons, education of children, etc. Local government offices normally provide multi-lingual consultation, but Russian or Ukrainian is not always covered. Services in Ukrainian are normally provided by using a translation service.
Contact list of local governments (published by NHK)
Unite for Ukraine
Now, more than 4 million Ukrainian citizens have left their country for evacuation, and the number of Ukrainian evacuees is expected to increase. The majority of evacuees are staying in Poland, Romania, and other neighboring countries, but the burden of evacuee protection should be shared by the rest of the world. To participate in the worldwide Ukrainian evacuee protection, the Japanese government announced that Japan will enhance its preparation to accept evacuees from Ukraine. Also, 20 Ukrainian evacuees arrived in Japan with the minister of foreign affairs of Japan just a few days ago. There will be more support from the Japanese government for the Ukrainian people in the future. If you need information on Ukrainian evacuee protection, please contact the offices introduced in this column.
