Temporary protection and statuses for Ukrainians

• The decision covers both new arrivals and those already in Albania. The usual “90 days in any 180” limit does not apply to Ukrainians until 30.03.2027.
• You don’t need to apply, and no separate document is issued. The basis is the decision itself and a valid Ukrainian passport.
• This decision repealed CMD № 169 of 18.03.2022, under which Ukrainians had been staying since the start of the full-scale war.
• This is not temporary protection in the EU sense and not a residence permit: the decision only allows you to stay in the country. You can work as an employee only with a permit (leje unike).
• What happens after 30.03.2027 is not yet known. If you plan to live in Albania longer, get a residence permit in advance.

1. 18.03.2022CMD № 169: Ukrainians enter visa-free and stay without a residence permit for up to 1 year. The same day, CMD № 173 introduces temporary protection under the asylum law, also for 1 year.
2. 2023The stay without a residence permit under CMD № 169 is extended to 2 years; for those with temporary protection, the stay is extended to 17.09.2023 (according to Albanian media).
3. 06.03.2024CMD № 124 extends the period to 3 years. CMD № 122 extends the stay of those who received temporary protection under CMD № 173 and are still in Albania — until 17.09.2024.
4. 21.05.2025The Council of Ministers extends the stay without a residence permit to 4 years.
5. 10.04.2026New decision: visa-free entry and stay without a residence permit until 30.03.2027 — both for new arrivals and for those already in Albania. CMD № 169 is repealed.

We could not find the number of the 2023 decision or the number of the 10.04.2026 decision in available sources. The texts of the 2024–2026 decisions are on the government website (10.04.2026), 21.05.2025 and in the Official Gazette № 45/2024.

• It was granted to Ukrainian citizens, stateless persons and those who had international protection in Ukraine. In 2022, Albania’s Ministry of Interior advised declaring your wish for protection right at the border.
• The law allows temporary protection to be introduced for 1 year and extended by 6 months at a time, but for no more than 3 years in total (Article 82 of Law № 10/2021).
• The latest extension we found in the Official Gazette is CMD № 122 of 06.03.2024: for those with protection who are still in Albania, the stay was extended to 17.09.2024.
• We found no later decisions extending temporary protection, and the three-year limit counted from March 2022 has passed. So the main basis for staying now is the decision of 10.04.2026, not temporary protection.
• If you hold a temporary protection document or want to obtain one, check its status at the regional Border and Migration office or at the Ukrainian Embassy.

Rights under temporary protection (Articles 86–89 of Law № 10/2021)

• Residence for the protection period
• Basic living conditions and housing
• Medical care
• School on equal terms with Albanians
• Work and vocational training
• Free legal aid
• Residence permit as a document

People under temporary protection do not need approval from the employment service (AKPA) to take a job (Article 74 of Law № 79/2021). Family reunification is possible only if it cannot take place in any other country.

• Employment — only with a single permit (leje unike). Back in 2022, Albania’s Ministry of Interior explained: once you find a job, apply for a permit for that type of work. How to do it — working in Albania.
• Emergency medical care is free for everyone; planned treatment is covered by insurance or paid for. Details — health insurance and treatment.
• School: check the conditions for enrolling a child without a residence permit with the local education office or directly with the school. Bring the child’s passport, birth certificate with a translation and documents on schooling in Ukraine.
• After entry, you generally register your address with the Border and Migration office within 10 days (Article 29 of Law № 79/2021) — registration of foreigners.
• Keep your passport valid: you can get a new one at the Ukrainian Embassy in Tirana.

• Stay until 30.03.2027

  No application and no document: the basis is the government decision itself plus your Ukrainian passport. It lets you be in the country, but not work as an employee. After 30.03.2027, only whatever the government decides will apply.

• Residence permit (leje qëndrimi) or single permit (leje unike)

  Applied for on e-Albania on a specific ground: work, business, property, family, digital nomad. It gives you a biometric card, the right to work (if it is a work permit), and after 5 years of legal residence — the right to apply for permanent residence.

• Temporary protection

  A collective status under Law № 10/2021 for people fleeing war en masse. The Council of Ministers introduces and extends it; the law caps it at 3 years. It gives the right to residence, work, healthcare and school.

• Asylum (international protection)

  An individual procedure: refugee status or subsidiary protection. Processing takes up to 6 months, longer in complex cases. It fits if returning to Ukraine is dangerous for you specifically because of a threat to you personally.

• You declare your intention to seek protection orally or in writing at the border, at any police station or at the Border and Migration office. Within 72 hours the case is passed to the asylum authority (Article 26).
• A decision is usually made within 6 months; in complex cases the deadline can be extended, but to no more than 21 months.
• Asylum seekers are entitled to accommodation at the reception centre in Tirana (Babrru), medical care, school for children and legal aid. They may work if there is no decision after 9 months through no fault of their own (Article 61).
• Refugees and people with subsidiary protection get a residence permit, the right to work, healthcare and education on equal terms with Albanian citizens, and a travel document.
• Refugee status is lost, among other things, if you voluntarily return to your country of citizenship. Consider whether this fits your plans and get advice before applying.
• Free legal aid — Directorate of Free Legal Aid; international support — UNHCR in Albania.

1. 1Choose a ground. General rules and the list of grounds — Residence permits, permanent residence and citizenship: the basics.
2. 2The most common options for Ukrainians: employment, digital nomad for remote work, your own business, property or family reunification.
3. 3Prepare your documents from Ukraine: criminal record certificate, civil certificates, diplomas — with an apostille and Albanian translation, issued no more than 6 months earlier. Translations and apostille.
4. 4Apply on e-Albania well before 30.03.2027. Under the general rules (CMD № 858/2021), Ukrainians need a D visa to stay more than 90 days, but a foreigner who is legally present may apply from within Albania. Check with the Border and Migration office whether you need a visa.
5. 5Next — how the application is reviewed and what to do after approval.