Ukrainian Men Avoiding Military Draft by Applying for Asylum in Poland, Report Says

Hundreds of Ukrainians seeking to avoid conscription to the war-torn country’s armed forces have applied for asylum in Poland, according to a media report.

Polish officials told the Wirtualna Polska (WP) news website that “a large portion” of a rising number of asylum applicants came from men afraid of being called-up to fight in the war.  

Almost one million Ukrainians who have fled the country since the Russian invasion in February 2022 have “temporary protection” status in Poland. This gives them wide access to the Polish labor market and healthcare system as the conflict rumbles on.  

But this status is not the same as international protection, colloquially known as “asylum,” which could potentially grant an individual a longer-term right to stay in Poland.  

Officials from Poland’s Office for Foreigners said they had spotted a “trend” of people looking to address their fears of being drafted to the military by applying for asylum. Men submitting applications on this basis “would be questioned thoroughly,” they said.  

“It must be emphasized that fear of mobilization and the fulfillment of other civic duties do not constitute a premise justifying the granting of refugee status or subsidiary protection,” they told WP.  

Figures provided to the publication by the Office for Foreigners show that around 7,000 Ukrainian citizens applied for asylum in Poland in 2024. Of those, 3,900 were men aged 18-64. So far in 2025 – up to 25 March – 1,900 men within that age bracket submitted an application.  

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Male Ukrainian citizens aged 18-60 are banned from leaving their home country, although there are some exceptions to the rule. Those aged 25 or older are liable to be drafted for military duty.  

However, it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of military-age Ukrainian men are living abroad in countries such as Poland and Germany – and in an attempt to convince them to return home, the Ukrainian government last year limited their access to consular services.  

Data from February show that around 993,000 Ukrainian citizens have received temporary protection in Poland, 114,000 of whom are adult males, WP reported. A further 462,000 Ukrainians have temporary residence in Poland, handed out before the war started.