The International Organization for Migration Vilnius Office (IOM Lithuania) said on Tuesday that it will provide funds for war refugees from Ukraine to help cover part of their rent.
IOM Lithuania will cover 70 percent of two months’ rent specified in the rental contract, up to a maximum of 475 euros per month, or 950 euros in total.
The office said it will provide, for the second time, lump sum payments to Ukrainian war refugees who arrived in Lithuania after February 24, 2022, when Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“Ukrainians have been living in Lithuania for almost two years now, so it is natural that they are building a life in our country. However, finances often become the main challenge,” Eitvydas Bingelis, head of IOM Lithuania, said in a press release.
“This is why IOM Lithuania will provide assistance, for the second time now, by covering part of the rent,” he added.
More than 200 families have already used this assistance, and surveys show that 73 percent of Ukrainians face difficulties in finding long-term rental housing, according to Bingelis.
A survey conducted by IOM Lithuania last spring released that the majority of Ukrainians, 62 percent, rented housing on the open market, up from 11 percent compared to 2022.
Last spring, around 12 percent of Ukrainians did not pay rent because they were hosted by Lithuanian families. Another 10 percent stayed with friends or relatives. Almost half of the respondents (44 percent) said they had managed to find accommodation on their own, but it was not easy to secure long-term rentals.
Almost 83,000 Ukrainian war refugees have arrived in Lithuania since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Over the past year, IOM Lithuania has assisted nearly 16,000 war refugees through various aid measures.
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