The legal trap of temporary protection: a court in France sided with a Ukrainian family in a case about social benefits for a child
After the start of a full-scale war, millions of Ukrainians were forced to leave their homes and seek refuge in the countries of the European Union. France, as one of the largest EU countries, has opened its borders to refugees, granting them temporary protection in accordance with the decision of the EU Council from 2022. Thanks to this mechanism, thousands of Ukrainian families got the opportunity to stay in France legally, to have access to medicine, education, work and social support. However, despite the declared equality of rights, in practice it turned out that the system of temporary protection created a number of legal conflicts that limit the rights of Ukrainian migrants compared to other categories of migrants. One of such collisions was a case considered in the French city of Nantes, which may become an important precedent for tens of thousands of Ukrainian families in France.
The decision of the court in Nantes: help for the Ukrainian family
The local court of Nantes ruled in favor of a Ukrainian refugee family, which was previously denied the right to receive annual social assistance intended to prepare children for the new school year. This is the so-called “back-to-school” payment, a benefit traditionally provided by the French state to families with school-aged children, regardless of nationality, provided they are legally resident in France. This payment amounts to around 450 euros per child and is intended to offset the costs of families in preparation for the school year.
However, such assistance remained unavailable for Ukrainian families with temporary protection. The reason was the provisions of the internal document of the National Family Assistance Fund (CAF) from April 2022. It explicitly stated that persons with temporary protection are not included among the recipients of this payment.
However, in May 2025, the court in Nantes ruled that such a refusal contradicted the European directive on temporary protection. As explained human rights defender Ernest Mezak, who represented the interests of the Ukrainian family in court, the court’s decision is based on the direct application of the norms of EU law, which have priority over the national norms of the member states.
EU Directive on temporary protection: the right to education and related guarantees
The European directive on temporary protection, adopted in the early 2000s and activated for Ukraine in 2022, guarantees refugee children equal access to the education system in EU countries. As noted by comments Ernest Mezak, help for school preparation is an integral part of educational integration, as it provides children with the opportunity to fully participate in the educational process with all the necessary equipment and things.
The supremacy of EU law clearly establishes that in the event of a conflict between European norms and national laws, the law of the European Union has priority. This is fixed on the official EU portal and cannot be questioned even by national courts of first instance. In the case of Nantes, this very provision became decisive in making a decision in favor of the Ukrainian family.
A legal gap in French legislation
The peculiarity of the situation is that until 2022, French migration legislation did not actually take into account the norms of the directive on temporary protection. As Ernest Mezak explained, this mechanism was only theoretically implemented in the early 2000s, but was not used in practice for two decades. That is why the French legal system has not adapted its norms to the possible challenges of mass migration under this mechanism.
“After the implementation of the EU directive, the French migration legislation developed independently, without taking into account the provisions of temporary protection. Since no one expected that this directive would ever be applied, the French regulations did not provide adequate guarantees for the new category of persons – people with temporary protection.” Mezak said.
As a result, a conflict arose: Ukrainian children with temporary protection were deprived of the right to receive standard school benefits.
Paradoxical consequences: Russian refugees have more rights than Ukrainians
This situation looks most absurd in comparison with other groups of migrants. As noted by Ernest Mezak, Russians who have received the status of political refugees in France enjoy the right to receive such assistance without hindrance. At the same time, Ukrainians escaping from the same aggression of Putin’s regime did not have the right to do so due to the operation of the CAF internal document.
“Refugees from Putin – Russians who have received political asylum, receive this help. Ukrainians with temporary protection do not receive it. This is a clear legal anomaly.” – emphasized the human rights defender.
The first steps to solving the problem: partial expansion of social support
The French government, after the mass arrival of Ukrainian refugees in 2022, quickly recognized certain categories of social assistance as available to people with temporary protection. For example, Ukrainians can receive housing rental assistance (APL), child support (PAJE), access to health insurance, and housing assistance (ADA). However, payment for school preparation remained an exception that was not covered by these adjustments to French law.
That is why the decision of the court in Nantes has gained such weight — it creates judicial practice of the direct application of EU law, contrary to the limitations of national interpretations of the CAF.
The decision of the Nantes judicial tribunal is only the first stage of the legal battle. The National Family Assistance Fund has already announced its intention to appeal the decision in a higher instance. According to the director of CAF, Elizabeth Dubec-Prinsteau, the refusal to pay aid to the Ukrainian family was carried out in full accordance with the current national legislation, which does not include the payment of aid for returning to school to the list of available types of support for persons with temporary protection.
“Back-to-school support is not included in the list of social benefits that CAF is entitled to provide to people with temporary protection”, she said in a comment to Radio Liberty.
On the other hand, Ernest Mezak is convinced that the decision of the court of first instance clearly and well-argued indicates a violation of European law. He expressed hope that the appellate court would confirm the legality of the decision, which would create a precedent not only for the Loire-Atlantique department, but also for the whole of France.
“Until the court’s decision is confirmed by a higher authority, it is too early to talk about a precedent for the whole country. But if it is approved, it will become a legal reference at least for the department, where many Ukrainian families live.” – explained the human rights defender.
The scale of the problem: thousands of families in a similar situation
As of April 2025, according to Eurostat, there were more than 53,000 adult citizens of Ukraine with the status of temporary protection in France, of which more than 37,000 were women. Exactly how many children live in the country is unknown, as France does not keep public statistics on children under temporary protection.
However, according to human rights defenders, in the event of a successful appeal, the decision of the court in Nantes may affect tens of thousands of Ukrainian families who are currently forced to do without the assistance provided to other categories of refugees.
The legal nature of temporary protection in the European Union has created a number of legal pitfalls, which are particularly acute in situations such as the case of the Ukrainian family in Nantes. Despite the declared equality and European solidarity, in practice Ukrainian refugees often find themselves in a less protected position than refugees from other countries. The decision of the French court was the first serious signal about the need to review these legal gaps, and its further fate in the appeals courts will show whether Europe is ready to ensure full legal equality for all refugees, regardless of legal wording.
