Romania — Ukrainian Nationals Crossing Back to Ukraine — Annual Report (2023)

This report employs data collected within the framework of the Crossing Back surveys conducted in Romania between January and December 2023 with Ukrainian nationals who were either crossing back for a short-time visit or returning for a long-term period to Ukraine from or through Romania. The analysis considers ‘’short-term visitors’’ those persons who intended to spend 0-30 days in Ukraine, while respondents planning to stay for more than a month are defined as “prospective returnees”.

The survey included answers from 5,773 Ukrainian nationals living in or passing through Romania who were travelling to Ukraine. Among those interviewed before crossing back into Ukraine, the majority stayed in Romania (59%), followed by Bulgaria (17%) or Germany (5%). Additional countries of residence included Italy (4%), the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (3%), Türkiye (2%), Belgium (2%), Greece (1%), Austria (1%), with the remaining 6% distributed among other nations.

The travel intentions of the surveyed Ukrainian nationals show that most respondents (53%) were “short-term visitors”, while 27 per-cent were prospective returnees. Another 20 per cent were not sure regarding their visit period. Also, most UA citizens were travelling back to their oblast of origin (93%), with most respondents originating from Odeska, Chernivetska, Mykolaivska, Ivan-Frankivska, City of Kiyv and Kharvivska.