Ukrainian refugees with disabilities: assistance from the PHARE Service
02/05/2022
Since 4 March 2022, Ukrainian refugees on European soil have benefited from the European Union's temporary protection status, which gives them the same rights as European Union citizens. This status is valid for a period of one year and renewable twice for a period of six additional months. It should be noted that, under certain international conventions, persons under the age of 18 with disabilities are automatically eligible for assistance from the PHARE Service (provided that the disability is recognised and the person lives in Brussels). Information on obtaining temporary protection status is available on the Home Affairs website.
What assistance is available for people with disabilities?
1. Assistance is available, for which you must be admitted to the PHARE Service:
• Material assistance, for example. A person with a disability may need equipment to help with daily living. If they have received authorisation from PHARE, they can purchase this equipment and then receive reimbursement. All the information on material assistance can be found on the [PHARE Service website.](https://phare.irisnet.be/aides-à-l-inclusion/aides-individuelles/les-aides-individuelles-à-l-intégration/
• There is also employment aid: employers who hire a person with a disability who has been admitted to the PHARE Service can obtain aid from the PHARE Service, such as an adapted computer, or a grant. All the information on employment aid can be found on the PHARE Service website.
• You must also be admitted to PHARE to receive a place in a day centre or a residential centre. And also to be able to work in an adapted work company.
To be eligible for the PHARE Service and obtain these aids, the following conditions must be met:
• be under 65 years of age;
• live in the Brussels Region;
• have a mental or physical disability.
All the information about admission to PHARE can be found on the PHARE Service website. Then, to obtain assistance, you must submit a request for intervention. Requesting admission and requesting intervention are two different requests. Intervention may be requested after or at the same time as admission. But you cannot request an intervention before you request admission.
2. And then there is also aid for which it is not necessary to be admitted by the PHARE Service: for example, aid from the support services.
The support services help people with disabilities with many daily life tasks, such as finding a home, finding a job, finding a nursery for babies, attending school or studying, filling out administrative documents, participating in leisure activities, supporting parents and relatives, and more.
All the information on support services can be found on the PHARE Service website.
Other useful links
www.phare.irisnet.be - The PHARE Service website contains a lot of information on disability. Information is also provided on the disability support offered by other government agencies.
www.handicap.belgium.be - The website of the DGPH, the Belgian federal administration in charge of assistance for people with disabilities: allowances and parking card for people with disabilities, etc.
www.iriscare.brussels - Iriscare is a Brussels-based organisation that also deals with some of the assistance for people with disabilities: family allowance supplements, home help, personal assistance budget, mobility aids, etc.
