Ukraine

There are many ways to support Ukraine and Ukrainians arriving in Germany. You can find a lot of information on how to help at ukraine-verstehen, Leave No One Behind , and the Central Council of the Sinti and Roma.

You can register at timeforukraine.de, cant-stop.me , and govolunteer.com to meet refugees from Ukraine who are now living near you and support them in arriving in Germany.

Organisations that help people with disabilities can register on hilfsabfrage.de and enter the types of support they offer in various sections (e.g. "Transport").

Furthermore, care facilities can report vacancies for adults and children from Ukraine who are in need of care on health-h.de.

In principle, anyone can help. If you are in direct contact with refugees, you can be much more helpful if you are well-informed beforehand. The situation is very difficult for all refugees: some have had terrible experiences and an exhausting flight. Therefore, be mindful and well-informed when dealing with people and always pay attention to your own emotional and mental resources, too.

At mhfa-ersthelfer.de you will find 20 tips for people who are helping refugees in Ukrainian, English, German and Russian.

On the Refugio Munich website, you will find information in German on how you can best help while, at the same time, taking sufficient care of yourself.

On the website of the nationwide working group for psychosocial centers for refugees and victims of torture, you will find comprehensive practical guidelines in German for dealing with refugees in a trauma-sensitive and empowering manner.

If you would like to help people seeking refuge with private housing, you can either contact the appropriate agency in your city directly or register using one of the links below:

• https://www.host4ukraine.com/
• https://prykhystok.in.ua/create
• https://wunderflats.com/page/ukraine/landlords-who-help-de
• https://icanhelp.host/
• https://www.unterkunft-ukraine.de/

The Quarteera association specifically arranges accommodation for LGBTQIA+. You can register yourself or your flat for LGBTQIA+ from Ukraine on monday.com. You can also register housing offers specifically for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ using the form "Ukraine - BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ accommodation".

On the following websites, you can offer accommodation for people and their pets:

• honestdog.de (Ukrainian, Russian, English, German)

Please note: It is currently impossible to predict how long people will have to depend on private housing. So it may make sense to only offer accommodation that will be available for more than a few weeks.

You can provide your accommodation free of charge. However, you can also officially sublet your living space. If you would like to be reimbursed for incidental expenses or part of the rent by the authorities, a subletting agreement is advisable. Please note that your landlord usually has to agree to sublet. The Berlin Tenants' Association has put together a video with the most important information on this. You can find a sample letter to ask your landlord for permission to sublet on berliner-mieterverein.de. A sample subletting agreement is available on the website of the Berlin Refugee Council. Sample applications, which you can use to support your guests in dealing with the authorities, can also be found there.

If you are not officially subletting, the following applies: If your guests are only staying for six to eight weeks, you do not need to register this with your landlord. However, to avoid misunderstandings, it may still be advisable to let your landlord know in advance. If guests are staying longer, you must ask your landlord for permission.

Please note: Unaccompanied minor refugees are not allowed to stay with you privately. They will be taken into care by the Youth Welfare Office. The Youth Welfare Office also organizes their accommodation. You can learn more about this in kindergartens in the "Unaccompanied Minor Refugees" chapter.

In general:

• Help your guests arrive in Germany and support them - if desired - in dealing with authorities and coping with everyday life, for example when buying a German SIM card or opening a bank account. You can find information in the "Residence", "State Aid" and "Further Assistance" sections.
• Be sure to give your guests peace and privacy. A private room is ideal. Free access to the bathroom and kitchen should be provided in any case.
• Your guests have just lost everything and are worried about their families in Ukraine. They may not feel like communicating or communicating a lot. Many are traumatized. Be considerate of their needs. For support options, see our "Mental Health" and "Medical Care" sections.
• It is currently not possible to exchange Ukrainian Hryvnia for Euros. So if possible, give your guests some cash, at least at the beginning. After registration, needy people will be assisted by the Social Welfare Office. You can read more about this in the "State Aid" section.
• Many Ukrainians are not currently vaccinated against Corona. However, they can get vaccinated free of charge. You can read more about it in the "Medical care" section.
• If the situation is stressful for you, you can call the counselling hotline at 0800 - 111 0111 free of charge and around the clock and talk to the staff there. You can also use the chat at telefonseelsorge.de or krisenchat.de.

You can find more information and tips at proasyl.de,  spiegel.de and utopia.de. You will find a guide for private hosts on caritas.de. 

Important: There are also many people staying in refugee accommodations who are looking for a room or a flat. You may, of course, offer them living space as well.

In Germany, interpreters and translators are needed everywhere for new arrivals. Volunteer translators/interpreters can register at https://survey.lamapoll.de/Translators. You will then be contacted.

If you would like to volunteer to provide legal advice to people from Ukraine, you can fill out a contact form on the ua.support website. There you have to enter your personal data and upload proof of your qualifications. You must also indicate the type of help you can offer. After your data has been processed, you will be given access to the online platform. There you can see the questions of those seeking advice and contact them directly.

You can also register on we4ua.com to provide refugees from Ukraine with free legal advice. You have to fill out a form on the website and specify your personal data and legal expertise. Furthermore, you need to state how long you have been working as a lawyer, which languages you speak and which legal systems you are familiar with. Additionally, you need to mention how much time you can allocate for the legal advice and on which days. The website is available in Ukrainian.

Universities can report vacancies on support.uastudents.de. The university employees have to fill out a form on the website and enter the name of the university, the federal state, the field of study and the number of free student places.

At ArrivalAid you can register for a free further training course for trauma first responders. The training consists of a 2-hour basic workshop and a 2-day training course. It takes place on-site (in Munich) and online, and is carried out in German.

At MHFA, you can register for a 12-hour-long first aid course. There you will learn how to recognize problems and deal with those affected. The course takes place online or on-site. If you have any questions, contact info@mhfa-ersthelfer.de.

From October 2022, the Ulm University Hospital will be offering digital counselling sessions for volunteers. You can find the latest at uniklinik-ulm.de.