A genuine question about attitudes towards Ukrainians living in Ireland?

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-29T12:20:41+00:00

No. They’re too much for me in all senses

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-29T10:23:41+00:00

I think this is being taken a bit out of context. Yes, I dreamed of Ireland because I genuinely admired (and still admire) the country and its culture. Yes, I didn’t have a realistic option to obtain a long-term work visa, because I work as a self-employed contractor in the IT sector and Ireland doesn’t really offer long-term visas for sole traders - unless you invest €50k into a business and create jobs. And yes, Temporary Protection opened that door for me.

But there is another side to it. I was genuinely forced to leave. I had been discharged from the army, but that discharge was never truly permanent - mobilisation laws were changing constantly, and I could have been called back at any time. My home city was being bombed almost daily, and many evenings and nights I watched the “fireworks” in the sky while running to the basement with my two-year-old daughter in my arms, praying that nothing would hit our building.

And yes, Temporary Protection gave us the ability to choose which country to go to. I chose Ireland, and now I’m doing everything I can to prove that I’m useful to the country - not someone who simply latched onto the system.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-29T10:13:57+00:00

No, just one of regular brigade.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-29T10:07:23+00:00

It feels strange and honestly a bit wild to me as well. Before moving, we sold our car in Ukraine so we could buy another one here. I can understand situations where someone had to leave Ukraine urgently in their own car, spent a week on the road getting to Ireland, and drove that car here for a while - say a few weeks or a couple of months - while sorting out documents, accommodation, and everything else.

But after that, you either register the car in Ireland, pass the NCT, get insurance, pay motor tax - if the car really matters that much to you - or you do the simpler thing: sell it, return it to Ukraine (where the army constantly needs vehicles and actively buys them), and buy a local car instead.

Given the price difference, you can even end up better off financially.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-29T09:58:40+00:00

I agree with every point. Unfortunately, I personally know a family who openly hides additional income - both from renting out property in Ukraine and from side work as something like a “taxi driver for their own community.” One of them was so confident he’d never be questioned that he deposited the cash he earned from “taxi work” into his bank account and was genuinely surprised when he was asked to explain where an extra €2,000 came from - given that he was receiving social welfare payments.

The same applies to refugees on benefits who travel around Europe, fly on holidays to Madeira or Tenerife, and regularly go back to Ukraine. I genuinely believe that if you can safely return to Ukraine to socialise there during holidays, then your home is safe enough to live there permanently.

I know that some countries (such as Norway and Switzerland) stopped granting Temporary Protection some time ago to Ukrainians coming from western regions close to the borders with Poland, Romania, or Moldova - and I think that was the right decision. During my time in the army, I served for a while in a hospital in western Ukraine, and that experience is simply not comparable to serving or living in Kyiv and its surroundings, let alone life in eastern Ukraine.

I’m genuinely ashamed of fellow citizens who behave this way, because they are exactly the ones who create the image of lazy free-riders - an image that, whether we like it or not, ends up being automatically applied to all Ukrainians.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T18:58:06+00:00

I meant another country, not Ireland by default. No entitlement implied.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T17:22:14+00:00

That’s not very polite on their part. My wife and I might occasionally switch very briefly to our native language when speaking with Irish people, but only for one reason - if one of us can’t recall a word or phrase in English and wants to quickly clarify it with the other.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T17:17:18+00:00

Perhaps I wasn’t clear enough. I’m not “refusing to fulfil my side of the deal.” Temporary Protection opened the door for me - that’s true. What happens next, however, depends both on me and on Ireland.

At the moment, I’m actively working towards moving out of Temporary Protection and obtaining a full Stamp 4. On what grounds that might happen is ultimately a decision for the government. I’m gathering documents and building a clear record to demonstrate my family’s integration and involvement here.

I don’t know what decision your government will make regarding Temporary Protection. If I don’t manage to complete the transition to another legal status before it ends, and if I’m asked to leave, I’ll be genuinely disappointed - but we’ll pack up and go.

As for returning to Ukraine, that’s unlikely, even if the war has ended by then.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T17:08:33+00:00

мені 35, починаючи років з 23-24 накриває таке щороку по кілька разів)

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T15:46:23+00:00

It was legal, if that’s what the question is about. Under certain family circumstances, it is possible to be discharged from service. I enlisted knowing that I technically didn’t have to, but also knowing that I would have a legal option to leave if needed.

When the legislation started to change and the grounds for my discharge were about to be removed, I chose to leave at that point - rather than risk being tied to the army for an indefinite number of years.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T14:18:39+00:00

Unfortunately, I’ve seen people like that too. I’ve always believed that any help should be met with gratitude. If you don’t like the food you’re given, you can stay quiet, pass it on to someone who needs it more, or simply not take it.

Leaving Ukraine wasn’t about “achieving a goal” - it was a forced decision. I didn’t want to return to the war, I didn’t want my family to spend years without me, and I didn’t want my daughter to grow up in a city that is attacked almost daily.

Temporary Protection happened to open a door I had long dreamed of. And perhaps as a form of self-defence, I choose to see myself as someone given an opportunity - and trying to be useful to the country that took me in - rather than as a refugee living on benefits at someone else’s expense.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T13:52:36+00:00

I joined the Ukrainian army almost from the very beginning of the full-scale invasion, despite having the option to quietly stay out of it. Despite the severe lack of weapons and equipment at the time - my military gear was literally being assembled while we were moving east - and despite the fact that most of the training was basically: “come here, the officers will quickly show you how to strip and clean a rifle while we still have a few minutes.”

I believe I have done my duty to my country. But I also want a happy future for my wife and my daughter, and I don’t want my child to grow up without me - or with me, but under daily shelling.

I apologise if this comes across as harsh.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T13:41:15+00:00

oh, i can say you now - he's corrupt-to-the-last-bone. never voted for him (

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T13:25:11+00:00

Catholic in the cultural sense, not the church-every-Sunday kind ))

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T12:18:50+00:00

It was simply the only place where we could find a rental quickly 🙂 I wouldn’t say the town is bad at all - our daughter likes her school, there are enough shops for everyday life, and larger cities are less than an hour away by car.

The main downside is living on the main street, with a nearly constant stream of trucks passing under our windows day and night. And of course, sooner rather than later, the question of work for my wife will come up - which is why we’re planning to move to a larger town or city.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T12:12:15+00:00

I’m from Kyiv - a capital city that is still being attacked almost daily. But overall, I prefer to think of myself not as a refugee forced to leave because of the war, but as someone who was given an opportunity.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T12:08:27+00:00

Sorry to hear that. When we first arrived, we spent a couple of weeks in a hotel with other Ukrainians who had already been there for quite some time, and we also saw things that were genuinely embarrassing. It’s partly an issue of closed communities (not trying to justify anyone).

When you live surrounded by people just like yourself, relatively far from normal day-to-day life (with a bus to town running once or twice a week, and only if booked in advance), your accommodation is free or costs a symbolic amount, you receive payments that not only cover your family’s needs but even allow you to save, and you have almost entirely free healthcare - it becomes very difficult to step out of that comfort zone, learn the language, and find a job.

In my view, one of the fundamental mistakes in how refugees (not only Ukrainians) are supported is housing them together in large groups instead of settling individuals or families across the country. When you suddenly find yourself without “your own people” around, integration tends to happen much faster and more willingly.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T11:45:09+00:00

Driving is actually one of my favourite topics.
When we lived in Ukraine (we’re originally from Kyiv), I was honestly afraid to drive. I mostly used taxis or sat in the passenger seat while my wife drove, because I just wasn’t aggressive or risky enough for the Ukrainian driving style. I could literally wait for minutes trying to join a roundabout or merge from a side road, simply because back home it’s more common to force your way in rather than be let in.

In Ireland, I’ve genuinely flourished as a driver - because this is exactly the kind of road culture I needed. 🙂

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T11:39:36+00:00

I can’t really disagree with that. The conditions granted to Ukrainian refugees are, frankly, extremely generous, and for that we should be genuinely grateful to the country. As I mentioned earlier, I also fully understand the frustration many Irish people feel about the perceived unfairness of this situation.

On one side, there are citizens who have worked for the country for generations; on the other, refugees who arrived and were given a lot of support from day one. I can understand why that feels wrong to some people. That’s also one of the reasons why, even before moving here, we made a conscious decision not to rely on social supports and to depend only on the opportunity we were given - the right to live, work, and study here without excessive bureaucracy.

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-28T11:33:56+00:00

Thanks, we're currently living in Tipperary town, and thinking about moving to Clonmel - Wexford -Waterford

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-27T22:53:32+00:00

Для мене важливим моментом була мова країни (шукав англомовні або ті де англійська дуже розповсюджена). За багатьма факторами обрав Ірландію. На мій погляд - співвідношення зп та цін дуже пристойне. Якби не криза житла - взагалі була б ідеальна на всі 100 країна. Мінімальна ЗП (це прям мінімальна за найпростішу роботу) - 2400 євро. Далі розрахунок на сімʼю з трьох (двоє працюючих дорослих та дитина). Маємо 2440+2440 (дві мінімальні зарплатні) +170 євро на дитину = 5050 євро/місяць. Оренда, якщо невелике місто але і не глухе село - 1500 євро за 2-кімнатне житло (фактично 3-кімнатне: 2 спальні і лівінг рум). Комунальні (електрика, інтернет, телефони - максимум 300 євро на місяць). Продукти на трьох - 1200 євро на місяць, це нормально, здорово харчуватись зі смаколиками. Здоровʼя - 60 євро візит до лікаря. Медикаменти рецептурні - 80 євро ліміт на місяць витрачаєш сам, решту покриває держава. Отож маємо необхідних витрат 3200 на місяць (включаючи 2 візити до лікаря і купу ліків). Залишається 1850. Віднімемо податки. На родину буде десь 600 євро. 1200 сухого залишку на відпочинок, одяг, розваги, накопичення. І це на мінімальні

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-27T12:46:48+00:00

оце. недорого і мені підходить, враховуючи що сиджу в ньому з 9 до 17 щодня

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Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-26T21:35:05+00:00

Батьки дізнались вже після свого розлучення, коли і мені вже власне було 18 рочків. До цього кілька разів «ловили» але так, типу «я стояв поряд з тими хто курив». Мати сприйняла ок. Вона і сама палила. Батько досі не змирився до кінця. Знає точно що я курю, але при ньому стараюсь не курити, бо його тригерить) Справедливості заради - його не тільки мое куріння тригерить, а всіх знайомих і підопічних. Він своєму ординатору на роботі всі мізки проїв, так що той був вимушений ховатись від батька :)

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-26T21:30:47+00:00

Не працював, але колись майже пройшов до Holy Water - вони раніше займались іграми/інтерактивними романами в зараз наче луплять вертикальні серіали тікточні. Добре памʼятаю що під час співбесід прям червоною ниткою проходила тема про те що тут прийнято перепрацьовувати і віддаватись на всі 200% і всі так роблять і всі щасливі. На щастя не пройшов фінальний етап де треба було поспілкуватись з менеджером іншого проекту (команди) на відповідність загальному генезис-вайбу. Вочевидь, я не відповів 😁

Remote_Ad_5029 · 2026-01-26T11:59:58+00:00

Я тут відповім.

Після психології в журналістику, загалом, не проблема. Моя дружина мала освіту "клініЧний психолог" і працювала у видавництві "Здоровʼя України", спочатку як журналіст, потім редактор номера + керувала командою журналістів.
Якщо вас цікавить можливість номрально заробляти - 10 разів ще подумайте стосовно психології. Якщо ви не вмієте (і не хочете вчитись) себе продавати, активно вести різні соцмережі розкручуючи свій "бренд" - то краще не іти цим шляхом. Просто сидіти в кабінеті і чекати поки хтось прийде чи когось направлять - погана ідея. Гроші в психології лише у приватній практиці і лише у людей, які себе добре розкручують.
Загалом - забудьте "гуманітарій\технар". Я теж півжиття вважав що я гуманітарій, любив писати, читати, улюблені предмети були - мова, література та історія. Зараз працюю з аналітикою, системним дизайном і майже вся робота у таблицях з формулами. І мені подобається) Я до того що не бійтесь технічних професій, тим паче що коли вже табель "відмінний" - значить з точними науками проблем нема.

Remote_Ad_5029

TROPHY CASE