Refugees of any origin will now be dispensed from paying upfront a tax to have their diploma verified.  Photo: Shutterstock

Refugees of any origin will now be dispensed from paying upfront a tax to have their diploma verified.  Photo: Shutterstock

After the European Commission issued a directive last week to facilitate an accurate recognition of Ukrainian certificates in the European job market, the Luxembourg education ministry has modified the payment method for any refugees or those in a financially precarious situation.

In the grand duchy, the department for the recognition of diplomas usually processes all demands for a mandatory tax of €75. This is the case regardless of whether the application was successful or not. An additional €300 can be added to this if a compensatory measure such as an adaptation period or an aptitude test is required.

Last week, the Commission sent out a directive stating that--since refugees tended to be hired in positions they were overqualified for--EU member states should set up strategies to help Ukrainian refugees get a fairer access to the job market considering that they were displaced by the war in Ukraine. 

While Luxembourg cannot change the law in three days, as Pierre Reding, a spokesperson for the ministry of education told Delano, it adapted it so that not only Ukrainian refugees but anyone who has received that status in the grand duchy could “receive the recognition without having to pay for it upfront.”

As a solution, the ministry will issue invoices with a due date to refugees who have requested the certification of degree. While the length of the delay hasn’t been determined yet, it is likely that refugees will only have to pay the tax once they have an income. 

“We can’t grab something out of the pocket of someone who has nothing,” Reding explained. The department has already received a few applications from Ukrainians fleeing the conflict, but it was also important for it to make sure the option would be accessible to anyone in such a vulnerable position in the future, regardless of their origin, he added. This includes locals whose precarious situation has officially been recognised. 

This alternative would allow the state to not alter the law but offer a quick solution to those in need. “Without recognition, they can’t get a job and they can’t live,” Reding concluded. 

The commission has set up a number of tools to accelerate the procedure of recognition of documents. A resource hub on Ukrainian qualifications was created, and is meant to be a space where information can be shared which would fast track the administrative procedure. An