ABSTRACT – For over two decades, EU temporary protection remained un-used despite the many “migratory crises” at the EU external borders. The Russian aggression in Ukraine however prompted EU institutions to swiftly grant temporary protection to people fleeing the conflict. The renaissance of temporary protection bears the question of which is going to be its role in the future EU migration policy. Despite the repeal proposal advanced in the New Pact on Migration and Asylum, it is unlikely for temporary protection to disappear from the EU framework. To make the current and future applications of temporary protection more feasible, the EU must seize the momentum and maintain the political will and legal creativity displayed upon its activation in March 2022. Two main obstacles must be overcome: the “return dogma” and the lack of tools for the EU to properly address mass influxes and their implication on the long-term. The prima facie recognition of international protection proposal recently advanced by the European Parliament goes in the right direction.
