By taking in millions of Ukrainian war refugees the EU Member States have expressed historically unprecedented solidarity. The unanimous activation of the Directive on �Temporary Protection� in the European Council enabled the unbureaucratic reception of people forced to flee the destruction wreaked by Russian bombs. What had not been possible � or desired � for other groups of refugees in far smaller numbers happened in this case even in Member States previously opposed to a more open European asylum policy and the fair distribution of refugees. On the bitter anniversary of Russia�s illegal war of aggression that commenced on 24 February 2022 we present a first European comparative study of �temporary protection� and shed light on the strengths and weaknesses of the different national systems as regards entry procedures, accommodation options and (labour market) integration.