Hello! I am Valentyna. I’m a refugee from Ukraine, and now I live in Germany.

My daughter, granddaughter and I lived in a two-room apartment in a five-storey building in Mariupol. In March 2022, our home was destroyed because of the war. In the state service centre, I registered my destroyed apartment, but nothing happened. Now the city is being run by different authorities. I am far away and worried. I have the documents proving the apartment is mine. I do not know what I need to do in order to avoid losing my right to the apartment.

Please help me.

I am Svitlana, a 32-year-old teacher from Ukraine. I have two small children and used to lead a pleasant life there.

Then, on August 22nd, I had to flee Ukraine to save my children and begin a new life. I arrived in a small town in Germany. The problem is that the waiting times to get a visa are extremely long. I am therefore stuck in a refugee camp, waiting for the next steps.

Do you think you can help me?

I applied for legal aid after I found accommodation in Germany through a popular website for arranging accommodation.

The person offering the selected accommodation asked me to go through a verification process, referring me to a fake website, through which I also made a rental deposit and paid the first two months’ rent. I should have received a warranty card, but instead I lost the money from my deposit, as well as the two months’ rent. The money was transferred to an account in another country. I contacted the accommodation agent and it subsequently emerged that this was a fraud.

Can you advise me on what next steps I should take?