People from Ukraine will no longer be given cash to return to their country of origin after failing to win asylum in the Netherlands, ministers have decided.

The decision follows a surge in asylum seeker requests from Ukraine, most of which are rejected because the claimants come from a safe western part of the country, junior justice minister Klaas Dijkhoff said in a briefing for parliament.

Failed asylum seekers have been able to claim financial help to return home, but this has now been stopped for people from Ukraine. They will be able to apply for a plane ticket at €200 in emergency cash.

Dijkhoff said he is also looking into the option of including Ukraine on the official list of safe third countries.