Is it permissible to pay smugglers to travel from Ukraine to Europe to escape difficult living conditions? And what is the ruling on the money the smuggler takes in return for that?

We have previously explained the impermissibility of traveling by illegal means and profiting from it, due to the dangers involved in residing in non-Muslim lands. This ruling applies in situations of ease and choice. However, in cases of necessity, the matter differs, because necessities permit the prohibited, but necessity is to be estimated according to its true extent.