Ukrainians who sought sanctuary in the UK after the Russian invasion will be permitted to extend their visas for an extra 18 months, the Home Office has announced.
More than 200,000 Ukrainians visa holders have arrived in the UK since March 2022, with the first visas to expire in March next year. The Home Office said that the new scheme would provide “certainty and assurance” for Ukrainians in the UK.
This weekend, the government appealed for more British families to come forward to sponsor Ukrainians. But the Local Government Association (LGA) sounded a note of caution, urging the government to review the financial support for Ukrainians facing the risk of homelessness.
Tom Pursglove, minister for legal migration, said: “Families across the country have opened their homes and their hearts to the people of Ukraine, showing extraordinary generosity, including offering shelter to those fleeing from the horrors of war.
“This new visa extension scheme provides certainty and reassurance for Ukrainians in the UK on their future as this war continues, and we will continue to provide a safe haven for those fleeing the conflict.”
Eduard Fesko, charge d’affaires at the Ukrainian embassy, said the announcement was a “clear signal” of the UK government support for Ukraine.
He said: “We appreciate all the help and assistance that our UK friends so generously provide for the temporarily displaced Ukrainians.” People across the UK were encouraged to open their homes to Ukrainian refugees in March 2022, after the Russian invasion, with housing secretary Michael Gove saying they had a “long and proud history of helping others in their hour of need”. He said the visa schemes were a “lifeline” to those who were forced to flee.
Under Homes for Ukraine, the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Ukraine Extension Scheme, visa holders were granted three years leave in the UK, which would have meant the first visas expired in March 2025.
As of 12 February, there have been 143,400 arrivals under the Homes for Ukraine scheme and 56,800 arrivals under the Ukraine Family Scheme. Another 31,400 Ukrainians have had applications granted for extensions under the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Ukraine Extension Scheme.
Under Homes for Ukraine, sponsoring households receive £350 a month for the first year and £500 a month in the second and third years. The “thank you” payments of £500 a month were extended into a third year in the autumn budget.
The LGA warned this weekend that a significant number of Ukrainians in the UK were facing homelessness. Roger Gough, LGA asylum refugee and migration spokesperson said: “Councils work incredibly hard to support asylum and resettlement and have helped communities welcome around 200,000 Ukrainian refugees since the start of the war.
“However, the pressures of multiple asylum and resettlement schemes are still being compounded by chronic housing shortages. This has resulted in a high number of Ukrainians and refugees leaving asylum accommodation and having to present as homeless.
“As the Ukraine visa schemes were designed to provide temporary sanctuary, the funding arrangements for councils to support arrivals need urgent review as councils continue to provide crucial longer-term support, including integration and housing support as sponsorship arrangements come to an end.”
A report by the British Red Cross warned in November that Ukrainians were struggling to get the required support to find long-term housing. It found 6,220 Ukrainian families expected to have applied for homelessness support in the UK by the end of this financial year.
The Home Office said applications for the visa extensions would be open online from early 2025. There are no application fees for these existing schemes and the Home Office has yet to announce the fee for these new extensions.
