What is the Uniting for Ukraine Program?

The Uniting for Ukraine program will allow 100,000 Ukrainian refugees to settle in the United States. The program is open only to those who are fleeing the war in Ukraine.

Here’s what you need to know about the program if you’re trying to help a loved one immigrate from the Ukraine to the United States, or you’re trying to immigrate yourself.

How does Uniting for Ukraine work?

This program will allow individuals and entities in the United States to apply to DHS to sponsor displaced Ukrainian citizens. Both the refugee and the sponsor will need to be eligible under our laws.

To sponsor someone you must take financial responsibility for them for ten years or until they have acquired a certain number of work credits. You must prove fiscal ability to do so.

The difference between sponsoring someone through Uniting for Ukraine and sponsoring them through other programs is that you don’t have to employ them and you don’t have to be related to them. 

Meanwhile, the State Department will be making referral efforts in Europe through the Refugee Admissions Program. All refugees will need to arrive from overseas ports of entry, not Canada or Mexico, so they will most likely need to be matched to you or to your organization through this program. They will be looking for especially vulnerable individuals, such as women, children, elderly people, the disabled, MOGAI individuals, and stateless individuals. 

What if you or your loved one is not eligible for the program?  

There are other programs that can help Ukrainians enter or stay in the United States. For example, anyone who has come into the country since April 11, 2022 is covered by the Temporary Protected Status program for a period of eighteen months.  

Under TPS, you gain some time to find your way into a status that might allow you to stay longer. You are also allowed to apply for employment and for driver’s licenses. Meeting with an immigration lawyer will need to be a top priority if you do intend to stay.

There is also the Humanitarian Parole program. This is a program which allows someone who would normally be ineligible for admission to the United States to do so because the courts have determined that they are dealing with a compelling emergency. A war would certainly qualifying, and quite a few Ukrainians are benefiting from this program right now.

If you’re not sure what to do, where to apply, or what you need to apply, reach out to our offices. We can help you or a loved one find the easiest, fastest, and most appropriate pathway for remaining in the United States.

See also:

What is an Affidavit of Support?

Can Ukrainian Refugees Come to the United States?

7 Documents You’ll Need for Your Asylum Case