As the war in Ukraine rages on, the United States must continue protections for Ukrainians it welcomed.
Since 2022, Ukrainians have sought safety in the United States, primarily through the Uniting for Ukraine (U4U) program, which offered a two-year period of parole for Ukrainians to live and work here lawfully.
But that parole status is temporary. Work permits for Ukrainians living in the United States come from an active parole or other status, and are also temporary.
Thousands of Ukrainians have sought to renew their status or work permits by filing applications with the government — applications that have gone unanswered.
For months, the U.S. government had a pause on reviewing applications filed by parolee populations in the United States, including Ukrainians.
That pause meant that, with each passing month, more Ukrainians faced lapses in their statuses and their associated work permits.
While officially lifted in June, this bureaucratic freeze had profound real-life consequences for Ukrainians across the country—such as families losing their work authorization and the means to support themselves.
Bipartisan Group of Lawmakers Urge Administration to Support Protections for Ukrainians
This week, Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois, and Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine led a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers urging the government to take action to stop lapses in grants of parole and work permits for Ukrainians.
In a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 36 lawmakers hailing from 18 states and Washington, D.C. brought needed attention to this crisis.
“Ukrainians in our districts are increasingly seeing their statuses and work authorization lapse under expiring grants of parole offered under the program,” they wrote. “After years of being employed, paying taxes, and contributing to our neighborhoods, Ukrainians in our districts now live in uncertainty—a state of limbo that hurts communities and employers alike who’ve sought to help this population.”
The Representatives recommended the government quickly process pending applications by U4U recipients and use re-parole and parole extensions to help keep people in status and work authorized.
Global Refuge was proud to endorse this bipartisan effort, along with Refugee Council USA and Razom for Ukraine. Global Refuge thanks Reps. Quigley, Kaptur, and Pingree for their leadership.
We urge the Administration to keep U4U parolees in status through the discrete steps outlined in the Congressional letter.
Global Refuge also encourages Congress to address this gap in protection by taking up bipartisan legislation called the Protecting Our Guests During Hostilities in Ukraine Act, which would create a guest status for Ukrainians that have relied on parole and Temporary Protected Status. It was introduced in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives with the passing of the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Write to your lawmakers about this bill using our Action Alert.
