On 19th February, the government announced that Ukrainians who came to the UK following the Russian invasion will be able to apply for an 18-month extension to their visa. This extension, referred to as the Ukrainian Permission Extension scheme (UPE), affects all three Ukrainian visa routes: Homes for Ukraine, the Ukraine Family Scheme, and the Ukraine Extension Visa.
Ukrainians will able apply online up to three months before their current visa expires and the application process will be free. This means that the first applications will be open in the beginning of 2025, and those granted the earliest visas from the different Ukraine schemes will be able to stay in the UK until September 2026 with the UPE.
At Reset, we are pleased that the government will be extending visas for Ukrainians seeking safety in the UK. We know that many Ukrainians and those supporting them will have questions around what the visa process will entail and if legal support will be given to those applying. These are questions that we hope to have answered over the course of the next few months in the lead up to the first UPE applications. We will provide hosts and guests as much information as possible regarding any developments.
We welcome the news on visa extensions and appreciate the relief many Ukrainians will be feeling. However, it is also important to note the changes made to the Ukrainian schemes. Firstly, as of 3pm on Monday 19 February, the government closed the Ukraine Family Scheme. Any applications submitted after 3pm on the 19th will not be processed.
There are also some changes within the Homes for Ukraine scheme. Any individuals submitting applications after 3pm on the 19th February will be granted 18 months leave to remain in the UK, instead of 36 months, with the option of extension within the new UPE. If the application was started but not submitted by the time of 3pm on the 19th, then the application will be processed according to the new rules.
A further notable change is that all Homes for Ukraine sponsors must now be a UK or Irish citizen or have settled status in the UK. Previously, anyone with at least six months leave to remain in the UK could host a Ukrainian refugee. Reset will be contacting all our relevant hosts over the coming days to ensure they meet the new eligibility requirements.
As a recognised matching provider, we are currently working to update the information across our platforms to reflect the updates announced this week by the government. Please bear with us as we work to make relevant changes to our resources in English and Ukrainian.
We appreciate some of the updates may be confusing, but please know that our team are here to help. Do get in touch with us to ask any questions you may have, and we will do our best to answer them.