Home Office action in response to the situation in Ukraine

The Home Office has launched the first phase of the UK’s Homes for Ukraine Scheme, which will allow individuals and organisations in the UK to provide accommodation to Ukrainian nationals and their family.

There is no cap on the number of people who can be sponsored under the scheme, with this instead being dictated by how many people sign up to be sponsors.

Disclaimer: The Contents Of This Blog Are Accurate Only Up Until The Date Of Publication, 15 March 2022. This Blog Is For Information Purposes Only And Does Not Constitute Legal Advice.

Eligibility for the scheme

Ukrainian nationals and immediate family members of Ukrainian nationals who were resident in Ukraine prior to 1 January 2022 are eligible for the scheme. There is no need to have family ties to the UK.

The scheme is open to ‘adults and children within family units’, indicating that unaccompanied children will not be permitted to apply.

Those coming to the UK under the scheme will be entitled to live and work in the UK for up to three years. They will also be entitled to access healthcare, benefits, employment support, education and English language tuition.

Sponsors

Sponsors must be able to provide a residential spare room or unoccupied self-contained accommodation for at least six months, which is fit to be lived in and suitable for the number of people to be accommodated. Local Councils will be responsible for carrying out checks to ensure these conditions are complied with.

Sponsors will be provided with a full support pack signposting relevant services for them and the person or people staying with them. Those who can ‘accommodate one or more household’ will also receive an optional payment of £350 per month, for as long as they sponsor somebody (payments to be made for up to 12 months). The payment is limited to one per household, however little further detail on these payments is available at present.

Sponsors are not expected to cover the costs of food and living expenses, although it is of course open for them to do so.

Next steps

The second phase of the scheme is launching later this week, with the visa application process due to go live on Friday 18 March 2022. The application will be free.

The application form may be completed by either the sponsor or the person looking to come to the UK. Those holding a valid Ukrainian international passport will not need to attend a Visa Application Centre. Biometric checks will be made after arriving in the UK, although security checks on both the sponsor and the applicant will be carried out prior to the visa being issued.

The application form requires the details of both the sponsor and the applicant (and so pairings must already have been made prior to the application).

For those wishing to volunteer for the scheme but who do not have a named person to sponsor, the Homes for Ukraine website suggests that prospective sponsors should contact charities, faith groups or local community organisations to be paired with a person looking to come to the UK under the scheme. It is intended that the scheme will allow organisations to sponsor individuals directly in the future, however this will not be possible in the earlier stages of the scheme.

Those wishing to volunteer for the scheme as sponsors can now register their interest at the following link.

Ukrainian Family Scheme

This route is currently open to Ukrainian nationals, or the immediate family members of a Ukrainian national, who are applying to accompany or join their UK based family member, and who have been residing in Ukraine on or immediately before 1 January 2022.

This route is currently available for applicants both from within and from outside of the UK.

Applicants must have been residing in Ukraine prior to 1 January 2022. This includes those who have now departed Ukraine.

A UK based family member is defined as:

• A British national;
• Someone settled in the UK, for example someone who holds Indefinite Leave to Remain, or Settled Status, or proof of permanent residency in the UK;
• Someone who holds pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme AND started living in the UK before 1 January 2021;
• Someone with refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK.

The applicant’s UK- based family member must be either:

• an immediate family member of the applicant;
• an extended family member of the applicant;
• an immediate family member of an extended family member, of the applicant.

This relationship must be suitably evidenced with, for example, marriage and birth certificates. Should this not be possible, a full explanation of why it is not possible should be provided.

Duration of visa

Should the visa application be successful, this visa will result in a grant of leave of up to three years in the UK.

Fees

There is currently no Home Office fee associated with this application. There is also no Immigration Health Surcharge associated with this application.

Timeframe

The Home Office has published that they will prioritise applications under this scheme, and aim to make decisions as quickly as possible.

How to apply

Those applying must still attend a biometrics appointment after their application has been submitted. Currently there are Visa Application Centres open in:

• Hungary
• Moldova
• Poland
• Romania
• Paris, France

The Home Office is expected to continue to update their guidance and information in relation to this visa route.

Further information regarding Home Office support for Ukrainian nationals can be found here.

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The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please do not hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.

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