Settled calls for right of Ukrainians to sponsor close family members to be reinstated
Our Ukraine service gives free, multilingual, accredited advice and support to many Ukrainian families on the UK’s Ukrainian visa schemes.
One couple, having arrived under the Homes For Ukraine scheme in 2022, had set up a business and secured a tenancy. By February they were ready to apply to sponsor their young daughter and be reunited with her. Then the rules were changed overnight, which sadly now preventing them from being reunited with two year old Anna.
This very concerning situation, now faced by many other Ukrainian families, features in the Independent’s lead story of 12th May, with comments from Settled’s immigration advisors: Ukraine refugee couple unable to bring baby to UK after Sunak’s sudden rule change | The Independent
We were then quoted in this follow-up article on 14th May, alongside the Refugee Council and Lord Alf Dubs: Government urged to reopen family reunion route for Ukrainian refugees as children kept from parents | The Independent.
In June, following Settled’s correspondence with the Home Office, the family finally received a happy outcome of a reversed decision and granting of a visa, so that young Anna can now be reunited with her parents in safety. We are grateful to The Independent for covering this in a third piece on 12th July: U-turn sees Ukrainian toddler reunited with refugee parents in UK – amid calls for government policy change | The Independent
But this isn’t the end of the story, as the Home Office rules remain the same – something Settled, Refugee Council, Lord Alf Dubs and others continue to call for to be changed as soon as possible.
“We call for an urgent change to the rules, to reinstate the right of Ukrainians to sponsor close family members. The spirit of these humanitarian visas demands that children are allowed to join their parents.” – Kate Smart, CEO, Settled
