A scheme allowing Ukrainians to join family members taking sanctuary in the UK has been unexpectedly closed, in what opposition politicians described as a cruel and “below the radar” move days before the two-year anniversary of Russia’s full invasion.
The Ukraine family scheme is being shut but government officials said a separate Homes for Ukraine scheme would continue to fulfil people’s needs as a way of “simplifying” the process.
Jennifer Blair, a barrister specialising in immigration and asylum, said the closure of the Ukraine family scheme without warning would prevent people bringing their family to the UK unless a local council agreed that they could house them under the hosting scheme.
“This means that people in the UK with vulnerable and disabled family members may be left with no way to bring them to safety,” said Blair, of No5 Barristers’ Chambers.
Examples cited by her included those of elderly relatives who might need a care home, or disabled children who would need stair-free access in situations where a British sponsor was unable to provide it.
She said: “This will be an increasing issue as men are demobilised and want to join their children in the UK. The change also bans many mixed-nationality families from reuniting with relatives in the UK.”
The Home Office had already announced that Ukrainians who sought sanctuary in the UK after the Russian invasion would be permitted to extend their visas for an extra 18 months, but the move to shut the family scheme caused surprise.
More than 200,000 Ukrainians have arrived in the UK since March 2022, with the first visas due to expire in March next year.
The Scottish National party said the government was forcing Ukrainian refugees to “jump through hoops” to remain safely in the UK, accusing it of “trying to slip these cruel measures under the radar”.
Stephen Kinnock, the shadow immigration minister, said government ministers needed to “urgently explain the justification for the latest changes and how they will ensure vulnerable Ukrainians are not put at risk by these changes”.
“The numbers arriving on visa schemes have already dropped but many that are coming are often in very desperate personal situations,” he said. “Restricting family rights at a time when Ukrainian troops are under heavy fire in Donetsk sends the wrong message to the people of Ukraine about our willingness to stand with them.”
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A source close to James Cleverly, the home secretary, said: “Nobody from Ukraine who is here already is being asked to leave but in fact can stay longer, and nobody who wanted to and still wants to is being prevented from applying to come here from Ukraine because the homes for Ukraine route still exists.
“Given these facts it’s hard not see these statements as anything beyond cynical scaremongering on the backs of people we and the British public have been happy and proud to help and support, and will continue to.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “It is right that we continue to adapt and develop the visa routes to ensure they remain as efficient and sustainable as possible. Ukrainian nationals who would have qualified under the Ukraine family scheme will still be able to apply to Homes for Ukraine. Family members who are settled here can also still continue to sponsor a family member to come to the UK under Homes for Ukraine.”