Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2022 to Question 144837 on Visas: Ukraine, when her Department intends to publish figures on the number of visas issued under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The information is already in the public domain at the following address.
Ukraine Family Scheme and Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme: visa data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to her oral statement of 1 March 2022, when further information on the humanitarian sponsorship pathway will be published.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Homes for Ukraine scheme opened for applications on 18 March.
Information on the scheme can be found at: Homes for Ukraine – Homes for Ukraine – Local Sponsorship Scheme for Ukraine (campaign.gov.uk).
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant of her oral statement of 1 March 2022, when further information on the Ukraine humanitarian sponsorship pathway will be published.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Homes for Ukraine scheme opened for applications on 18 March.
Information on the scheme can be found at: Homes for Ukraine – Homes for Ukraine – Local Sponsorship Scheme for Ukraine (campaign.gov.uk).
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral Statement of 1 March 2022, Official Report, column 915, whether family members normally resident in Ukraine are eligible to apply to the Ukraine Family Scheme if their relative in the UK is a (a) non British National, including Ukrainian citizens, with Indefinite Leave to Remain, (b) non British National on a work or study visa and (c) non British National on a visitor visa.
Answered by Kevin Foster
As set out in the Home Secretary’s statement to the House on 1 March, a fee free, bespoke Ukraine Family Scheme has been introduced. The route allows both the immediate family members (spouse, civil partner, durable partner, minor children) and extended family members (parent, grandparent, adult children, grandchildren, siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, in laws and their immediate family) to join their relatives in the UK. The UK-based sponsoring relative must be a British citizen, a person who is present and settled in the UK (including those with settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme), a person in the UK with refugee leave or with humanitarian protection or an EEA or Swiss national in the UK with limited leave under Appendix EU (pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme). This route was launched on 4 March.
People in the UK on work study or visit visas, who have not acquired settled status will not be permitted to sponsor a relative under the Ukraine Family Scheme. However, on 18 March the Government launched the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, which enables individuals, charities, community groups and businesses to volunteer accommodation and provide a route to safety for Ukrainians, and their immediate family members, forced to escape their homeland. Ukrainian nationals resident in the UK with at least six months’ leave can qualify to sponsor under this scheme if they are able to offer suitable accommodation and pass security checks. Further information about the Homes for Ukraine Scheme has been published here:
https://homesforukraine.campaign.gov.uk/
Ukrainian nationals in the UK on visit visas will be able to sponsor under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, if they extend their stay under the new Ukraine Extension Scheme, which was announced on 29 March 2022. This scheme will launch on 3 May 2022 and will allow Ukrainian nationals and their partners or children who had leave to remain in the UK on 18 March 2022, or whose right to remain has expired since 1 January 2022, to apply to extend their stay in the UK for a period of three years. Further information on the scheme can be found here:
We are setting no limit on the numbers of people who can come here. We will be glad to welcome as many Ukrainians as wish to come.
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral Statement of 1 March 2022, Official Report, column 915, whether the (a) aunts and uncles and (b) unaccompanied nieces and nephews of people living in the UK are eligible to come to the UK from Ukraine via a family migration visa.
Answered by Kevin Foster
As set out in the Home Secretary’s statement to the House on 1 March, a fee free, bespoke Ukraine Family Scheme has been introduced. The route allows both the immediate family members (spouse, civil partner, durable partner, minor children) and extended family members (parent, grandparent, adult children, grandchildren, siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, in laws and their immediate family) to join their relatives in the UK. The UK-based sponsoring relative must be a British citizen, a person who is present and settled in the UK (including those with settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme), a person in the UK with refugee leave or with humanitarian protection or an EEA or Swiss national in the UK with limited leave under Appendix EU (pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme). This route was launched on 4 March.
People in the UK on work study or visit visas, who have not acquired settled status will not be permitted to sponsor a relative under the Ukraine Family Scheme. However, on 18 March the Government launched the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, which enables individuals, charities, community groups and businesses to volunteer accommodation and provide a route to safety for Ukrainians, and their immediate family members, forced to escape their homeland. Ukrainian nationals resident in the UK with at least six months’ leave can qualify to sponsor under this scheme if they are able to offer suitable accommodation and pass security checks. Further information about the Homes for Ukraine Scheme has been published here:
https://homesforukraine.campaign.gov.uk/
Ukrainian nationals in the UK on visit visas will be able to sponsor under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, if they extend their stay under the new Ukraine Extension Scheme, which was announced on 29 March 2022. This scheme will launch on 3 May 2022 and will allow Ukrainian nationals and their partners or children who had leave to remain in the UK on 18 March 2022, or whose right to remain has expired since 1 January 2022, to apply to extend their stay in the UK for a period of three years. Further information on the scheme can be found here:
We are setting no limit on the numbers of people who can come here. We will be glad to welcome as many Ukrainians as wish to come.
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral Statement of 1 March 2022, Official Report, column 915, what happens to people coming to the United Kingdom from Ukraine if their visitor visa has expired and who do not qualify for a family visa or a skilled worker visa.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Government has already established the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme. These have provided flexibility for those already in the UK to enable them to switch visas where they would not normally be able to, including visitors.
The Government is now going further still by launching a new Ukraine Extension Scheme on 3 May. Ukrainian nationals and their partner and children who had permission to stay in the UK on 18 March 2022 (or which has recently expired) will be able to stay in the UK under the Ukraine Extension Scheme. Eligibility for permission to stay will include those who were in the UK as visitors.
Successful applicants will be granted permission to stay in the UK for 3 years with full access to work, study and public funds.
The Ukraine Family Scheme, Homes for Ukraine Scheme and Ukraine Extension Scheme are all free of charge with no requirement to pay any application fee or broader charges such as the Immigration Health Surcharge. There will be no limit to the number of Ukrainians who can benefit.
These new routes show the UK stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and its citizens. The changes we are making to the visa process are making it quicker and simpler for Ukrainians to come here, as well as ensuring those already here can stay.
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral Statement of 1 March 2022, Official Report, column 915, what charges people coming to the United Kingdom from Ukraine on a visitor visa are required to pay to transfer to a (a) family visa or (b) skilled worker visa.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Government has already established the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme. These have provided flexibility for those already in the UK to enable them to switch visas where they would not normally be able to, including visitors.
The Government is now going further still by launching a new Ukraine Extension Scheme on 3 May. Ukrainian nationals and their partner and children who had permission to stay in the UK on 18 March 2022 (or which has recently expired) will be able to stay in the UK under the Ukraine Extension Scheme. Eligibility for permission to stay will include those who were in the UK as visitors.
Successful applicants will be granted permission to stay in the UK for 3 years with full access to work, study and public funds.
The Ukraine Family Scheme, Homes for Ukraine Scheme and Ukraine Extension Scheme are all free of charge with no requirement to pay any application fee or broader charges such as the Immigration Health Surcharge. There will be no limit to the number of Ukrainians who can benefit.
These new routes show the UK stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and its citizens. The changes we are making to the visa process are making it quicker and simpler for Ukrainians to come here, as well as ensuring those already here can stay.
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral Statement of 1 March 2022, Official Report, column 915, whether the Government plans to provide financial support for partner organisations which sponsor people fleeing Ukraine through the humanitarian sponsorship pathway.
Answered by Kevin Foster
This Government has made its support for Ukrainians fleeing in fear of their lives clear. The Homes for Ukraine scheme was announced by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities on 14 March.
To enable the scheme to commence swiftly, Homes for Ukraine is initially limited to sponsorship between named individuals. Sponsors will receive an optional £350 monthly payment from the government as a thank you for their generosity. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is working with NGOs, charities or other third-party organisations to stand up processes to facilitate matching of beneficiaries and sponsors where able / willing.
Organisations can register their interest at:
https://homesforukraine.campaign.gov.uk/
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant of her oral statement of 1 March 2022, whether the Government will provide financial support to partner organisations to the Ukraine sponsorship pathway.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Homes for Ukraine scheme was launched on 14 March 2022 by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Information on the scheme can be found at:
Homes for Ukraine: guidance for councils - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of people who apply successfully to be hosts through the Homes for Ukraine will be able to provide sanctuary to people fleeing Ukraine in the next (a) week, (b) two weeks and (c) month.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answers given to Question UIN 145857 on 28 March 2022 and Question UIN 144955 on 29 March 2022, which include links to published guidance and information at Gov.uk.