British government announces the following concessions for British nationals in Ukraine and Ukrainian nationals in the UK following the Russian Invasion of Sovereign State Ukraine.

On Thursday 24 February 2022, the Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation and invaded Ukraine. As this horrific war unfolds what does this mean for Ukrainians in the UK and family members of British nationals residing in Ukraine?

Ukrainians in the UK:

The Home Secretary, Priti Patel has ordered immediate changes to the UK’s visa policy to assist Ukrainians working, living and studying in the UK. Current visas can be temporarily extended (until 31 December 2022) or there is also the option to switch into different visa routes.

Ukrainians can extend their stay in the UK, if they are in the UK:

• on an existing visitor visa
• on an existing points-based immigration route
• on an existing seasonal worker visa
• in a temporary HGV/pork butcher job

Non-British family members of British nationals living in Ukraine:

The Home Office published a concession guidance on 17 February 2022, which was updated on 24 February 2022.

You can apply for a family migration visa for free (the Home Office fee of £1,523 and NHS surcharge of £1,560 will be waived) if you are the family member of a British national who usually lives in Ukraine.

Your British national family member must be one of the following:

• a spouse or civil partner
• an unmarried partner (you must have been living together in a relationship for at least 2 years)
• your parent if you are under the age of 18
• your child under the age of 18
• an adult relative you provide care for who lives with you due to a medical condition.

A decision will be made within 24 hours following biometric enrolment. Applications can be submitted even if financial requirements and English language requirements are not met. The Home Secretary will exercise her discretion whether to grant these visas despite requirements not being met in light of the current extenuating circumstances that these applications are being made under.

The UK Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Kiev is now closed. Family members of British nationals who usually live in Ukraine and wish to apply can attend the temporary location in the Lemberg Business Centre in the city of Lviv to enrol their biometrics. Alternatively, VACs are operating in Poland, Romania, Hungary and Moldova.

Ukrainian nationals in Ukraine who are not immediate family members of British nationals normally living in Ukraine, or where the British national family member is living in the UK are currently exempt from making visa applications to visit, work, study or join family in the UK through a VAC.

If you have any further questions in relation to this post, please contact Aleksandra Broom:

T: 0330 175 5655

E: ab@bglaw.co.uk