US Grants Temporary Protected Status to Ukrainians

The Department of Homeland Security will grant temporary legal status to Ukrainians living in the U.S.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) would be extended for 18 months.

“Russia’s premeditated and unprovoked attack on Ukraine has resulted in an ongoing war, senseless violence, and Ukrainians forced to seek refuge in other countries,” Mayorkas said in a statement.

Temporary Protected Status is given to citizens of countries devastated by war or natural disasters.

Anyone applying for the status, which will allow them to remain in the country, for now, must have been living in the U.S. before March 1, 2022. After that date, the DHS said that Ukrainians who traveled to the country were not eligible.

TPS is designated when a country faces “ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or extraordinary and temporary conditions,” the DHS said Thursday. The department added that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had prevented Ukrainians from returning safely to their country.

“This invasion has caused a humanitarian crisis with significant numbers of individuals fleeing, and damage to civilian infrastructure that has left many without electricity or water or access to food, basic supplies, shelter, and emergency medical services,” the DHS said.