Red tape and long waits: US visas remain out of reach for Ukrainian refugees

Even with an American willing to host her in the United States, there was no way for Nastia to get a visa.

As millions of Ukrainians flee their homes, the European Union has opened its doors to them, offering visa-free entry and temporary protection for at least one year. Canada is fast-tracking visas for Ukrainians and the United Kingdom has promised visas to Ukrainians who have hosts there.

Currently, some Ukrainians with family members in the US can be admitted as refugees under the Lautenberg program, which is open to certain religious minorities. Others can be sponsored by their relatives to receive immigrant visas, though they typically face extensive red tape. Ukrainians who arrived in the US before 1 March have been granted temporary protected status.

But questions remain about how the Biden administration will proceed, including whether asylum seekers from African countries who have faced difficulty fleeing Ukraine will be included, and how refugees who were already awaiting resettlement will be affected.

Some Ukrainians desperate to come to the US, along with Russians and Belarusians fleeing political repression, are trying their luck at the US-Mexico border, with mixed results.

Ultimately, Simmons helped Nastia apply for a visa to Canada, a common destination for Ukrainians who have reached a dead end trying to get into the US. Nastia has an appointment scheduled to be fingerprinted and photographed soon.