Immigration information for Ukrainians: next steps after arriving in the UK (accessible version)
Updated 22 February 2023
© Crown copyright 2023
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-information-for-ukrainians-in-the-uk-your-next-steps/immigration-information-for-ukrainians-next-steps-after-arriving-in-the-uk-accessible-version
What you need to do to confirm your immigration status now you are in the UK.
Welcome
If you have just arrived in the UK, the Home Office is pleased to extend the very warmest welcome to you and any family members who have travelled with you.
The UK stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine, and both the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine scheme have been established to provide you and your family with certainty about your status in the UK.
What you need to do next depends on how you applied to our schemes. Please consider the situation that applies to you and your family and follow the guidance.
If you applied to the Ukraine Family Scheme or Homes for Ukraine scheme, did not attend an in-person Visa Application Centre and you received a permission to travel letter
You have a six-month entry stamp in your passport. This provides proof of your UK immigration status to ensure you can access the benefits and services you are entitled to during that period.
Important: you must apply to extend your stay within six months of the date you entered the UK, to continue to live and work in the UK.
During the six-month period, you will need to apply to extend your stay (up to three years in total). The steps you will need to take are as follows.
- Apply on GOV.UK. You do not need to apply as soon as you have arrived in the UK unless you intend to travel internationally, but you must apply within six months of the date you entered the UK.
- As part of the application, you will book an appointment at a UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services office to provide your biometrics (photograph and fingerprints) and you must take your Ukrainian international passport to that appointment.
- Following your appointment, your application will be considered, and you will be informed of the decision and if successful, you will be issued with evidence of your extended immigration status in the form of a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP).
If you applied to the Ukraine Family Scheme or Homes for Ukraine scheme from outside of the UK and attended a Visa Application Centre
When you provided your biometric information at a Visa Application Centre (VAC) outside of the UK, you will have:
- been given a paper document called an entry clearance vignette, attached to your passport or to a Form for Affixing a Visa (FAV), to use when travelling to the UK
- been given a letter outlining the next steps including collection of your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP)
- confirmed the address at which you expected to be living in the UK. VAC staff will have helped you to select a UK Post Office near the address, where your BRP will be made available for collection. The Post Office address is in the letter you were given at the VAC and also in the email that you were sent when you submitted your application online to the scheme.
Important: you should collect your Biometric Residence Permit as soon as possible after arriving in the UK.
Your BRP will be available to collect at the selected Post Office around 10 days after you received the decision on your application under the scheme, and you must take the Home Office grant letter and your passport (if you have one) with your entry clearance vignette, or your FAV (or other document given to you at the border), with you to collect it.
You will not need to attend a UK Visas and Citizenship Application Centre in the UK. Your BRP will be held at the Post Office for 60 days. After 60 days, your BRP will be returned to the Home Office but the Post Office will be able to advise you on next steps to receive your BRP.
Information about Biometric Residence Permits (BRP)
A BRP is a credit-card sized photocard issued by the Home Office, which includes your:
- name, date and place of birth
- biometrics, including a photograph of your face
- immigration status and any conditions of your stay, including whether you can access public funds, for example benefits
Find more information about BRPs on GOV.UK.
How to evidence your immigration status in the UK using your BRP
Before you have a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), you are able to use the stamp in your passport, or your entry clearance vignette attached to your passport or to a FAV (or other document given to you at the border), to temporarily evidence your immigration status in the UK.
When you have collected your BRP, you can use it:
- for identification purposes
- as evidence of a right to study in the UK
- to allow you to use Home Office online services on GOV.UK to prove your right to rent property in England to a landlord and right to work in the UK to an employer, by generating a ‘share code’ which gives them time limited access to relevant data
- as evidence of a right to public services or benefits you are entitled to
You are advised not to travel outside the UK until you have received your BRP, or you may have problems returning to the UK. You should always carry your current BRP when travelling internationally, as you will need to show this to the carrier you are travelling with and may be asked to present it at the UK border.
All BRPs now expire on or before 31 December 2024. You do not need to tell us if your BRP expires on 31 December 2024 and your permission to stay in the UK has been granted for a longer period. You do not need to do anything now, and the expiry of your BRP before the expiry of your permission does not change your entitlement to work, access services or benefits, or travel. Information will be available on GOV.UK to tell you what you need to do in early 2024.
If you need help accessing or using the right to work or right to rent online checking services, you can contact the UK Visas and Immigration Resolution Centre for direct telephone and email support.
If you applied to the Ukraine Family Scheme or Homes for Ukraine scheme and provided your biometrics via the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app
You will have created a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account when you applied using the ID Check app. You will need to use your UKVI account credentials to sign in to the View and Prove service on GOV.UK, where you can access information about your immigration status (your eVisa).
Signing into the View and Prove service allows you to:
- view your eVisa and check what rights you have in the UK, for example the right to work or claim benefits
- prove your status to others, such as employers, landlords or education providers, by generating a ‘share code’ which gives them time limited access to relevant data
- update some of your personal details, for example your phone number and email address.
As well as your eVisa, you will be issued with a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) for use when travelling in and out of the UK. You should always carry your current BRP when travelling internationally, as you will need to show this to the carrier you are travelling with and may be asked to present it at the UK border.
You must allow 28 days from the date of your decision letter before collecting your BRP from the selected Post Office, and you must take the letter and your passport with you to collect it. Your BRP will be held at the Post Office for 60 days. After 60 days, your BRP will be returned to the Home Office but the Post Office will be able to advise you on next steps to receive your BRP. See more information about collecting your BRP from the Post Office.
All BRPs now expire on or before 31 December 2024. You do not need to tell us if your BRP expires on 31 December 2024 and your permission to stay in the UK has been granted for a longer period. You do not need to do anything now, and the expiry of your BRP before the expiry of your permission does not change your entitlement to travel. Information will be available on GOV.UK to tell you what you need to do in early 2024.
Further information about your UKVI account and eVisa is available on GOV.UK.
If you applied to the Ukraine Family Scheme through a Crown Dependency or the Isle of Man’s Homes for Ukraine scheme
If you applied to a Crown Dependency (Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man) Ukraine Family Scheme, or the Isle of Man’s Homes for Ukraine scheme then you must finalise your application through that Crown Dependency’s process. If you require information or support, please contact the relevant Crown Dependency.
If you were in the UK before 18 March 2022 (for example as a worker or student) and want to extend your stay
If you are a Ukrainian national in the UK who has a temporary visa, including a work, study or visit visa, granted before 18 March 2022 and which expires after 1 January 2022 you can apply to the Ukraine Extension Scheme free of charge.
Your partner and children can also apply if they are already in the UK as your dependant.
Under the Ukraine Extension Scheme, you will get three years’ permission to stay in the UK and will have the right to work, study and access public funds.
The Ukraine Schemes are not a route to settlement. If you have a visa on a route to settlement, you should consider carefully whether the Ukraine Extension Scheme would be the right route for you.
Visit GOV.UK for further information and to apply.
If you are in the UK and have not applied to any of the Ukraine Schemes, visit GOV.UK for information about the immigration routes available to you. You cannot make a new application under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme from within the UK.
Support and further information
Visit GOV.UK for more information, including on family members joining you in the UK such as children:
Call our helpline: +44 (0)808 164 8810 – select option 1