Temporary protection: United States
🛰️ Varta monitors 4 official sources for this country — checked daily.
Legal basis: Uniting for Ukraine (humanitarian parole) + TPS (national law). NOTE: both faced 2025-26 changes/suspensions and litigation — verify current status on uscis.gov. • status valid until 19/10/2026
Steps
- 1
Determine your pathway
In the US, check your own I-94, TPS decision and EAD. Abroad, check an available entry route; do not plan U4U as an open application programme.
📍 USCIS (online)💳 An initial TPS application has a fee; re-registration and EAD requests have separate fee rules. Check the current G-1055 for your form and category: https://www.uscis.gov/g-1055 - 2
Check TPS eligibility and filing requirements
Being in the US is not enough for TPS: residence, physical-presence dates and registration requirements apply. Check eligibility for initial or late filing or re-registration on the TPS Ukraine page.
📍 USCIS⏰ Within the TPS registration window💳 An initial TPS application has a fee; re-registration and EAD requests have separate fee rules. Check the current G-1055 for your form and category: https://www.uscis.gov/g-1055 - 3
Abroad: check the U4U pause
New I-134A submissions are paused. Having a sponsor does not itself authorize entry. Before planning U4U travel, check the official USCIS notice: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/update-on-form-i-134a
📍 USCIS (online)💳 New submissions are paused
Documents
Foreign passport
requiredUS sponsor (Form I-134A)
if availableNew I-134A submissions are paused. Having a sponsor does not itself authorize entry. Before planning U4U travel, check the official USCIS notice: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/update-on-form-i-134a
Child’s birth certificate
requiredProof of residence in Ukraine
if availableUkrainian Embassies and Consulates
Map
Document samples and how to fill them
Full name in LATIN letters as in the passport.
Format MM/DD/YYYY (month first!).
Foreign passport number.
US address: street, city, state, ZIP.
❌ Date format (in the US the month comes first!) ❌ Applying outside the TPS registration window
Sponsorship does not guarantee entry. An old I-134A guide does not establish that submissions are open.
Benefits
Work permit (EAD)
TPS or U4U parole holders.
How to apply: Form I-765 to USCIS
Access to social services
TPS/parole holders.
How to apply: State of residence
Wise — transfers without hidden fees
A multi-currency account and transfers between Ukraine and Europe at the real exchange rate. Handy for receiving salary and sending money to family.
Open a Wise accountThe price for you does not change; the commission supports our free guides.
Where to apply
What happens after protection ends
TPS, parole and work authorization have different conditions and dates. Re-parole is not automatic and a decision before I-94 expiry is not guaranteed. Check current USCIS instructions and discuss possible grounds to stay with a qualified adviser.
What happens when protection ends
These are options for the future — you will need to choose ONE, and not now.
These routes are available outside temporary protection — work, study, family, business, etc.
The description below is a general scheme, similar across countries. Check exact requirements, fees and timelines via the official link in each card — they differ by country and change over time.
💼 U4U parole + I-765 (EAD)
Those with a valid employment contract in this country.
Passport; employment contract; proof of residence. Authority: USCIS.
- Foreign passport
- Employment contract
- Proof of residence
- Health insurance (optional)
USCIS
The employer or the applicant files; the immigration authority decides.
Before the current status or permit expires.
- Collect the card/decision
- Register address and social number
Renewable together with the contract.
Parole is processed abroad; TPS and work authorization in-country.
🎓 Study — United States
Enrolment at an accredited institution.
Acceptance letter; proof of funds; housing; insurance.
- Foreign passport
- Acceptance letter
- Proof of funds
- Health insurance (optional)
USCIS
Apply via the institution or the immigration authority.
Before the semester starts.
- Register at the institution and locally
Yearly with continued studies.
Parole is processed abroad; TPS and work authorization in-country.
👨👩👧👦 Family reunification — United States
Spouse, children or relatives of a resident or citizen.
Marriage/birth certificates; housing; sponsor income.
- Foreign passport
- Marriage/birth certificate
- Sponsor income proof
- Proof of residence
USCIS
The sponsor or family files; documents need apostille and translation.
Before the current status expires.
- Collect the family member card
Renewable; a path to permanent residence.
Parole is processed abroad; TPS and work authorization in-country.
🏢 Self-employment/business — United States
Company or self-employment registration; business plan or contracts.
Registration documents; tax number; funds; housing.
- Foreign passport
- Company/self-employment registration
- Business plan or contracts (optional)
- Proof of residence
USCIS
Register the business, then apply for residence as an entrepreneur.
Before the current status expires.
- Tax registration and bank account
Tied to the company activity.
Parole is processed abroad; TPS and work authorization in-country.
🏠 Permanent residence — United States
Usually after 5 years of continuous legal residence.
Stable income; housing; integration/language per national rules.
- Foreign passport
- Income proof
- Proof of residence
- Language/integration certificate (optional)
USCIS
Apply once the required residence period is met.
After the required residence period is met.
- Obtain permanent resident status
Permanent status; card replaced periodically.
Temporary protection time often counts towards the period (per national rules).
Opportunities: housing, jobs, grants
6 verified programmes: housing support, job portals, business grants, free courses — with direct official links and verification dates. Available with Varta.
Forms & samples (PDF)
FAQ
Do I need to do anything to keep my protection after the current period?
If you are in the US on parole under Uniting for Ukraine, nothing renews by itself. To keep your right to stay, request a new period of parole (re-parole): file Form I-131 with USCIS. It is neither automatic nor guaranteed: USCIS decides case by case, as a matter of discretion. You must show you were paroled in on or after 11 Feb 2022, that urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit continue, that you are physically in the US, complied with your parole conditions and clear background checks, including biometrics. TIMING. File no earlier than 180 days before the parole expiration date shown on your Form I-94. USCIS warns that filing more than 180 days early may lead to rejection or denial with no refund. USCIS promises no processing time: "we cannot predict what the processing times will be". So file at the start of that window, not its last days: if parole lapses before a decision, you are left without authorized stay or work authorization. WHAT TO CHECK. On the current edition of Form I-131 (edition 01/20/25) it is Part 1, item 10.C, "Re-parole Process for certain Ukrainian Citizens and Their Immediate Family Members... on or After February 11, 2022". Do not confuse it with 10.G — a different program (FRTF / Ms. L.). Note: the USCIS re-parole page has not been updated since 11 Oct 2024 and still gives old-edition instructions ("item 1.e. in Part 2", handwrite "Ukraine RE-PAROLE"). Go by the form itself. WORK PERMIT. On the current Form I-131 you can request an EAD right away — Part 9, item 1; no separate I-765 is then needed, and the card issues only after re-parole is approved. The USCIS page and 2024 FAQ advise the opposite — I-765 (c)(11) only after approval. The form is newer. MONEY (Fee Schedule G-1055, ed. 29 May 2026). Form I-131 alone: $630 by mail or $580 online. With an EAD request in Part 9: $1,150 by mail or $1,050 online, plus a separate payment of $280 under Pub. L. 119-21. If USCIS notifies you of conditional approval, you must pay the Immigration Parole Fee — $1,020 online — for parole to be granted. Pub. L. 119-21 fees can never be waived; a waiver (Form I-912, paper filing only) covers only the USCIS fee itself, and only for those initially paroled in from abroad. IF YOU DO NOTHING. Once parole expires you are no longer in a period of authorized stay — unless you hold another status (asylum, green card, TPS) or are in an authorized period on another basis, such as a pending asylum application. Work authorization ends too. Source: https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/uniting-for-ukraine/re-parole-process-for-certain-ukrainian-citizens-and-their-immediate-family-members/frequently-asked-questions-about-the-re-parole-process-for-certain-ukrainians-and-their-immediate (checked 03.09.2026).
What is U4U?
New I-134A submissions are paused. Having a sponsor does not itself authorize entry. Before planning U4U travel, check the official USCIS notice: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/update-on-form-i-134a
What is TPS?
Being in the US is not enough for TPS: residence, physical-presence dates and registration requirements apply. Check eligibility for initial or late filing or re-registration on the TPS Ukraine page.
Do I need a sponsor for U4U?
New I-134A submissions are paused. Having a sponsor does not itself authorize entry. Before planning U4U travel, check the official USCIS notice: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/update-on-form-i-134a
This information is for reference only and is not legal advice.