Fact Sheet

Ukrainians in the United States Who May Qualify for Temporary Protected Status: An Overview

Published

Published:

March 3, 2022

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a military invasion of Ukraine and advanced toward the capital of Kyiv. The invasion has led for calls for humanitarian protections for Ukrainians—both in the United States and abroad—including a new Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation.

TPS is a temporary immigration status provided to nationals of a country that is experiencing problems that make it difficult or unsafe for their nationals to be deported there. TPS has been a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of people who are in the United States when problems in their home country make their departure or deportation untenable. This fact sheet provides a demographic overview of the population of Ukrainians in the United States who may qualify for TPS, and what benefits TPS would confer upon those individuals.

What is Temporary Protected Status?

Congress created TPS as part of the Immigration Act of 1990. It is a temporary immigration status provided to nationals of specifically designated countries that are experiencing an ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or other extraordinary temporary conditions. It provides a work permit and stay of deportation to foreign nationals from those countries who are in the United States at the time the U.S. government makes the designation.

Who is Eligible for TPS?

In order to qualify for TPS, an individual must:

Be a national of the foreign country that has a TPS designation (or if stateless, have last habitually resided in a country with a TPS designation);
Be continuously physically present in the United States since the effective date of designation;
Have continuously resided in the United States since a date specified by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security;
Not have been convicted of a felony or two or more misdemeanors committed in the United States; and
Not be barred from asylum for persecuting an individual, inciting terrorist activity, or other violations; or be found inadmissible under immigration rules for other criminal or national security reasons.

Nationals of a designated country do not automatically receive TPS, but instead must register during a defined registration period and pay significant fees. In addition, an individual’s immigration status at the time of application for TPS has no effect on their eligibility, nor does the previous issuance of an order of removal. An individual who is eligible for TPS must submit an application to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), an agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). If a person demonstrates eligibility and USCIS grants TPS, that person receives a temporary stay of deportation and temporary authorization to work in the United States. TPS beneficiaries are also eligible for advance parole, which provides permission to travel abroad and return to the United States, but they must apply for it separately. Beneficiaries are not eligible for any public assistance by virtue of their TPS status.

Examining Possible Beneficiaries of TPS Status Among Ukrainian Immigrants

Current Status of Possible Beneficiaries

The American Immigration Council estimates that of the 344,000 Ukrainian immigrants in the United States, approximately 34,000 do not have an otherwise defined immigration status. These 34,000 Ukrainian immigrants, already present on U.S. soil, would be the ones who could benefit from a TPS designation from the administration.