Media: US to revoke temporary legal status for over 200,000 Ukrainians

The administration of US President Donald Trump is set to revoke temporary legal status for approximately 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the ongoing conflict with Russia.

This move, expected to take effect as early as April, could expedite deportation proceedings for many of the affected individuals, signaling a sharp departure from the support Ukrainians received under ex-President Joe Biden’s administration, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

The decision to roll back protections for Ukrainians began before Trump’s public dispute with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week. It is part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to strip legal status from over 1.8 million migrants who entered the US under temporary humanitarian parole programmes initiated under the Biden administration. According to US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, the department has no announcements at this time.

Both the White House and the Ukrainian embassy have declined to comment on the matter. A January 20 executive order from Trump instructed DHS to "terminate all categorical parole programmes," which has been the precursor to these recent developments. The administration also plans to revoke parole for around 530,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans in the coming months. The revocation of parole status could result in fast-tracked deportation proceedings for these migrants, as noted in an internal email from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

Migrants who entered the US legally but were not officially admitted could face expedited removal without any time limitations, according to the email. These temporary humanitarian parole programmes were implemented by the Biden administration to offer legal pathways for individuals fleeing conflicts and crises. Among those affected were more than 240,000 Ukrainians, 530,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans, and over 70,000 Afghans who fled the Taliban’s return to power. Additionally, approximately 1 million migrants had appointments scheduled via the CBP One app, with thousands more benefiting from smaller programmes, including family reunification parole. 

As a candidate, Trump had pledged to end these programmes, asserting that they were not in accordance with US law. Last month, his administration paused the processing of immigration-related applications for individuals who entered under certain Biden parole programmes, including Ukrainian Liana Avetisian and her family. The Avetisians, who fled Ukraine and now reside in the US, are left in a state of uncertainty regarding their status. Avetisian, who previously worked in real estate, now assembles windows, while her husband works in construction.

By Naila Huseynova