(CNN) Anna Yezerova, a Ukrainian citizen, arrived in the United States last year with her young daughter and a few months of summer clothes. Her hope: that the war in Ukraine will soon be over.
Almost a year later, Yezerova remains in the US, putting down roots in New Jersey, where she tries to craft a life she never imagined.
“I never dreamed of moving abroad,” Yezerova told CNN. “We started everything from scratch.”
President Joe Biden’s visit to Poland this week is expected to bring renewed focus to Ukraine’s refugee crisis and the need for humanitarian assistance in addition to security assistance. Poland was among the countries that took in millions of refugees when Russia invaded Ukraine.
But as Russia’s war in their country rages on, Ukrainian refugees in the US, who were once optimistic they would return home within two years, are grappling with the fact that they are unlikely to return and with their rights must wrestle status in the US.
Last year, the Biden administration launched a program called “Uniting for Ukraine,” which provided Ukrainian refugees with a simplified process for entering the United States. The humanitarian parole program requires Ukrainians to be sponsored by a US citizen or eligible individual and to undergo rigorous security screening and screening. If accepted, individuals may live and work in the United States for up to two years.
Refugee advocates hailed the program, which paved the way for Ukrainians wanting to come to the United States. Previously, thousands of Ukrainians traveled to Mexico, where it was easier to obtain visas, and then attempted to enter the United States through land ports of entry.
Now, as the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approaches, many Ukrainians who came to the US are nearing the end of their parole, raising concerns about what comes next.
“It’s a big problem right now,” said Yezerova, who works for Church World Service, a resettlement organization, helping Ukrainians in the US and at home. “It’s very complicated to live here if you don’t know how many years you can live here. Can you go to university? Can you buy something like a car?”
Ukrainian refugees attend a job fair in Brooklyn, New York, on February 1, 2023.
According to a Homeland Security official, Ukrainians who entered the country on parole may be able to adjust their legal status in the US or extend their parole.
Since the start of the Uniting for Ukraine program, U.S. citizenship and immigration services have received about 213,000 requests from individuals who have agreed to provide assistance to Ukrainians or their immediate family members, according to the Department of Homeland Security. And more than 113,000 people have arrived under the program, while around 146,000 Ukrainians have been authorized to book their own travel.
“DHS remains committed to supporting Ukrainians in the United States, and we continue to explore ways to create avenues for humanitarian assistance and protection for Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s unprovoked war,” a Homeland Security spokesman said in a statement.
Since last March, around 154,000 Ukrainians have been extradited to the United States outside of the Uniting for Ukraine program. DHS also expanded a form of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine known as Temporary Protected Status, which offers protection to people already in the United States. If not renewed, this designation expires in October of this year.
Mariia Mitina, like Yezerova, was among those who arrived under the United for Ukraine program. Mitina fled Mariupol with her husband and two teenage children after the city fell to Russian troops.
In an interview with CNN, Mitina described through an interpreter how she hid in a basement with her family during the invasion and went 10 days without food, electricity or water. Eventually, she was linked to a family in the US hoping to sponsor Ukrainians.
“It was a happy coincidence,” Mitina said, adding that they were connected through a long chain of friends.
With the help of family and the International Rescue Committee humanitarian group, Mitina arrived in Kansas last July and now works for the state Department of Children and Families.
“Life here is very nice,” she told CNN, adding that she hopes her family can stay in the US, but shared with other Ukrainians her concerns about the end of the probation period.
While there are options for Ukrainians who have been placed on parole to stay, refugee advocates say the insecurity can be troubling.
“Many of our customers fear what the future will bring. It is a situation that has all the hallmarks of a protracted conflict and makes safe return all but impossible,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, a refugee resettlement organization.
“It generates an immense amount of fear and insecurity. And it makes it virtually impossible to put down roots with confidence,” she added.
Congress also allowed applicants to the Uniting for Ukraine program to be eligible for certain benefits, such as medical assistance and case management, but not all benefits received by refugees coming through the US resettlement program. The expiration of probation would also mean the expiration of those benefits.
“The future for people who have fled is uncertain. Some thought this would only be temporary and there would be an opportunity to return, stay closer to home and, in the event war activities ceased, return and see loved ones,” said Erol Kekic, senior vice president at Church World Service “Some people have been here for a year and the chances that they will return are not high.”