Name: Nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees in the U.S. in legal limbo
Uploaded: 2025-11-24T03:47:50.446Z
Duration: 1 min 56 s
Description: Kateryna Golizdra is one of the nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees living in legal limbo in the U.S., after President Donald Trump decided to pause the Ukrainian humanitarian program in January, citing security reasons.

Kateryna Golizdra is one of the nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees living in legal limbo in the U.S., after President Donald Trump decided to pause the Ukrainian humanitarian program in January, citing security reasons.

Florida

Nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees in the United States are at risk of losing their legal status due to processing delays in the renewal of humanitarian parole applications under the Trump administration. Many, like Katarina Golistra, have lost work permits, health insurance, and jobs as a result of these delays, forcing them to rely on savings, community support, or debt.

Reuters reviewed internal US government data and interviewed affected Ukrainians, including professionals and students, who described increased anxiety and uncertainty about their future. Some have expressed fears of arrest or have left the US for other countries while awaiting decisions on their legal status.

Nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees in the U.S. in legal limbo

Katarina Golistra is one of the nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees living in legal limbo in the United States. The 35-year-old is waiting for President Donald Trump's administration to decide the fate of a humanitarian programme that allowed some 260,000 people who fled the war in Ukraine to live and work in the US. After her home in the Kiev suburb of Bucha was destroyed in the spring of 2020, Golistra was resettled in Florida through the Biden-era humanitarian parole programme. But when Trump returned to the White House in January, his administration froze parole renewal applications for months, saying it was needed for security reviews. Golistra said she paid $2,000 to renew her status and apply for a back-up option, but the applications stalled. Her legal status then lapsed in May, meaning she lost her work permit, health insurance and was forced to leave her job. It's a constant stress, anxiety, what I will do next, what I will do tomorrow, for how long I can survive. If I will need to leave the States, then I have to build something again that I was trying to build for the last two and a half years. According to internal US government data reviewed by Reuters, the Trump administration's processing delays has left nearly 200,000 people at risk of losing their legal status as of March 31. The number of Ukrainians affected by the delays has not previously been reported. Reuters spoke with two dozen Ukrainians who lost their work permits and their jobs due to delays in processing renewals. They include tech workers, a preschool teacher, a financial planner, an interior designer and a college student. They described digging into their savings, seeking out community support and taking on debt to support themselves while they wait for a decision on their status. Some of the people interviewed by Reuters said they were worried they could be arrested by US immigration authorities. Others said they were staying indoors or had left the US for Canada, Europe and South America.

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