Three years after the invasion of Ukraine, Olga Pasichnyk is still living in fear.
“I’m losing hope,” she says. “I feel insecure. We still have missiles flying over people in Ukraine, anybody can be killed any second. I’ve lost people in this war, neighbours and classmates.”
The beaches are empty in Olga’s home city of Berdyansk – once a beautiful Ukrainian resort on the Azov Sea, now under Russian occupation.
“I left with just my wallet, my passport, the Bible and my daughter,” the 42-year-old, who works in publishing, says. “My classmate says my flat is still there, but we don’t know if anyone is inside. She told me Russians open the flats and bring in people to live there.”
It’s three years since President Zelenskyy negotiated a ceasefire long enough for the people in the Russian-occupied area to flee. Olga brought her teenage daughter to London under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.
“I’m grateful to my original hosts under the scheme for their love, respect and support,” she says. “They treated me and my daughter as family members. We’re always in touch, celebrating holidays and birthdays together.
“But now Ukrainians in the UK face losing our jobs
and tenancy agreements due to our temporary visas running out. Mentally, it is killing us. I feel like we’re not wanted here.”
Like hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian nationals given sanctuary here in February 2022, Olga now has to apply to extend her visa via the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme (UPE). While it offers an 18-month extension, it doesn’t offer a permanent option
to remain.
She adds that many Ukrainians are reporting issues – applicants are unable to apply until 28 days prior to their visa expiring, but admin delays mean processing can take weeks.
Olga says that because of this, many employers and landlords are refusing to deal with Ukrainians.
“The government website says we have a right to work and live, but can someone explain this because our visa issues are causing problems in our employment and accommodation?” she says. “Why did they invite us then? To suffer and struggle like this? I pay my bills. From day one, we’ve been looking for our own accommodation.
“Just give us normal visas. I’m trying to find a better paid-job, but I’m constantly getting rejected.
“Everything comes down to the visa.” And for Ukrainians like Olga and her daughter, 18, whose city is under Russian occupation, there is no “home” to go to.
“I’ve been back to Ukraine twice to see my parents in Lviv,” she says. “It is like a journey to hell. It is not safe. I know one family who went back to visit, and their son came back without a leg – he was hit by a missile.
“But living in the UK is challenging. Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he will stand by Ukraine, but he needs to understand we feel completely broken mentally and physically – we have no stability. I stand with Zelensky, the Ukrainian Army and Ukrainians. But I know Russia won’t give my city back.”
Olga says she has to prove her visa status to her employer by April 11, or face being sacked.
“If I fail, my job will be terminated,” she says. “I’m very stressed. They’re saying it takes up to eight weeks for visa renewals, and these visas are only for 18 months. It is horrible.”
Originally from Kyiv, where she worked at the university, Dr Natalia Kogut, 42, also came to the UK via the resettlement scheme. She now lives in Birmingham with her two children, aged 14 and 20, and her 66-year-old mother, in private rented accommodation, and is working as a researcher at the university.
Their visas are due to expire on March 24.
“I’m so depressed and anxious,” Natalia says. “I could lose my job and tenancy. We already lived in a homeless shelter for nine months after we moved out from our host family.
“For others it is life and death. I know one family with a son who has a rare, dangerous sickness and they are struggling to schedule hospital treatment because they’ll need to see a valid visa. This is a question of survival.”
This week marks three years since she left her happy life in Kyiv.
“I remember the long queues trying to drive out of Ukraine, escaping the Russian tanks,” she says. “We left the car behind and walked to the border with just a rucksack with our life in it.
“My mother had a stroke because of the stress, it took a long time to find private accommodation. I’ve had to learn everything about this country.
“Now, I have a good job, my children are enrolled in school and college – but I could lose everything because of visa problems. The visa process normally takes eight weeks, but most Ukrainians arrived in the first four months of the war, so there will be thousands to process. Can you imagine the delays?
“Life in Ukraine is so bad, there is nothing there, no economy and it is dangerous to return.
“I’ve rebuilt my life here.”
Originally from Irpin, in the Kyiv region, which was Russian-occupied, Lena Kliuchikova, 42, lives with her husband and two children, aged 11 and 19, in Worcester after coming here on the resettlement scheme. A lawyer, she recently completed her Masters here, and her husband is self-employed as a painter and decorator.
“Everyone is experiencing the same problem,” she says. “My visa finishes in June, I must apply in May but my rental agreement ends in April. I’m concerned and worried.
“In the general review with the landlord, we may be asked what our immigration status is and whether we are reliable tenants. There is a big competition for rental properties. Many Ukrainian families are coming to the end of their time with their host families. What will they do?”
A UK government spokesman said: “We are fully committed to supporting Ukraine in their fight against Putin’s illegal war, while also providing a safe and secure haven for those fleeing the conflict. The Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme continues to provide certainty and security for Ukrainians, allowing those with permission to remain in the UK under one of the existing Ukraine schemes to apply for a further 18months.”
As the Prime Minister continues his trip to the US, where he will try to persuade President Trump to back Ukraine not Putin, Lena wants him to also look closer to home.
“The day the war started, we left,” she says. “Our region became occupied, and by the third day, it was impossible to leave, many people died. The windows of our apartment were broken. Most of the city was destroyed.
“I visited Ukraine last year, I didn’t sleep for the whole week, all you can hear is drones, I don’t know how people live there.
“We’ve built a new life here, my daughter dreams about going to university in the UK. We just want to stay and give our children a safe future.”