Ukrainian families in Northeast Florida, who sought refuge from war, face uncertainty as paperwork is delayed and the end of their Temporary Protected Status looms.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Ukrainian families who came to Northeast Florida seeking safety from the war at home are now facing new uncertainty as the end of the country’s Temporary Protected Status designation approaches.
Natalia Plyam, president of Helping Ukraine, has spent years helping Ukrainian families fleeing the war settle in Northeast Florida. First Coast News spoke with Plyam in 2022 as she worked to help families seeking refuge in the Jacksonville area.
Now, she says some of those same families are reaching out to her for help as they face delays in immigration paperwork, concerns about losing work authorization and uncertainty about whether they will be able to remain in the United States.
“They kind of sprouted roots here, and now they’re being plucked like criminals,” Plyam said.
Plyam says two men she helped were stopped by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents this week.
According to Plyam, both men came to the United States legally through the Uniting for Ukraine program and were granted Temporary Protected Status, or TPS. She said they applied to extend their status and are waiting for a decision.
Plyam says the men were initially released after being stopped and ordered to report to ICE the following morning. When they arrived, she said they were taken into custody, leaving their family uncertain about what would happen for several hours.
“They’re going to work in the morning and then an unmarked car pulls behind them and they don’t think anything of it,” Plyam said. “Then all of a sudden their life changes within 30 seconds.”
The men were eventually released and ordered to appear in immigration court at a later date, according to Plyam.
She said their situation is part of a growing concern among Ukrainian families she works with.
“I get three to four calls a week saying, ‘Hey, I lost my job permit. I can’t work. I have children to feed, so what do I do?’” Plyam said.
Plyam says delays in processing immigration paperwork can leave families in limbo for months.
“They’re waiting to renew it, but now instead of taking two months, sometimes it takes eight months,” she said. “That lag between the application process and when they receive permission to continue, it’s a very murky area.”
She is calling on lawmakers to provide additional protections for Ukrainians who she says cannot safely return home while the war continues.
“You invite people here and the war is still going on,” Plyam said. “Basically, they escape one hell only to be faced with another.”
For many of the families Plyam has helped, she said the uncertainty is especially difficult because they have spent years building lives in Northeast Florida.
“They’re just normal, regular people that you wouldn’t know who they are if you saw them on the street, but yet they feel like they have a bull’s-eye on their back,” she said.
According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Ukraine’s current TPS designation and related benefits are set to end Oct. 19, 2026.
For now, Plyam says many Ukrainian families in Northeast Florida are left waiting and wondering what happens next.