Ukrainian families in Australia limbo after visa expired

In Ukraine, when Natalya Kovalchuk fled the war in Ukraine early last year with her children and sister, she did not expect to be away from her husband so long. We thought we would be back very quickly when we came here today, he said. We were worried about our families, about our relatives, about our country. The Kovalchuks were reunited in December last year, when husband and father Oleksandr, 42, joined his family in Adelaide. But the government's temporary humanitarian visa program that allowed his family to receive settlement services expired in July 2022. He moved to a visa allowing him to work and access Medicare, but he was not eligible for other government-funded programs such as free English lessons. He has a bridging visa, Ms Kovalchuk said. It was very difficult because I studied in TAFE to learn English, but he came without English. The permanent government program for Ukrainians in Australia is not available, allowing them to access other entitlements, including income and accommodation assistance. Help Ukrainians Australia, a volunteer-run organization in South Australia, has been working with the Association of Ukrainians in South Australia to support these newly arrived Ukrainians. Tania Jarema-Norton, a support worker in Adelaide, said the organisation relied on donations and some funding from the South Australian government. She said new arrivals were provided with English-language classes and assistance in finding housing. Now, a lot of people feel in limbo, Jarema-Norton said. We have a strong community, a lot of people who have appeared from nowhere as soon as the invasion started wanting to help, so we have a very active volunteer base. As President of the Association of Ukrainians in South Australia, Frank Fursenko said, about 420 displaced Ukrainians had arrived in South Australia so far. It's not a fixed number because some go interstate some come from interstate. The numbers are constantly changing, but they are still coming in. The arrivals have caused a cultural revival in the Ukrainian community school and dance schools, Fursenko said. Some of the displaced Ukrainians are working in our schools as teachers and instructors, he said. Assimilation takes its toll, the language becomes forgettable, and the culture tends to slide a bit, but this has certainly reinforced all those things. The president of the SLAVA Ukrainian Cultural Centre, Aliona King, said that new arrivals on bridging visas can work and access Medicare, but they are missing other basic support. I know a couple of families who tried to go and study English and got rejected, Ms King said. If they were given a permanent residency status, it would give them the opportunity to start planning the future. They're just full of anxiety at the moment. Even those on three-year humanitarian visas are uncertain about navigating their new lives and hoped they could be given more time to secure their futures, she said. To apply for a permanent visa, one must have a certain occupation, work experience, certain level of English, and it's just simply not enough time, she said. Since the end of February 2022, the Department of Home Affairs has granted more than 10,700 visas to Ukraine, mostly temporary, non-humanitarian visas. While the Kovalchuks are welcome to be together, they worry about loved ones back home. Every day, we have news from Ukraine about how difficult the situation is in Ukraine, Kovalchuk said. Every day, all places, especially civilians, Russians are bombing. But the family is gratitude for the support they have received, especially from the Ukrainian community in Adelaide. They helped us with everything when at first we didn't have the visa, Ms Kovalchuk said. We are very thankful for all Australians for their support.