A Rochester resettlement agency is urging federal officials to extend Temporary Protected Status for Ukrainians before the current designation reaches its Oct. 19 expiration date.
Catholic Charities Family and Community Services said in an Oct. 5 release that it has helped resettle 2,500 Ukrainian adults and children in Rochester since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022. The agency said some of those people have received Temporary Protected Status, while most entered through a separate humanitarian parole program known as Uniting for Ukraine.
The Department of Homeland Security's current designation runs through Oct. 19. Temporary Protected Status allows eligible people from a designated country to remain in the United States and obtain work authorization during the designation period. The date marks the end of the current designation, not proof that every Ukrainian in Rochester will lose lawful status or work authorization on that day.
The charity asked the departments of Homeland Security and State to extend the designation and make it available to more Ukrainians already in the United States. It also called for uninterrupted work authorization and faster decisions on pending immigration applications.
Getachew Beshir, the agency's director of refugee, immigration and employment services, said uncertainty over the deadline is affecting families who have built lives in Rochester. The charity said the families it has assisted are working, paying taxes and enrolling children in local schools.
The agency said the Uniting for Ukraine parole pathway has been suspended. Parole and Temporary Protected Status are different programs, and the 2,500 people the agency says it helped resettle should not be read as a count of local Temporary Protected Status holders.
Catholic Charities is asking residents who support an extension to contact their members of Congress. Federal officials will determine whether and how the designation changes; the agency's request is not itself a policy change.
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