Ukraine Crisis Support Fund

***Please note that this fund is currently suspended and not accepting any new applications. We will provide an update as soon as more information is available.***

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The Ukraine Crisis Support Fund is a small grants fund for seafarers and their families who have been impacted by the Ukraine crisis and need immediate and urgent financial support.

The fund is being managed by the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) on behalf of the Seafarers International Relief Fund (SIRF). It can provide one-time financial grants of up to US$500 to seafarers and their families in need to help with expenses including medical bills, living costs, or emergency travel. It can also provide compensation of up to US$1,000 to next of kin if a seafarer has died as a direct consequence of the Ukraine crisis.

This fund is currently suspended and not accepting any new applications. We will provide an update as soon as more information is available.

Seafarer welfare organisations can apply to the Ukraine Crisis Support Fund on behalf of seafarers or their families (individual seafarers cannot apply). Seafarer welfare organisations are those organisations working primarily for the welfare of seafarers such as Stella Maris, The Mission to Seafarers or Sailors’ Society, or an ITF-affiliated union such as the Marine Transport Workers' Trade Union (MTWTU) in Ukraine.

If you are a seafarer or family member, please contact your local seafarer welfare organisation and refer them to this page so they can apply on your behalf. You can contact ISWAN's free, 24-hour helpline SeafarerHelp if you need assistance: www.seafarerhelp.org.

Grants are available for the following:

• Immediate hardship needs for a seafarer or their family such as difficulty paying for living costs, medical expenses or transport expenses due to displacement
• Bereavement in cases where the death of a seafarer is a direct consequence of the Ukraine crisis

• US$500 can be granted to seafarers or family members experiencing hardship
• US$1,000 can be granted to the next of kin of a seafarer in the case of death of the seafarer as a direct consequence of the Ukraine crisis

This fund is currently suspended and not accepting any new applications. We will provide an update as soon as more information is available.

• The applying organisation must be able to prove that they have verified the needs and are applying on behalf of a seafarer, or a member of a seafarer’s immediate family (parent, partner, child) by submitting the seamen’s book number or Continuous Discharge Certificate (CDC).
• The seafarer must have been employed on board within the last 12 months.
• Seafarers presently sailing on a ship who are able to earn their wages are NOT eligible to apply to this fund.
• Seafarers who have ended their contracts in the previous 30 days (to be counted from the date of submitting this application) are also NOT eligible to apply for the funds.
• The applying organisation must confirm that the concerned seafarer or their family is experiencing severe hardship as a result of the ongoing Ukraine crisis. For example, difficulty paying for living costs or medical expenses, or bereavement due to the death of a seafarer as a direct consequence of the Ukraine crisis.
• Up to US$500 can be granted to seafarers or family members experiencing hardship, and up to US$1,000 can be granted to next of kin of the seafarer in the case of death of the seafarer.
• A seafarer or their family member can only be in receipt of this grant once and should not also have applied to another maritime charity or seafarer welfare organisation for the same purpose.
• This fund is open to seafarers of any nationality, including Ukrainian seafarers and their families.

If you have any questions, please get in touch:

E-mail: iswan@iswan.org.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)300 012 4279