London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Asylum claims for 12,000 to be considered without face-to-face interview

Asylum claims for 12,000 to be considered without face-to-face interview

Some 12,000 asylum seekers to the UK are to be considered for refugee status without face-to-face interviews.

A 10-page Home Office questionnaire will decide the cases of people from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Libya, Syria and Yemen who applied before last July.

The move aims to reduce the asylum backlog which Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pledged to end this year.

The Home Office says this is not an asylum amnesty - but it will streamline the system for five nationalities.

Applicants from these countries already have 95% of their asylum claims accepted, says the Home Office.

The usual security and criminal checks will still be conducted and biometrics taken, but, for the first time, there will be no face-to-face interviews, say officials.

Instead, eligible asylum seekers must fill out a form and answer up to 40 questions.

The questionnaire must be completed in English and returned within 20 working days, or the Home Office may consider the asylum application has been withdrawn.

However, officials say there will be a follow-up notification if no reply is received, and every application will be considered on its own merits.


Asylum backlog


Having previously stressed the importance of in-person interviews, the Home Office is likely to face criticism that the fast-tracking has more to do with the prime minister's promise to cut the asylum backlog, than having rigorous checks for identifying individuals with no right to be in the UK.

Last month, an asylum seeker from Afghanistan was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing a young man outside a Bournemouth takeaway.

It emerged that, before coming to the UK, Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai had been convicted of murder in Serbia and was a fugitive.

The Home Office says all individuals involved in the new process will be checked against criminal databases, and will be subject to security vetting.

The number of asylum seekers waiting for a decision on their case in the UK has soared to record levels - with around 166,000 people in the backlog.

Data published on Thursday show the number of asylum claims in the UK was almost 75,000 in 2022, the highest number for 19 years.

Almost 110,000 people have been waiting for longer than six months for a decision on their case.

More than three-quarters of asylum decisions made in 2022 were in favour of granting asylum - the highest number for more than 30 years.

In December, Mr Sunak pledged to halve the number of people who had been waiting longer than six months for an initial decision on their asylum application. More than 92,000 people have been identified in that group.

But Downing Street's determination to sort out the asylum backlog appears to mean making it simpler for thousands of migrants, some of whom will have arrived in small boats, to get permission to stay in the UK.

The policy may be uncomfortable for Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who portrays herself as tough on those who claim asylum having arrived by an irregular route.

A record 45,756 people successfully reached the UK in small boats last year.

In an interview with GB News on Wednesday, Ms Braverman said: "It's clear that we have an unsustainable situation in towns and cities around our country whereby, because of the overwhelming numbers of people arriving here illegally and our legal duties to accommodate them, we are now having to house them in hotels."

The Home Office intends to double the number of asylum caseworkers this year to help deal with record numbers waiting for a ruling on their request for sanctuary in the UK.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the asylum system was "broken" and there were "obvious risks" to what was being proposed.

Sir Keir said many of the people arriving in the UK were brought by "criminal gangs who are making money out of human misery", adding that Labour would establish a specialist unit within the National Crime Agency to deal with the issue.

The Refugee Council and the British Red Cross have previously urged the government to introduce an accelerated process for asylum seekers from countries with high acceptance rates. Last year, they recommended 40,000 cases from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Syria, Sudan and Iran should be in this category.

The exclusion of Sudanese and Iranian asylum seekers from the list of people offered the Home Office's streamlined process is because the grant rates for those nationalities is slightly lower, although still about 80%.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: "It's damning that the Home Office isn't doing this already, given Labour has been calling for the fast-tracking of cases - including for safe countries like Albania - for months and the UNHCR recommended it two years ago.

"Meanwhile, the asylum backlog has skyrocketed - up by 50% since Rishi Sunak promised to clear it."

She added a Labour government would get return agreements in place so unsuccessful asylum seekers could be safely returned and take stronger action against gangs responsible for dangerous small boat crossings.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
×