Asylum seekers will no longer be allowed to stay permanently in the UK

Ema Alice: The Home Secretary is set to announce a major shake up to immigration policy with plans to only allow asylum seekers to stay in the country temporarily.

Shabana Mahmood will lay out reforms on Monday aimed at making the UK less attractive for illegal immigrants, and make it easier to deport them. Under the planned changes, those granted asylum could be removed if their home countries are deemed safe, with their status subject to regular review.

Currently, refugee status lasts for five years, after which they can then apply for indefinite leave to remain and get on a route to citizenship.

An ally of the Home Secretary said: 'Today, becoming a refugee equals a lifetime of protection in Britain.

'Mahmood will change that, making refugee status temporary and subject to regular review. The moment your home country is safe to return to, you will be removed. 'While this might seem like a small technical shift, this new settlement marks the most significant shift in the treatment of refugees since the Second World War.'

Ms Mahmood is considering adopting similar hardline rules to the centre left Danish government amid fears 'darker forces' could prevail in the UK if she doesn't deal with the spiralling migrant crisis. In a video posted on X on Friday, Ms Mahmood described her plans as 'the most significant changes to our asylum system in modern times' and pointed to rising numbers of asylum claims in Britain while numbers fall across Europe.

She said the previous government had had 'years to tackle this problem' but had 'wasted' time and money on the £700 million Rwanda scheme. But under Labour, she said, there had been 'record levels' of immigration raids and arrests, and that nearly 50,000 people with no right to be in the UK had been returned.

Migrants continued to arrive in the UK after crossing the English Channel on Friday.

Photographs show men, women and children being brought to shore in Dover, with one man sitting at the port in a wheelchair.

Some 39,075 people have arrived in the UK after making the journey so far this year, according to the latest Home Office figures.

The arrivals have already passed the number for the whole of 2024 (36,816) and 2023 (29,437), but the number is still below the total at this point in 2022 (39,929).

Meanwhile, the Government's pilot scheme with France aimed at deterring people from making the dangerous crossing, has removed 113 people to the continent since it was introduced in August, while 92 have arrived in the UK under the deal's approved safe route. Other changes expected to be announced on Monday include requiring judges to prioritise public safety over migrants' rights to a family life, or the risk that they will face 'inhuman' treatment if returned to their home country, the Telegraph has reported. Denmark's tighter rules on family reunions are also being looked at.

Some research has suggested that deterrence policies have little impact on asylum seekers' choice of destination, but a 2017 study said Denmark's 'negative nation branding' had proved effective in limiting asylum applications.

The number of asylum applications in the UK is at a record high, as latest Home Office figures show 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025.

This is the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.

BP/SM