Refugees will have to live in the UK for 20 years before they can settle permanently, following a sweeping overhaul of the asylum system announced by the Home Office.
The policy is part of Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s most significant shake-up in Britain’s approach to asylum seekers in modern times.
The Labour government under UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been inspired by the hard-line approach taken by Denmark, whose government is led by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, a fellow centre-left politician.
Under the changes, refugees in the UK will become temporary residents and subjected to regular reviews. They will be removed from the country as soon as their home countries are deemed safe, with the wait for permanent settlement quadrupled to 20 years.
The Home Office said that protection for refugees would “now be temporary, regularly reviewed and revoked” if their home country was deemed safe.
“Our system is particularly generous compared to other countries in Europe, where, after five years, you're effectively automatically settled in this country. We will change that,” said Ms Mahmood.
She added that under the changes, a refugee's status would be reviewed every two and a half years, during “a much longer path to permanent settlement in this country of 20 years”.
Ms Mahmood is also expected to make an announcement on Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights on Monday. The government has said that it wants to stay in the ECHR but change how the Article 8 provision, covering the right to a family life, is interpreted.
Other measures announced by the Home Office include a ban on visas from three African countries – Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo – if they do not co-operate more on the removal of illegal migrants.
Ms Mahmood is also reported to be considering requiring some asylum seekers to contribute to the cost shouldered by the UK of supporting them, perhaps even emulating Denmark’s “jewellery law” that allows officials to confiscate refugees’ valuables.
Mr Starmer said the UK will continue to welcome refugees fleeing persecution. “But we must also address the pull factors driving dangerous and illegal small boats crossings,” he said. “There will be no golden ticket to settling in the UK – people will have to earn it.”
Many opinion polls suggest the asylum system has overtaken the economy as British voters' top concern. Over the summer, protests took place outside hotels housing asylum seekers at public expense.
The Labour government’s new approach comes in response to the steady stream of asylum seekers continuing to cross the English Channel in small boats.
A total of 109,343 people claimed asylum in the UK in the year ending March 2025, a 17 per cent rise on the previous year and 6 per cent above the 2002 peak of 103,081.
Until now, the UK has been pursuing a policy of attempting to “smash the gangs” of people smugglers. But without any apparent impact on numbers, the country now appears to have pivoted towards deterring refugees from attempting to make the crossing.
The Home Office said Denmark's more restrictive policy had reduced asylum claims to a 40-year low and resulted in the deportation of 95 per cent of rejected applicants.
The new measures are also being regarded as a response to the growing popularity of the right-wing populist Reform UK party, which now leads the polls after pledging mass deportations and dramatic changes to the immigration and asylum systems.
New safe and legal routes to the UK will be introduced as a way to cut dangerous journeys in small boats across the English Channel.
Local communities will be able to sponsor individual refugees in a model similar to the Homes for Ukraine scheme, under which people hosted Ukrainian people in their homes.
Refugee Council chief executive Enver Solomon described the government's plans as “harsh and unnecessary” and claimed they “won't deter people who have been persecuted, tortured or seen family members killed in brutal wars”.
“Instead, they are more likely to force them into destitution and sleeping rough on the streets,” he said.
