UK Deportation System Under Fire After Startling New Figures of Failed Asylum Seekers Still in the UK Are Exposed

More than 100,000 people whose asylum claims were rejected are believed to still be living in the UK because they have not been deported, according to figures uncovered by the Daily Express.

The numbers have raised fresh questions about how effectively the UK’s immigration system is working and whether governments have done enough to remove people who no longer have a legal right to remain in the country.

Official Home Office records show that 108,022 people who were refused asylum between 2010 and 2024 had not been recorded as being removed from the UK. This figure includes people whose original asylum applications were rejected as well as those who appealed the decisions but were unsuccessful.

The data suggests that some failed asylum seekers have remained in Britain for many years after losing their cases. Around 2,000 people who first applied for asylum in 2010 are still believed to be in the country. More than 26,000 people whose claims were rejected have been in the UK for at least ten years.

Many of the people included in the figures were refused asylum more recently, particularly during 2023 and 2024. However, the large number of long-term unresolved cases has added to concerns about a growing deportation backlog.

The Home Office disputed the interpretation of the figures and said they should not be viewed as a confirmed count of failed asylum seekers still living in Britain. Officials explained that the records only show people who have not been officially recorded as leaving the country. Some may have left voluntarily without informing authorities, while others may have later received permission to remain in the UK through different immigration routes.

Even so, critics argue that the figures highlight serious weaknesses in the immigration system.

Reform UK’s chairman, Zia Yusuf, said successive governments had failed to deal with the issue and allowed thousands of people with no legal right to remain in Britain to stay for years. He argued that people whose asylum claims have been rejected should be detained and removed more quickly.

Meanwhile, Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp described the situation as a failure of immigration enforcement. He said it undermines public confidence in immigration laws when people who have exhausted all legal appeals are still able to remain in the country.

Mr Philp also repeated Conservative calls to leave the European Convention on Human Rights and withdraw from certain international agreements that critics believe make deportations more difficult.

Analysis carried out by the Daily Express alongside researchers from the Migration Observatory found that the number of failed asylum seekers being removed has fallen significantly over the years.

For example, among people who first claimed asylum in 2010, around one in four had still not been removed by March 2026. Of the 7,753 people whose asylum claims from that year were rejected, only 5,588 had been removed.

The rate of removals also dropped sharply over time. In 2012, around 67% of failed asylum seekers were returned. By 2018, that figure had fallen to just 33%.

Researchers estimate that nearly 27,000 failed asylum seekers who first applied between 2010 and 2016 had not been removed by the end of the study period. When applications from 2017 to 2020 are included, the number rises to almost 44,000.

Experts say deportation delays can create additional legal complications. The longer someone remains in the UK, the more likely they are to build family ties, enter relationships, or have children. These circumstances can strengthen legal arguments against deportation under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects the right to family life.

The challenge has become even greater in recent years because of record numbers of asylum claims. In 2024 alone, more than 82,000 asylum applications were made. After appeals were considered, nearly 35,000 people had their claims refused. Yet only around 4,300 people were removed.

The immigration system has also been placed under pressure by increasing numbers of people arriving through different routes before claiming asylum. Almost 39,000 people applied for asylum after crossing the English Channel in small boats, while more than 36,000 applied after entering the country legally on work, study, or visitor visas.

Among those applying after arriving on visas, more than 10,000 had entered on student visas, nearly 14,000 on work visas, and more than 7,000 on visitor visas.

People from Pakistan accounted for one of the largest groups of asylum applicants, with more than 9,400 claims. Meanwhile, Afghans, Eritreans, Iranians, Sudanese, and Somalis continue to make up a large proportion of small-boat arrivals.

The Government says it is already increasing enforcement efforts and has pointed to record numbers of immigration raids, arrests, and removals. Ministers have promised further reforms aimed at speeding up the asylum appeals process and making it easier to remove people whose claims have been rejected.

One proposal would replace parts of the current appeals system with a streamlined process involving a single appeal reviewed by a professionally trained adjudicator. Officials believe this could reduce delays and help clear the growing backlog.

However, deporting people to certain countries remains extremely difficult. Data shows that more than 96,000 asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and Eritrea arrived in small boats between 2018 and 2025. Yet only 495 people from those countries were returned during that period, representing just 0.5% of arrivals.

The Home Office insists that enforcement activity is at its highest level on record. Officials say nearly 70,000 illegal migrants and foreign criminals have been removed since the current Government took office, a significant increase compared with previous years.

Despite those efforts, the figures have reignited debate over whether Britain’s asylum and immigration system is capable of dealing with the growing number of failed claims and whether more needs to be done to ensure people who no longer have a legal right to stay are either removed or their status is resolved more quickly.