THE UNITED KINGDOM’s changes to its asylum system came into force on Monday, the Home Office said. The new rules reduce protections for refugees and their children.
Under the changes, refugee status for adults and their accompanying children will be reviewed every 30 months.
“Refugee status will become temporary and subject to review,” the Home Office said in a statement released late Sunday, adding the changes would take effect on March 2.
After 30 months, “refugees with a continuing need for sanctuary will have their protection renewed, while those whose countries are now deemed safe will be expected to return home”.
The reforms include an exception for unaccompanied minors. They will continue to receive protected status for five years “while the Government considers the appropriate long-term policy for this group”.
The changes were first announced in November. Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said the previous system was too generous compared with other European countries.
“We must also ensure our asylum system is not creating pull factors that draw people on dangerous journeys across the world, fuelling and funding human traffickers,” she said in the Home Office statement.
The tougher approach has been seen as an attempt to address rising support for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party.
Charities and some lawmakers from prime minister Keir Starmer’s Labour party criticised the reforms. They said the changes would uproot refugees who have settled in Britain.
Other proposed measures, including requiring refugees to wait 20 years instead of five before applying for permanent residency, will need parliamentary approval.
The government said it had taken inspiration from Denmark, which has reduced asylum applications to their lowest level in 40 years after tightening immigration rules.
More than 110,000 people claimed asylum in the UK in the year ending September 2025. This was 13 per cent higher than the previous year and seven per cent above the previous peak of 103,081 in 2002, according to a Home Office report released in November.
The top five nationalities of people claiming asylum were Pakistan, Eritrea, Iran, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
Although asylum claims reached a record level, the number of refusals increased. Initial approvals rose slightly in 2025 compared with 2024.
(With inputs from agencies)
- More than 860,000 people must join Making Tax Digital from April 6.
- Those earning above £50,000 from self-employment or property are first in scope.
- Income thresholds will fall to £30,000 and then £20,000 by 2028.
More than 860,000 people will be required to file regular digital updates with HM Revenue & Customs from April 6 as the government presses ahead with its Making Tax Digital programme.
The Making Tax Digital system, often shortened to MTD, is designed to move the UK tax system fully online. From April 6, sole traders and landlords earning more than £50,000 from self-employment or property will have to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC using approved software.
Josh Simons said he had resigned as a minister in the Cabinet Office, which helps deliver the government’s agenda, because he had ‘become a distraction’ from that work.
- First-tier Tribunal backs reduced 5 per cent VAT rate.
- Ruling could lower costs for public EV charging users.
- HMRC reviewing decision and considering next steps.
A UK tax tribunal has ruled that electric vehicle charging on the public network should be subject to 5 per cent VAT, not the 20 per cent currently applied by HM Revenues & Customs. The decision could have significant implications for EV drivers, community charging operators and the wider electric vehicle charging market.
The First-tier Tribunal found that, under existing VAT law, the reduced 5 per cent domestic rate applies where less than 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month is supplied to a person at a particular location. That threshold, often referred to as the “de minimis” provision, has traditionally been used for domestic electricity.
Corbyn said: ‘I am delighted that members have voted for a mass, socialist party that takes the fight to Starmer and Farage. Now, the real work begins.’
