Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced plans requiring asylum seekers to pay up to £10,000 towards their accommodation and support before they can qualify for settled status in the UK. The repayment must be made in full for individuals to obtain Indefinite Leave to Remain, a crucial step for permanent residency. Eligible adults earning above a set income threshold will make monthly payments, modeled on the student loan repayment system.
Government Spending and Costs
The government reported spending £4 billion on accommodation and support for asylum seekers in 2025. Home Office estimates detail the average cost per person per night as £23.25 in dispersal accommodation and £144 in hotels, with weekly subsistence payments ranging from £9.95 to £49.18 per person. Mahmood stated the cost is “too high,” adding, “We have already reduced asylum costs by £1 billion, but it is also right that we ask those who can contribute to do so.” She emphasized, “Receiving asylum support is a right, but it is also a responsibility. Once people can contribute and repay the generosity of the British people, we expect them to do so.”
Repayment Details and Adjustments
Asylum seekers are expected to pay a total of around £10,000, but the Home Secretary will be able to adjust the amount, the Home Office said. Those liable for the cost who leave the UK will be required to pay in full if they wish to return at a future date. The powers needed to recover the costs will be set out in the Immigration and Asylum Bill, which is to be introduced to Parliament on Tuesday.
Expert Analysis and Criticism
Dr Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, noted that only a relatively small share of people granted asylum would likely earn enough to contribute. She warned the scheme could discourage asylum seekers from working after gaining refugee status to avoid the cost. “The data suggests that unless thresholds were significantly below the minimum wage, a relatively small share of people granted asylum would earn enough to make contributions to the scheme,” she said. “The impact of the scheme on public finances is likely to be relatively small, because it is a means-tested payment for a very low-income population.” Sumption added that the flat-rate £10,000 repayment may not reflect actual costs, which vary widely: “For example, the cost of supporting a person who waits for a year in a hotel would be over £50,000, while the cost for someone in much cheaper HMO accommodation who only waits six months would be under £6,000.”
Zoe Dexter from the Helen Bamber Foundation charity called the plan “more performative cruelty from the Government.” She said, “Charging refugees around £10,000 once they finally find work is the opposite of integration. These are people who have fled persecution and extreme violence, often arriving with nothing... Burdening them with debt just as they begin rebuilding their lives is grossly unjust and entirely self-defeating.” Imran Hussain of the Refugee Council added, “Imposing what amounts to an extra tax on refugees... is unfair, impractical and make it much harder for families to rebuild their lives and stand on their own feet.”
Political Reactions
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said, “It is flattering that Labour have adopted yet another policy put forward by the Conservative Party. This precise scheme was proposed by us in an amendment to the Immigration Bill last year, which Labour blocked.” The Home Office also revealed plans to use more former military barracks to house thousands of asylum seekers, aiming to close all asylum hotels by the next election. The number of people in hotels has fallen to its lowest level since data was first reported in 2022. Other reforms to be laid out on Tuesday include creating a “single route” preventing migrants from appealing rejected claims and bringing further claims before removal.
