The Home Office has apologised after a number of asylum seekers were wrongly told they had been granted leave to remain in the UK, only for the decisions to be retracted. In some cases, applicants received biometric residence permits and were later instructed to cut them up.
Charities reported multiple instances where individuals celebrated their asylum approval, only to be informed days or weeks later that a technical fault had caused the error. One asylum seeker described receiving a letter confirming refugee status and five years' permission to stay, only to later receive a second letter stating the grant was incorrect due to a system fault. He was asked to destroy the residence permit and send photographic evidence to a PO box in Bristol.
In another case, an Iranian couple was told by a Home Office contractor that they had been granted leave to remain, but two days later received a call saying it was a mistake and their case had been rejected. Two months later, they were again granted asylum, leaving them distrustful of the process. A third case involved a woman evicted from hotel accommodation after being told she had leave to remain, despite not receiving a formal grant letter.
Lou Calvey, director of Asylum Matters, described the situation as 'sheer torment' and criticised the chaos in government processing. A Home Office spokesperson apologised for any distress caused and pledged to improve decision-making accuracy.
