Asylum seekers face repaying £10,000 accommodation costs: ‘Another example of performative cruelty’

People who have received asylum support could be required to repay up to £10,000 before becoming eligible for settled status under new government plans.

Introduced as part of the Immigration and Asylum Bill, if passed, the Home Office will have the power to make those fleeing war and persecution pay back for the support they received, if they have sufficient funds.

The payment will be a flat-rate charge, with those eligible paying off an amount each month above a set threshold, with the primary payment mechanism expected to be through direct payments to the Home Office.

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Migrants seeking settled status will need to pay off the full £10,000 before they can become eligible for settlement. If they choose to leave the UK, they must make their payment before they are able to return.

The home secretary Shabana Mahmood will have the ability to adjust the charge and thresholds.

Mahmood said: “The cost of asylum accommodation for the British taxpayer is too high. We have already reduced asylum costs by £1 billion, but it is also right that we ask those who can contribute to do so.”

Asylum support currently is just £49.18 per week, working out at around £2,557 a year.

“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,” Mahmood added.

The policy aims to reduce the financial burden on taxpayers by bringing in contributions from refugees, but there is a reliance on refugees entering employment and earning enough to meet the repayments.

Around half of asylum seekers aged 16 to 64 granted refugee status between 2015 and 2023 were in employment two years later.

Refugees often struggle to find stability during the 42-day move-on period, after which asylum accommodation and financial support will end.

Evidence suggests that reducing support during the move-on period has previously increased homelessness and put further pressure on local councils.

IPPR analysis of Home Office homelessness data found the number of households leaving asylum accommodation who were owed a homelessness duty by councils more than doubled, rising from 3,450 in July to September 2023 to 7,160 between October and December 2023.

Tim Naor Hilton, chief executive of Refugee Action, said: “This plan is little more than a government shakedown of refugees so it can pay for its own waste and incompetence. Instead of forcing destitute people into debt, ministers must stop paying billions to private housing contractors and lift the ban on work so people who are able can start to rebuild their lives.”

Most asylum seekers are not permitted to work while their claim is being considered, although limited exceptions exist for those who have waited more than 12 months for a decision. They rely financially on weekly asylum support, meaning it is unlikely they will have savings to draw on when they receive settled status.

Among refugees who were in full-time work eight years after being granted refugee status had median annual earnings were around £23,000.

Nick Beales, head of campaigning at Refugee and Migrant Justice, said: “This proposal is yet another example of performative cruelty from the government. Asylum support exists to prevent destitution, as people seeking asylum are banned from working while they wait for a decision on their claim. Saddling newly recognised refugees with debt for receiving support they needed to survive will only make it harder for them to rebuild and get on with their lives.

“If the government genuinely wants to reduce costs, they should grant people seeking asylum the right to work and stop funnelling public money to private companies who profit off this misery and dysfunction.”

Seema Syeda, advocacy and communications director at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, added: “This is yet another shameless attempt by Labour to inflate the coffers of private companies like Serco, Mears and Clearsprings with multi-billion-pound contracts to run asylum accommodation unfit for human habitation. Forcing people seeking safety into debt to pay for it is a new depth of cruelty.

“There’s a simple solution: give asylum seekers the right to rent and the right to work, so they can live in our communities in accommodation they choose, as all human beings deserve to be treated. We’re waiting with bated breath for Andy Burnham [who is widely expected to be the next prime minister] to announce his opposition to these proposals and usher in the ‘change’ that Labour sorely needs.”

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