Asylum applications hit new high while backlog falls

The number of asylum applications in the UK has hit a new high, though the backlog of cases waiting for a decision has fallen to its lowest level since 2021.

A total of 109,343 people applied for asylum in the year to March 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.

The number is up 17% from 93,150 in the year ending March 2024, according to figures published by the Home Office.

The previous record was 108,138 in the 12 months to December 2024.

Migrants who arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel in small boats accounted for 33% of the total number of people claiming asylum in the year to March.

Pakistani was the most common nationality among asylum applicants in 2024/25, accounting for 11,048 people or 10.1% of the total.

This is up from 7,003 in 2023/24, when it was the third most common nationality (7.5% of the total).

Afghan was the second most common nationality among people claiming asylum in the year to March (8,069 people, 7.4% of the total), down from 9,738 (10.5%) in 2023/24 when it was the most common nationality.

Along with Pakistan, the largest increase in asylum claims in 2024/25 came from Syrian nationals, which stood at 6,175 (5.6% of the total), up from 4,232 (4.5%) in 2023/24.

The figures also show there were 109,536 people waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of March 2025.

This is down 12% from 124,802 at the end of December 2024 and is the lowest number since December 2021.

The total peaked at 175,457 at the end of June 2023, which was the highest figure since current records began in 2010.

The number of people waiting more than six months for an initial decision stood at 67,373 at the end of March, down from 73,866 at the end of December and well below the recent peak of 139,961 in June 2023.

Separate figures published by the Home Office on Thursday show the number of quarterly enforced returns of people who do not have a right to stay in the UK fell slightly from 2,365 in October-December 2024 to 2,312 in January-March 2025.

Both of these figures are higher than for any other quarter since 2018.

The Home Office is responsible for returning people to their country of origin if they do not have a legal right to remain in the UK.

There are three types of returns: enforced returns, which are carried out directly by the Home Office; voluntary returns, who are people who were facing deportation but left of their own accord, sometimes with support from the Home Office; and port returns, who are people refused entry to the UK and who have subsequently departed.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “We have substantially increased immigration enforcement, taking strong action to return more foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers who have no right to be in the UK.

“The work of Immigration Enforcement teams to substantially increase illegal working raids, returns and deportations is an important part of strengthening our border security.

“As part of the Immigration White Paper reforms, we will strengthen the rules so that more foreign national offenders can be returned.”

There were 482 enforced and voluntary returns in the three months to March of migrants who arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel in small boats.

This is down from 558 in the previous quarter.

Some 2,240 migrants who arrived in small boats were returned during the year to March, down from 2,316 in the previous 12 months.

Of the 2,240 returns in 2024/25, 80% were Albanian nationals, a similar proportion to 2023/24 (88%).

There were 5,154 returns of foreign national offenders in the year to March, the highest for any 12-month period since the year ending June 2019.