Migrants on sex offenders register to be blocked from claiming asylum in UK under law change
Anyone convicted of a crime in the UK which places them on the sex offenders register, regardless of the length of their sentence, will be denied refugee status under new plans
Sophie Huskisson Political Correspondent
22:30, 28 Apr 2025
Migrants convicted of sexual offences will be unable to claim asylum in the UK under a change in the law(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Migrants convicted of sexual offences will be unable to claim asylum in the UK under a change in the law.
Under the Refugee Convention, countries can refuse asylum to some people such as war criminals or terrorists. Those who have committed a “particularly serious crime” – defined in the UK as a criminal handed a jail sentence of one year or more – are also excluded from refugee protections.
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Ministers are seeking to update this so that anyone convicted of a crime in the UK which places them on the sex offenders register, regardless of the length of their sentence, will be denied refugee status. Overseas sex offence convictions will also be taken into account although this is dependent on the country the crime was committed in.
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It comes after Abdul Ezedi, a convicted sex offender, was granted asylum in the UK and later went on to attack a woman and two children with an alkali on a street in south London last year. The Home Office’s new measure, which will be introduced in an amendment to the Government’s Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill currently going through Parliament, would have made it easier to deport Ezedi due to his convictions.READ MORE: Clapham chemical attacker Abdul Ezedi ‘took own life within hours of dousing ex and kids’
Chemical attacker Abdul Ezedi drowned in the River Thames after attacking a woman and two girls(Image: Metropolitan Police / SWNS)
The amendment will also set a 24-week target for tribunals to decide on appeals of those living in asylum seeker supported accommodation, or who are foreign national offenders. It is hoped that the target for first-tier immigration tribunals will help to cut the asylum backlog and reduce the number of people living in hotels while awaiting for a decision.
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Artificial intelligence will be used to support case workers processing asylum claims, which could save staff up to an hour per case.
The Home Office has also announced plans to crack down on bogus immigration lawyers within the legislation. Individuals who are not properly registered could now face fines of up to £15,000 by the Immigration Advice Authority.
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Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Sex offenders who pose a risk to the community should not be allowed to benefit from refugee protections in the UK. We are strengthening the law to ensure these appalling crimes are taken seriously.
“Nor should asylum seekers be stuck in hotels at the taxpayers’ expense during lengthy legal battles. That is why we are changing the law to help clear the backlog, end the use of asylum hotels and save billions of pounds for the taxpayer.”
Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said: “We are determined to achieve our mission of halving violence against women and girls in a decade. That’s exactly why we are taking action to ensure there are robust safeguards across the system, including by clamping down on foreign criminals who commit heinous crimes like sex offences. It is right we ensure that convicted, registered sex offenders are not entitled to refugee status.”
