UK Migrant deportation, the Home Office surpasses its goals. Nearly 19,000 Migrant people have now been removed since the government took office.
Since the election, the Home Office has significantly increased immigration enforcement, returning about 19,000 unsuccessful asylum seekers, foreign criminals, and other immigration offenders to nations in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America.
Compared to the same period a year earlier, enforced returns increased by 24%, removals of foreign national offenders increased by 21%, and illegal working raids increased by 38% between July 5, 2024, and January 31, 2025. This is a direct result of redeploying 1,000 staff to work on immigration enforcement and sending a clear signal that those entering the country illegally will be returned quickly.
These numbers, which include the four largest returns charter flights in UK history with a combined passenger count of over 850, reflect the greatest rate of returns observed in the country since 2018.
In an effort to shed more light on this significant task, the Home Office has released pictures of the inner workings of the removals process for the first time.
In order to fulfil the priorities of working people and ultimately bring order back to the asylum system, the government’s success in increasing removals is a crucial component of our Plan for Change. With stronger law enforcement capabilities than ever before, this new strategy aims to disrupt the smuggling gangs’ economic model by swiftly expelling people who are here illegally and putting an end to the gangs’ exploitation of false promises of jobs to sell boat spaces.
Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, stated:
We must demonstrate that the laws are upheld and enforced if we are to restore public trust in the immigration system. To ensure that those who have no right to be here—especially those who have committed crimes in our nation—are removed as soon as possible, we have allocated a substantial amount of additional resources to immigration enforcement and returns as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
I would like to honour all of the Immigration Enforcement employees and other Home Office officials who work diligently every day to ensure that our returns system operates securely, equitably, and quickly.
As part of the Home Office’s routinely released statistics, deportations and returns of foreign national criminals and unsuccessful asylum applicants continue to occur on a regular basis; the precise figures will be verified later this year.
A key component of the government’s systemic efforts to fortify border security in the UK and bring order back to the asylum and immigration system is ramping up returns. Combating illegal work is also essential to this strategy, and this month, Immigration Enforcement raided 828 locations, the most in January for more than five years.
Through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), Immigration Enforcement officers also play a critical role in combating modern slavery and human trafficking during these enforcement operations. The government can fulfil its responsibilities to identify and assist adult victims of human trafficking and modern slavery thanks to this mechanism. When conducting enforcement inspections and referring victims to the NRM for assistance, immigration enforcement agents are trained to recognise the warning indicators of human trafficking and modern slavery.
As part of new, strong legislation to safeguard UK border security, which receives second reading in the House of Commons today, the government will implement new counterterrorism-style powers in the coming months to detect, disrupt, and dismantle people-smuggling networks.
News Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/home-office-smashes-targets-with-mass-surge-in-migrant-removals