Paul Morrison CBE
Biography
Paul Morrison took up the role of Director General for Visas, Passports, Citizenship and Resettlement Services at the Home Office on 12 January 2026.
Paul had previously served as Chief Executive of the Planning Inspectorate from December 2022.
He began his civil service career in 1996 as an administrative officer in the Home Office and has since held a range of operational and policy roles across several government departments, including the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Home Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), and the Northern Ireland Office.
His previous roles include:
- Director of Planning Transformation, MHCLG – responsible for the government’s programme to digitalise the planning system, reform legislation, and introduce new-style local plans and citizen engagement.
- Director, Ukraine Humanitarian Task Force – created and delivered the UK’s operational response to support Ukrainians displaced by the conflict, enabling them to find safety in the UK.
- Director, Resettlement, Asylum Support, and Integration – established a new multi-departmental directorate (across the Home Office, MHCLG and DfID) combining operations and policy. Key achievements included resettling 23,000 refugees in the UK by 2020.
- Head of In-country Migration Casework, UK Visas and Immigration, Home Office – oversaw a 3,500-strong operation serving around 600,000 customers annually. Responsible for processing applications for student, work and family visa extensions, permanent settlement, and British citizenship.
- Head of Counter Terrorism, Foreign and Commonwealth Office – led the FCO’s largest thematic policy department, shaping international counter-terrorism strategy.
- Director, Prevent, Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism (OSCT), Home Office – served as the first Senior Civil Service director for Prevent across government. Developed the UK’s first cross-government strategy to prevent terrorism and violent extremism and built a delivery infrastructure across the UK and internationally.
Director General for Visas, Passports, Citizenship and Resettlement Services
Visas, Passports and Citizenship Services
Home Office, HM Passport Office, and UK Visas and Immigration
Previous roles in government
-
Chief Executive, Planning Inspectorate