Official Statistics

Factsheet: Small boat crossings since July 2022

Published 2 November 2022

The United Kingdom has a long history of supporting those in need of protection and our immigration system gives us the flexibility and power to establish safe and legal routes to do so. This has included providing protection to more than 330,000 people over the last few years – including those fleeing Putin’s war in Ukraine, refugees from Afghanistan and our British Nationals Overseas Hong Kong route.

But small boat crossings in the Channel, driven both by a global migration crisis and organised crime, have been growing and are causing an unprecedented strain on the asylum system. As reported to the Home Affairs Select Committee on the 26 October 2022 – up to that point this year 38,000 people have arrived in the UK by small boat.

A comprehensive statistical report on the number of small boat arrivals will be published by the Home Office on 24th November 2022 (see link at the end of this factsheet). However, we are here providing an early update to explain some of the data that is already being reported publicly.

1. The make-up of people crossing on small boats has been changing

The make-up of people on small boats has been changing. From January 2018 to June 2022, Iranian (28%) and Iraqi (20%) nationals represented nearly half of all small boat arrivals. In the first six months of 2022, over half (51%) of small boat arrivals were from three nationalities – Albanian (18%), Afghan (18%) and Iranian (15%).

However, since May 2022, there has been a significant increase in the number of Albanians crossing the channel on small boats. From May to September 2022 Albanian nationals alone comprised 42% of small boat crossings, with 11,102 Albanians arriving by small boat in those five months. In contrast, over the whole of 2021 there were a total of 815 Albanian nationals who arrived by this method. In some weeks over the summer, more than half of small boat arrivals claimed to be Albanian.

2. Asylum claims by Albanian nationals

Small boat crossings are dangerous and unnecessary for Albanians. Albania is considered a safe country and the country is listed as a designated state under section 94 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. This means that, ‘there is, in general in that state or part of it no serious risk of persecution of persons entitled to reside in that state or part of it.’ More information on this policy can be found in the Albania country guidance.

Nonetheless, this year, 7,627 Albanians (year-ending June 2022) claimed asylum in the UK, more than double the number in the preceding year (3,578).

Every asylum application is considered on its own merits, and the prospect of being granted protection will vary according to a range of factors including the risk and vulnerability of an individual asylum seeker. It is important to note that not all asylum seekers come to the UK via small boat, although at present a majority do.

Although very few of the recent small boat arrivals will have had their asylum application considered at this point, we know that Albanians more generally had been less likely to be granted asylum than other nationalities with the current grant rate 53% compared to 76% for all nationalities.

However, the published grant rates do not relate to the Albanians arriving on small boats this year, as almost all of these individuals will still be awaiting a decision on their claim and their resulting grant rate could be substantially different.

The grant rate also varies significantly when broken down by gender. Only 14% of Albanian adult males whose cases were concluded in the latest year were granted protection, whereas for children and female Albanian asylum seekers the grant rate is currently 90% – making the average grant rate for those whose cases are being concluded higher overall.

Most Albanians crossing the Channel in small boats are male – for example, from 2018 to June 2022, 95% of Albanian small boat arrivals were male. This is a significantly different gender balance than those asylum cases concluded by the Asylum system at present, who in general will have been in the UK for some time. Over the same period (2018 to June 2022), only 35% of those Albanian nationals whose cases were decided and who were granted protection were male.

3. Action the government is taking to stop small boat crossings from Albania

The UK Government and the Albanian Government are working together to tackle this problem with the two countries seeking to expedite removal of Albanians who arrive in the UK by small boat. A new readmissions agreement was signed with Albania for this purpose in 2021.

The Albanian government have also provided senior law enforcement support to the UK to provide UK authorities with vital intelligence and to support the processing of arrivals.

Further information on the collaboration between the UK and Albania is available on gov.uk.

Those coming from Albania – a safe and prosperous country – are travelling through multiple countries to make the journey to the UK. Following the passing of the Nationality and Borders Act, asylum claims may be inadmissible if someone travels through a safe third country before reaching the UK. Guidance on the new rules regarding inadmissibility is published by the Home Office.

4. Further information

Daily numbers of small boat arrivals are published by the government.

The Home Office publishes quarterly statistics on irregular migration to the UK. The next update of these statistics will be published on 24th November 2022.