Official Statistics

Additional statistics relating to Illegal Migration (to end November 2023)

Updated 26 April 2024

This data is derived from internal operational MI (Management Information) unless otherwise indicated.

A selection of statistics from Home Office operational systems relating to the Illegal Migration Act were initially published on 24 April 2023 to support parliamentary debates on the Act and have been subsequently updated on a number of occasions, most recently to include data to the end of November 2023.

Statistics on the number of migrants detected crossing the English Channel in small boats are updated daily by the Home Office and published on GOV.UK. Summary statistics up to the end of November are included in the latest tables, and a comprehensive statistical report on small boats and irregular migration is published each quarter alongside the Home Office Immigration System Statistics.

Methods of irregular entry to the UK can be unsafe, dangerous and leave migrants open to exploitation by organised crime groups. The Home Office is committed to tackling organised immigration crime. Since the start of the year (1 January 2023) Immigration Enforcement have arrested over 230 persons for people smuggling into the UK, and convicted over 110, leading to over 160 years in sentences.

In addition, in 2022, 1,110 small boats arrived in the UK and a total of 109 small boat pilots were arrested. Between 1 January and 29 November 2023, 575 small boats have arrived, and a further 80 small boat pilots have been arrested.

Based upon information provided by French authorities, French interception rates of small boats have increased year on year (when comparing 2023 to 2022). Overall numbers of small boat arrivals are down by a third in 2023 compared to the same period last year.

The Home Office undertook 608 Organised Crime Group disruption activities between 1 November 2022 and 31 October 2023, compared to 540 between 1 November 2021 and 31 October 2022. These numbers will not include additional work aimed at organised crime groups by the National Crime Agency (NCA)

Further details on the work of the National Crime Agency can be found in the National Crime Agency - Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023.

On 30 November 2023 the Home Office employed 2,236 effective decision-making FTE staff^{[footnote 1]} and made 17,650 initial decisions between 1 to 30 November 2023. This equates to an average of 7.89 initial decisions completed per caseworker, per month. From October 2022 to December 2022 there were 3,677 (cumulative^{[footnote 2]}) Asylum caseworking staff (Full-Time Equivalent) employed, who made 9,650 initial decisions between 1 October 2022 to 31 December 2022. This equates to an average of 2.62 initial decisions completed per caseworker, per month.

Official Statistics on the Afghan bridging hotel exit operational data, as of 31 August 2023, were updated on 23 November 2023.

Based on provisional Internal MI, the number of hotels has decreased from 398 on 22 October 2023, to 379 at the end of November 2023.

Based on published data, the volume of Afghans accommodated in hotels has decreased from 8,799 in bridging hotels at the end of March 2023, to 1,683 in interim hotel accommodation at the end of September 2023.

The accommodated Asylum population (Hotel Population) on 30 September 2023 was 56,042. Provisional Home Office MI shows that the volume of Asylum applicants in hotels has also decreased further between the end of September and end of November 2023.

Based on Home Office MI, the volume of substantive decisions on asylum cases made between January and November 2023 was 65,252. This is the highest volume of substantive decisions on asylum cases made since 2002^{[footnote 3]}. Please note that the figures using Home Office MI may contain other decision types and outcomes that are not included in the published statistics. Please see data table Asy_D02 of the immigration system statistics data tables for further details.

The above data has been extracted from live operational databases and therefore may differ from data published elsewhere. The next update of the quarterly Home Office Immigration system statistics will be published on 29 February 2024.

Following the resumption of the immigration banking measures in April, banks and building societies have been notified of their duty to close the accounts of over 7,600 individuals.

Between 13 December 2022 and the end of November 2023 there have been around 3,100 enforcement visits relating to Albanian Nationals.

1. Sum of Asylum caseworking staff (FTE) and AO staff (FTE), less the interview only staff (FTE). ↩

2. Cumulative Asylum caseworking staff from 1,175 employed end October 2022, 1,265 employed end November 2022, 1,237 employed end December 2022. ↩

3. Main applications/grants and refusals only, comparing January to November 2023 to full calendar year in Immigration system statistics data tables: ASY_D02. ↩