It is a fact that most asylum seekers arriving in the UK are men. In 2022, of the 89,398 people who applied for asylum in the UK, two thirds were males aged 18 to 49. But that fact, brandished by right-wing politicians, commentators and journalists as proof that the UK needs a more restrictive policy on refugees, is in reality evidence of the inherent dangers of our broken asylum system.
Gender should not dictate your right to safety. No human being is illegal, and seeking asylum is a human right. This International Men's Day, we're breaking down the myths around male asylum seekers, and exploring why the UK's asylum system is unfit for purpose.
How many people seek asylum in the UK?
Firstly, asylum seekers do not migrate by choice. They flee persecution and life-threatening situations, seeking safety and protection. There is an oft-quoted line from Somali-British writer Warsan Shire on seeking asylum - she says that no one puts their child in a boat unless the water is safer than the land. And no one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark.
Official statistics support this. The total number of asylum seekers in the UK is lower than many believe, and the vast majority of applications for protection are granted as people are found to be in genuine need.
- In the year ending June 2023, 71% of asylum applicants were granted protection in the UK.
- In the same period, 44,460 people arrived by small boats - which accounts for just 3.7% of the total 1.2 million people who immigrated to the UK during that year.
- Since 2018, over 90% of small boat arrivals in the UK have sought asylum, and approximately 75% of their claims have been approved.
- Of the top 10 nationalities applying for asylum, half have a grant rate above 80% (Afghanistan 98%, Syria 99%, Eritrea 99%, Sudan 99% and Iran 84%).
Just 1% of the refugees who have been displaced across the world make the UK their home. They make up around 0.6% of the UK population. And, based on the number of asylum applications per capita, the UK currently ranks 20th in Europe.
How do you seek asylum in the UK?
There are very few safe routes for refugees to travel to the UK, and the existing pathways are extremely restricted by nationality and number. These include:
- Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme
- Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) Immigration Route
- Ukraine schemes (e.g. Homes for Ukraine)
For those ineligible for such schemes - or unable to access them, due to lost documents, or fears of persecution - the options are incredibly limited. People seeking asylum in the UK must first be physically in the country to make a claim. There's no specific asylum visa available which allows someone to enter regularly to access this legal right.
Under the Refugee Convention, it is lawful to travel to the UK irregularly to seek protection. Earlier this year, Keir Starmer's government introduced legislation to undo some of the most damaging aspects of the Conservative government's Illegal Migration Act, which sought to criminalise seeking asylum through irregular routes (arguably in contravention of international law).
Why is there a higher proportion of male asylum seekers?
In many countries, societal expectations of men - such as being the breadwinner, or joining the army - make them a target in times of political and social unrest; but these traits also make them more likely to risk the dangers of unsafe routes, such as small boat crossings. As a result, more men make these initial journeys to the UK than women or children (although 17% of asylum applications in 2023 were from children aged 17 and under). Following grants of asylum, many young male refugees will go on to be joined by female partners through family reunion. According to the Migration Observatory, from 2012 to 2023, 81% of adults receiving refugee family reunion visas were women.
Are women more likely to be granted asylum in the UK than men?
Someone's gender does not generally dictate whether their asylum application is successful. According to 2023 data, asylum success rates at initial decisions were very similar for men and women in all age groups except the over-70s. For example, for those aged 18-29, 70% of men were granted asylum or another legal status, compared to 68% of women. After accounting for family reunion, the gender balance of those granted protection becomes increasingly even over time.
Is life hard for male asylum seekers and refugees in the UK?
A 2016 study of young migrant men from seven European countries (the UK, France, Ireland, Germany, Czech Republic, Finland and Italy) found that they often feel like "second-class citizens", especially due to their experiences of racism and discrimination. Eight years later, little has changed. The demonisation of male asylum seekers in the UK media and by rightwing politicians has stoked tensions to such an extent that during the summer, following the spread of disinformation around the Southport attack on social media, rioters targeted and set fire to hotels housing asylum seekers.
In addition, the majority of asylum seekers are left almost penniless while they await a decision on their application, which can take months or even years. Of the 175,000 people awaiting an initial decision from the Home Office as of June 2023, 80% had been waiting for more than six months; although a drive from the new government to reduce the backlog of applications has started to reduce this.
Most asylum seekers aren't allowed to work while they wait for a decision. During this period, they are entitled to support payments and housing, but these payments have fallen dramatically in real terms. The daily rate paid to a single adult in 2000, £5.22, bought goods and services that would today cost £9 - but the payment level in 2023 was just £6.77, a 29% decrease in real terms.
How can asylum seekers be better supported in the UK?
When allowed to contribute, refugees are of significant benefit to the UK fiscally, culturally and socially, and immigration in general is a major boon to our economy. Contrary to public misconceptions that migrants are a net drain on the system, a study by Oxford Economics found immigrants contributed £78,000 more on average to the public purse than they took out in their lifetime.
For refugees and asylum seekers specifically, there are numerous opportunities the Government could take to better support them, which in turn would benefit the UK economy and Labour's growth agenda. A report from the Commission on the Integration of Refugees found that the UK economy could receive net benefits of £1.2 billion in five years, if employment support and English-language training for refugees were quickly implemented. With clear, targeted interventions that specifically support refugees and asylum seekers into work, immigration costs could be outweighed by positive outcomes in just three years.
The campaign group Care4Calais say, in a document on their website, "the young men you see on these boats are doing their best to protect their families. Their mothers, grandmothers, sisters, babies, daughters. How often does a father say they'd die for their daughter, and a husband say they'd die for their wife? Well, these guys are putting it into practice". This International Men's Day, it's time to recognise male asylum seekers as equally deserving of protection as women and children. Every human deserves equal access to human rights. And no asylum seeker is illegal, no matter their gender.