Islamabad, March 8 – Pakistan is facing renewed scrutiny as questions are being raised about the low number of deportations, following the UK's decision to ban visas for certain nations with high asylum cases, local media reported.
This development comes days after the UK implemented an "emergency brake" on visas for people from four nations following an increase in asylum claims through legal channels. The UK Home Office will also end sponsored study visas for people from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, as well as skilled worker visas for Afghans, according to Dawn, Pakistan's leading daily.
When asked why Pakistan had not been targeted by proposed visa restrictions, given that the nation accounted for the largest share of people who entered Britain on legal visas and subsequently applied for asylum, UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood stated: "This is not the end of the action we will take."
"This is the beginning, not the end, of the action we will take in this area," she added.
However, Mahmood declined to comment on whether discussions were ongoing with other nations about potential visa restrictions.
Sources on both the Pakistani and UK government sides stated that while Islamabad was cooperating with British authorities on the repatriation of rejected asylum seekers, the number of Pakistanis on student visas who subsequently applied for asylum was very high, Dawn reported.
According to official figures, Pakistani nationals account for the largest group seeking asylum in the UK, representing approximately one in 10 applications. In 2024, 10,638 Pakistanis applied for asylum, nearly double the total recorded in 2023, and higher than the number of applicants from Eritrea, Iran, and Afghanistan. Initially, many applicants travel to the UK through legal routes, including student, work, or visitor visas. However, they later make asylum claims.
According to government data, over 70 per cent of Pakistani asylum claims are rejected. Although the refusal rate is high, only a small number of unsuccessful applicants are sent back. According to UK Home Office statistics, 10,853 Pakistani asylum claims were refused in 2024; however, only 445 people were deported to Pakistan during the same period, which represents approximately 4.1 per cent of rejected applicants.
