UK pauses family migration for refugees ahead of asylum overhaul

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced she is temporarily suspending all applications to bring family members to the UK under the asylum system until new, tighter rules are introduced.

Cooper said on Monday, as MPs returned to Westminster for the first time since July, that this means refugees will be subject to “the same family migration rules and conditions as everyone else".

New applications to the existing refugee family reunion route will be suspended this week, she said.

The move comes ahead of more comprehensive reforms to the family reunion route, which will be outlined in an asylum statement later this year and implemented by spring.

The home secretary said the suspension comes as ministers seek to address the “immediate pressures” on local authorities and the “risks” of smuggling gangs using family reunion as an incentive for people to make the dangerous journey across the Channel.

She added: “We continue to believe that families staying together is important, and it’s why we will seek to prioritize family groups among the applicants to come to Britain under our new deal with France.

“But reforms are needed. So, with our asylum policy statement later this year, we will set out a new system for family migration, including looking at contribution requirements, longer periods before newly granted refugees can apply, and dedicated controlled arrangements for unaccompanied children and for those fleeing persecution who have family in the UK.”

Cooper also told the Commons that following the deal signed with France, the first returns of migrants crossing the Channel will begin later this month.

The “one in, one out” pilot scheme has been agreed for the UK to send back migrants to France who crossed the Channel, in exchange for those who apply and are approved to come to the UK.

Cooper added: “Applications have also been opened for the reciprocal legal route, with the first cases under consideration subject to strict security checks.

“We’ve made clear this is a pilot scheme, but the more we prove the concept at the outset, the better we will be able to develop and grow it.”

She also vowed that the government will overhaul the “broken” asylum system and will help end the use of asylum hotels, which have sparked  widespread protests over the summer.

Sir Keir Starmer insisted on Monday that he wants to speed up efforts to empty asylum hotels before the next election.

His official spokesperson said he wants to close asylum hotels "as quickly as possible," but did not give a specific deadline.

Asked if there is a specific date, the spokesperson said: “The prime minister has spoken about this earlier in his interviews, talked about the fact that he wants to close these hotels as quickly as possible, and the way to do that is to work through the backlog.”

The government has committed to emptying all hotels currently housing migrants by the end of the Parliament, which could be as late as 2029, but the prime minister suggested he wanted to “bring that forward” without committing to a date.

Last week, a temporary injunction that blocked asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel in Epping was overturned at the Court of Appeal.

Epping Forest District Council, which sought out the injunction, is considering taking the case to the Supreme Court.

The Court of Appeal is expected to hand down its full written judgment in the Bell Hotel case on Monday.

Protests continued in Epping on Sunday night, with three people arrested by police.

Cooper also chimed in on government efforts to close asylum hotels, saying it is reconfiguring sites, tightening the test for accommodation, and working “at pace” to find more suitable housing, while also addressing the backlog.

She told MPs: “Let me turn next to the action we’re taking to ensure that every asylum hotel will be closed for good under this Government, not just by shifting individuals from hotels to other sites, but by driving down the numbers in supported accommodation overall.

“And not in a chaotic way through piecemeal court judgments, but through a controlled, managed and orderly program, driving down inflow into the asylum system, clearing the appeals backlog, which is crucial, and continuing to increase returns."

Cooper also highlighted the record success in tackling people smugglers, saying the government’s pledge to “smash the gangs” behind English Channel crossings is showing results by stopping arrivals before they happen.

To support her claim, she said the National Crime Agency (NCA) carried out 347 disruptions of immigration crime networks in 2024/25 - a record high and a 40% rise on the previous 12 months.

This included 56 of the highest-impact disruptions, while NCA-backed operations in Europe have targeted the supply of boats and engines bound for the French coast, seizing 45 dinghies at the Bulgarian border in July and August.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp dismissed Cooper’s intervention as a “desperate distraction tactic”.

He said: “The simple fact is this year so far has been the worst in history with 29,000 illegal immigrants crossing the channel.”