From time to time the Home Office announces that removals of refused asylum applicants to particular countries are suspended. This is rare and there are no such concessions currently in force. The only one in the last ten years was in relation to Zimbabwe,[1] but this is no longer in force.[2] When there is such a concession in force, refused asylum applicants from that country become eligible to apply for a specific form of support, known as “Section 4 support” and which covers accommodation and non-cash support (see section on Reception Conditions).[3]
The response to a political / humanitarian crisis can also be through immigration routes. Immigration visa concessions have been authorised by Ministers on an annual basis; the latest one relating to Afghans was introduced in January 2022.[4] The concession applies to those nationals already in the UK with valid visas who may be able to avoid the usual conditions when extending or switching to another category. In addition to visa schemes aimed at Ukrainians seeking to leave Ukraine for the UK, to join a family or sponsor, those living lawfully in the UK those who had a valid visa could apply to extend that for a period of three years under the Ukraine visa extension scheme[5] (see Annex on Ukraine visa support).
The Upper Tribunal (IAC) has the power to make findings of fact which constitute binding ‘country guidance’ regarding the risk of return for people seeking asylum. Depending on whether these issues are brought before the tribunal in a particular case, there may from time to time be binding country guidance about the impact of a crisis, for example Syria[6] and Libya.[7]
Although data on disputed nationality are not published, we understand that a proportion of refused applicants from countries with very high refugee recognition rates will include those whose claimed nationality is disputed.[8]
The processing of asylum claims from Syrian nationals was paused in December 2024 and resumed in July 2025.[9]
[1] Court of Appeal, The Secretary of State for the Home Department v JM (Zimbabwe) [2017] EWCA Civ 1669, available here.
[2] Frances Perraudin, ‘Home Office criticised for accelerating removals to Zimbabwe’, The Guardian,12 February 2019, available here.
[3] Home Office, ‘Asylum support under section 4(2) policy: caseworker guidance’, 17 September 2025, available here.
[4] Home Office, ‘Concessions to the Immigration Rules for Afghan nationals for work and study routes’, January 2022, available here.
[5] UK Government, ‘Applying to the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme’, last updated 5 March 2026, available here.
[6] Upper Tribunal, KB (Failed asylum seekers and forced returnees) Syria CG [2012] UKUT 426 (IAC), available here.
[7] Upper Tribunal, ZMM (Article 15(c)) Libya CG [2017] UKUT 263 (IAC), available here.
[8] Practice based observation by the expert, January 2024.
[9] House of Commons written statement, ‘Decision making for Syrian nationals with outstanding protection claims’, 14 July 2025, available here.