How to Apply for Asylum on a UK Tourist Visa

Seeking legal help is strongly recommended if you are already in the UK on a tourist visa and want to claim asylum.

There can be valid legal reasons for claiming asylum from within the UK on a later date. For example, it may be so that the situation in your home country changed after you entered the UK and you fear persecution if you go back now given the changed situation.

However, be aware that the Home Office may use this against your asylum claim as it goes against your ‘genuine intent to return’ as a visitor in the first place.

Claiming asylum in the UK has become more challenging since the 2022 Nationality and Borders Act. You cannot claim asylum from outside the UK, and there is no ‘asylum visa’ that allows people to enter the country to claim asylum. From 28 July 2022 onwards, entering the UK without a visa and claiming asylum means going against the law.

Call Total Law on +44 (0) 333 305 9375 without further delay to understand your options and how we can help you.

To be able to claim asylum, the applicant must have left their own country and be unable to return as they fear persecution.

Most asylum seekers will apply upon arrival in the UK. However, if you are in the UK on a tourist visa or other visa when you become eligible, or if you believe it is unsafe for you to return to your home country, you should apply as soon as possible.

Do not wait to make an asylum claim, as waiting is more likely to result in the application being refused.

The eligibility for asylum seekers to obtain refugee status is simply due to the genuineness of their well-founded fear of persecution. This persecution must be due to one of the following:

• Race
• Religion
• Nationality
• Political opinion
• Other factors that put the individual at risk due to the cultural, social, political, or religious situation in the country, such as gender identity, sexual orientation, or gender,

Additionally, the applicant must also have failed to obtain protection from authorities in their own country.

It is possible that a claim may not be considered if the applicant falls into one of the following categories:

• They are from an EU country
• They have travelled to the UK through a safe third country
• They have a connection to a safe third country where they would be eligible for asylum

Safe third countries are ones that the asylum seeker is not a citizen of, they would not be harmed in, and they would not send the individual on to another country where they would be harmed.

To be able to make your asylum claim, the first thing an asylum seeker needs to do is register their asylum claim. There is no official application to do this. The applicant must instead register their claim with a UK immigration officer.

Depending on the circumstances of the individual, this can be done at the UK border or when already in the UK. It is important to register as soon as you are aware that it is unsafe for you to return to your home country.

To register the asylum claim when already in the UK, individuals should call the asylum intake unit. After this, an Immigration Officer will call you back and discuss the needs of the individual claiming asylum and arrange an appointment for an asylum screening interview. If you are homeless, they will inform you of a registration location to attend.

During this call, applicants will not be asked for reasons for their asylum application. However, those who seek asylum should tell the officer if any dependents need to be included in the application.

This includes your spouse/partner and children under 18. Registering dependants will enable them to remain in the UK for the same duration, but it does not give them refugee status unless they make their claim.

After this stage, the applicant will have a meeting with an immigration officer. This is a screening interview, and the primary applicant and their dependants who also wish to seek asylum should attend.

This interview will cover questions regarding the personal situation of the applicant (and their dependants) as well as the asylum claim. At this point, the applicant will be photographed, and their fingerprints will be taken (biometrics).

After the screening, the Home Office will consider your claim. During the screening, applicants will be informed of what they are allowed to do and the conditions that they need to follow until they receive a decision on their claim.

When a decision is made, the applicant will receive notification of the outcome at the UK address that they provided.

It is possible that for more complex cases, applicants may be asked to attend an asylum substantive interview or fill out a questionnaire. This is often the case if more information is needed for the UK Home Office to make an asylum decision.

Applicants will need to bring any documents to support their asylum claims to the screening interview. The documents that will need to be taken with you (where available) include the following:

• A valid passport and travel documents
• Proof of ID. This includes ID cards, birth certificates, marriage certificates, etc.
• Documents and other evidence that support why you fear persecution if you go back to your country of origin
• Proof of a UK Address
  • In instances where the applicant is the named tenant or homeowner, the documents should include the applicant’s full name and address. Examples of what can be used include household bills, bank statements, or tenancy agreements
  • In instances where the applicant is staying with someone else and they are not a named homeowner or tenant, they should provide the following:
    • A letter from the named homeowner or tenant from within the previous three months that states the individual is allowed to stay at this property
    • Documents showing the full name and address of the named homeowner or tenant This could include a bank statement, tenancy agreement, or household bill

A negative decision on an asylum claim does not automatically mean they will be detained or deported. It does depend on the type of case and the stage it is at, but it may be possible to appeal.

If an initial refusal does not provide the right to appeal, it can be submitted to a judicial review. With a positive outcome, the case is then taken to the first-tier tribunal. If this is negative, the Home Office will proceed with the removal process.

However, if the initial refusal allows for an appeal, this is taken to the First-Tier Tribunal. If this is a successful appeal, status may be given, but the Home Office can further appeal this.

Yet, if the decision is negative, the case can be taken to the upper tribunal. If there is a positive outcome, the status may be given, or the Home Office may reconsider its decision. If the Upper Tribunal is negative, then the appeal is exhausted and there is a risk of detention. The removal process will proceed.

Appeals can be made by an individual or by a legal representative on behalf of the individual. Applications to appeal must be completed online; those representing asylum seekers must only appeal using a paper form if their client is in detention.

It is possible to appeal from inside or outside of the UK; however, those who appeal from outside of the UK get 28 days to lodge their appeal, whereas those inside the UK will only have 14 days to appeal.

If asylum seekers or failed asylum seekers were previously granted permission to work due to an undecided claim, this permission will end when the claim or submission is refused and appeal rights against refusal are exhausted.

Caseworkers are always reminded to monitor their caseload, and once a claim is determined or further submissions have been concluded, they must update the Home Office records to reflect that the permission to work for the individual has ceased.

Then ARC cards will need amendments as soon as possible to reflect this factor

There is no reason to take any action to revoke permission to work where an asylum seeker obtains refugee status, however.

The same stands for those who obtain humanitarian protection, discretionary leave, or leave under family rules. After they are granted this title, this is because the individual will obtain full access to the labour market anyway when they are granted this status.