New data shows fall in visas, asylum claims and small boat arrivals compared to year earlier

The number of people claiming asylum in the UK in the year to June 2026 fell by 21% compared to a year earlier, new data shows But the figure - 86,000 - remains above typical levels seen before 2021 The number of people arriving on small boats was 33,000, down 23% on the previous year The five most common nationalities on small boats were Eritrean, Sudanese, Afghan, Somali and Iranian Some 16,000 asylum seekers were being housed in hotels in June - that's 50% down on a year earlier - with the trend reflected across the country The number of visas granted for work, study, and families also fell - that follows a tightening of the rules that began in the dying months of the Conservative government, writes Dominic Casciani Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says the government is "not complacent and there is more we must do" The biggest challenge for the government now is the appeals backlog in courts over asylum decisions, according to the Migration Observatory Edited by Imogen James and Cachella Smith, with analysis from Dominic Casciani and Daniel Sandford New Home Office figures show a drop in the number of visas, asylum claims and small boat arrivals in the year to June 2026. During t