Britain to open its doors to Palestinian asylum seekers – report

UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood reportedly preparing to resume resettlement program, giving legal pathway to large-scale immigration of asylum seekers, with priority given to Palestinians and Afghanis. 

By World Israel News Staff

Britain is reopening a refugee resettlement program, and is reportedly planning to give priority to Palestinians and Afghan women and girls, The Guardian has reported, creating a controlled legal route into the country as the government simultaneously tightens rules for people arriving through irregular channels.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is expected to formally unveil the policy at the Labour Party conference Monday, ending a nearly two-year freeze on new referrals to the UK Resettlement Scheme.

About one-quarter of those admitted through the reopened program are expected to be Palestinians or Afghan women and girls, according to government projections.

People with disabilities, survivors of torture and others judged particularly vulnerable will also be eligible for consideration.

The program is expected to begin relatively modestly, accepting hundreds of refugees before potentially expanding into the low thousands as the government reduces irregular migration.

An annual numerical cap will apply.

Mahmood is expected to argue that maintaining public support for humanitarian admissions requires the government to demonstrate that it controls who enters Britain.

“I know the British people have not given up on their belief that we should be compassionate,” she is expected to say, according to the report, while stressing that admissions “must be capped and controlled.”

The government says all people selected for resettlement will undergo identity, security, suitability and criminal-record checks before being permitted to travel to Britain.

Unlike asylum seekers who reach Britain and subsequently make protection claims, refugees entering through the resettlement program will be chosen before arrival, principally through referrals from international organizations.

The UN refugee agency and the International Refugee Assistance Project are expected to identify candidates for the program.

Reports indicate that Palestinians with serious medical needs will be among those prioritized.

The reopened scheme will also give its participants substantially greater certainty over their immigration status than asylum seekers arriving through unauthorized routes.

Under longstanding rules governing the UK Resettlement Scheme, refugees admitted through the program receive indefinite leave to remain after arriving in Britain, giving them permanent residency rights, access to employment and public services and a subsequent route toward citizenship if they meet the applicable requirements.

That contrasts sharply with changes introduced by Mahmood’s government for many people entering through the asylum system.

Under reforms announced earlier this year, adults granted refugee protection after making an asylum claim can have their status reviewed every 30 months, potentially for as long as 20 years. If conditions in their country of origin are subsequently considered safe, the government can seek their return.

The distinction forms part of Mahmood’s attempt to encourage refugees to use organized legal routes rather than paying smugglers to cross the English Channel in small boats.

The home secretary is expected to argue that a controlled system can “unlock the inherent generosity of this country” while allowing the government to restrict unauthorized migration.

The UK Resettlement Scheme was never formally abolished, but it stopped accepting new referrals in December 2024 and had effectively become dormant. Nearly 300 people nevertheless arrived through legacy cases during the first half of 2026 after having been referred before the suspension.

The new policy will restart referrals immediately.

It comes alongside several additional legal migration routes being developed by the Labour government.

Beginning in October, charities and nonprofit organizations will be able to apply to sponsor refugees, while universities will participate in a separate sponsorship system. The first refugees arriving under those initiatives are expected in 2027.

A work-based route is also planned for next spring, under which businesses will be able to sponsor refugees for employment in Britain.

Sponsors will be expected to provide accommodation and integration assistance and help refugees enter employment, reducing the burden on local authorities.

The government expects the combined programs initially to bring hundreds of people to Britain annually, eventually increasing into the low thousands if unauthorized migration declines.

AfghanistanBritainPalestiniansRefugees