The largest numbers of refugees are from Syria (6.65 million), Afghanistan (2.68 million), South Sudan (2.29 million), Myanmar (1.15 million) and Somalia (950,000).
Nationality of asylum seekers and refugees
In 2021, 42% of applicants were nationals of Middle Eastern countries, and 23% were nationals of African countries. This pattern shifted in 2022 with the largest nationality groups being Asian countries (31% of applicants) and European countries (24% of applicants).
Connection to the UK
The vast majority of people seeking asylum do not come to the UK. But for the relatively smaller number who do, the most common reason they choose the UK is to join their family who are already in the country. Another common reason for people coming to the UK is that they speak the language.
Are there many refugees and asylum seekers in the UK? No. According to UNHCR statistics, as of November 2022 there were 231,597 refugees, 127,421 pending asylum cases and 5,483 stateless persons in the UK including recent Ukrainians refugees. That's only half a per cent (0.54%) of the UK's total population.
There were 74,751 asylum applications (relating to 89,398 people) in the UK in 2022.
In Western Europe, it is Portugal that has received the fewest refugees, at 0.03 per cent.
But do people seeking asylum get this free housing forever? No. When someone gets refugee status, they can no longer stay in asylum accommodation. They can choose where to live, but they have to pay for their rent or ask for government help – like any UK citizen.
Refugee Crisis
While Glasgow has taken the biggest share (3,311), cities such as Manchester, Bolton, and Rochdale - belonging to the poorest 25 percent of local authorities - are shouldering the financial burden the most.
You'll usually get £45 for each person in your household. This will help you pay for things you need like food, clothing and toiletries. Your allowance will be loaded onto a debit card (ASPEN card) each week. You'll be able to use the card to get cash from a cash machine.
The United States has by far the world's largest number of immigrants with over 50 million.
The United States of America is the most sought after country to immigrate to for almost every individual. Since the 1900s, the USA has been the world's largest economy.
The authors identify two groups of countries: Germany, Greece, Portugal, Spain and the UK where differences in welfare dependency rates are not significant; in Austria, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and the Nordic countries, social benefits are higher for immigrants than for natives.
There are a lot of factors that contribute towards a feeling of safety, many of which may influence someone fleeing to the UK. Sometimes people are trying to come to the UK to reunite with family they've been battling to find for years. Sometimes people can't access asylum systems in other countries.
Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than European nations including Italy, Germany and France. But for decades, thousands of migrants have traveled to northern France each year in hopes of reaching the U.K. Many are drawn by family ties, the English language or the belief it's easy to find work in the U.K.
Gallup's updated Migrant Acceptance Index ranks North Macedonia, Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro – southeast European countries that along with Greece and Italy faced the initial waves of refugees – as the least-accepting countries for migrants.
Asylum seekers will be housed in the most basic accommodation possible, including disused army bases and possibly ships, to save money and to dissuade people from coming to the UK, the government has said.
In a recent study, the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society at the University of Oxford estimated the unemployment rate for refugees at 18 per cent, three times greater than for the UK-born.
You may be given permission to stay in the UK for a minimum of 5 years. This is known as 'refugee permission to stay'. The exact amount of time depends on how your application is assessed.
When we look at the overall picture, we can see that the UK takes in far fewer refugees than many EU nations. For example, Germany took in more refugees in a single year (2019) than the UK did in the six years from 2015 to 2020.
Albanian ambassador to the UK Qirjako Qirko said most make the journey for economic reasons. Corruption, low salaries, poor working conditions, and a low quality of life were all cited in a Gallup poll about why workers were looking to leave. Unemployment for 15- to 25-year-olds is at around 20 per cent.
France is considered to be one of the main asylum host countries in Europe. According to statistics collected by the World Bank, in 2021 there were 499,914 refugees registered in France.