Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what safeguards are in place to ensure that people who have been refused asylum will not become homeless 21 days after receiving their cessation letter.

The Home Office took the decision to pause cessations of asylum support on 27 March 2020, so that asylum seekers whose cases were resolved and who would no longer normally be eligible for asylum support would be able to remain in their accommodation and follow the public health guidance in place at that time.

Some “negative cessations” (where the person has been refused asylum and exhausted their appeal rights) resumed from September but were paused again in November following the imposition of stronger lockdown measures. These decisions currently remain paused pending consideration of the impact of the current coronavirus restrictions.

Failed asylum seekers have no basis of stay in the UK and are encouraged and supported to return to their countries of origin where appropriate. The Home Office will pay for the cost of their return home and provides generous reintegration assistance. Where there is a legitimate reason why a person who has been refused asylum cannot return to their country of origin, they can apply for further support from the Home Office under Section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.

Before taking any decision to resume negative cessations we will continue to work with and share our approach with Public Health authorities and will work within public health guidelines and legal advice.