Civil servants working from home ‘could miss fake asylum claims’

Officers working from home could miss fake asylum claims, an expert has warned.

Ministry of Internal Affairs personnel who can supervise the requests of asylum seekers and the cases of foreign criminals are allowed to work from home three out of five days a week.

And most discussions about asylum offers are being held remotely via videoconference rather than face-to-face meetings at the department’s base.

The Home Office argued that their flexibility in relation to office working helped manage a significant number of claims, with lawyers, caseworkers, interpreters and support staff able to attend from different locations.

A job description for the caseworker role details how staff will be part of a ‘supporting team’ who ‘conduct asylum interviews’ and follow processes ‘to make the most appropriate decisions in asylum cases’.

“You will evaluate the laws and case law and prepare letters on behalf of the Minister of Internal Affairs summarizing the reasons for your decisions,” the statement said.

However, Tony Smith, former director general of the Border Force, raised concerns that the move to virtual interviews could lead to officers failing to detect behavioral clues that indicate potential deception on the part of the applicant.

A UK Border Force ship brings migrants captured while crossing the English Channel to the port of Dover in Dover, England, on 08 October 2025

Expressing concerns that the process had become ‘coded’, he told The Telegraph: ‘If you’re doing it online it’s much harder to realize someone is telling the truth rather than sitting in the same room with the asylum seeker and his lawyer.’

He added that by explaining how to conduct such interviews in person, where eye contact can be made with the applicant, patterns of behavior and potential deception can be detected.

‘You have a sixth sense about whether someone is honest or not,’ he said. ‘I’m not sure the online interviews reflect that.’

Refugee groups elsewhere have clashed with the Home Office’s virtual approach with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), arguing that online interviews give applicants greater flexibility and protect them from “unnecessary travel”.[ily]’.

However, human rights charity Freedom from Torture said remote interviews could have a negative impact on decisions made regarding asylum seekers, as asylum seekers often have difficulty conveying their experiences in a virtual environment.

Home Office job postings state that both bailiffs and asylum decision-makers are allowed to spend 60 percent of the working week from home.

Positions are available in London, Liverpool and Leeds, where interviewees are expected to analyze the evidence and decide whether hypothetical asylum applicants should have their offers accepted or be deported.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of asylum interviews were conducted face-to-face at the department’s interview centers across the UK.

Applicants were generally expected to be present with a legal representative and interpreters in centers such as London, Liverpool and Glasgow, where strict security procedures and audio recording were in place.

Before July 2021, video interviews were not a common option.

According to Ministry of Internal Affairs data, a record number of asylum applications were made until June; 110,000 total bids.

But figures show the Government is working on cases faster, with application rates up 14 per cent on the previous year.

And although it was above the 2003 peak of 103,000, authorities were processing requests even faster before the general election.

Statistics showed that the backlog of claims was almost half the peak of 134,000 claims at the end of June 2023, and the backlog stood at 71,000 claims, 91,000 of which were awaiting the first decision.

The Daily Mail has approached the Home Office for comment.