Labour’s Shabana Mahmood threatens Pakistan with visa ban | Politics | News

Pakistan could face sweeping UK visa restrictions after new figures revealed how few rejected asylum seekers are sent home.

Official data shows that despite thousands of rejections, only 4.1 percent of unsuccessful Pakistani applicants last year were returned; This corresponds to one in 25 people.

The size of the problem is quite important. Reports suggest that Pakistani nationals currently represent the largest group seeking asylum in the UK, accounting for roughly one in 10 applications overall.

In 2024, 10,638 Pakistanis sought asylum; This figure is double the previous year’s total and ahead of countries including Eritrea (8,948), Iran (7,419) and Afghanistan (6,462).

A striking feature of this trend is how many people initially came through legitimate means. Large numbers entered Britain on student, work or visitor visas before later applying for asylum; This, if successful, could pave the way for permanent residence.

But more than 70 percent of Pakistan’s claims are rejected.

According to the Telegraph newspaper, Home Office figures show that although 10,853 applications were rejected in 2025, only 445 people were sent to Pakistan in the same period.

The return rate mirrors that in Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola, which had previously been warned they would face visa bans if they did not accept deportees. All ultimately reversed course after being threatened with sanctions.

Under the powers overseen by Shabana Mahmood, ministers can impose a tiered system of penalties on states that do not cooperate. These range from removing priority visa services to imposing outright entry bans affecting tourists, workers and even political elites, the report says.

A Government source said: “We will not hesitate to impose visa sanctions on any country that does not cooperate.”

Opposition parties confiscated the figures.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described the expulsion rate as “pathetic” and pointed out that the 2022 repatriation agreement with Islamabad was signed when Priti Patel was home secretary.

He argued that tougher steps were needed, saying: “We must drastically reduce the number of visas issued to Pakistani citizens and exit the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) so that people who have no right to be here can be deported.”

Meanwhile, Reform UK has gone further. Home Affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf said the visa bans would be part of a broader deportation strategy.

“As part of our deportation strategy, we will not hesitate to impose visa bans on countries that refuse to take back their illegal goods,” he said.

Last week, it named Pakistan, along with Somalia, Eritrea, Syria, Afghanistan and Sudan, on a list of countries where visas would be suspended under the Reform government, citing excessive stay rates and arrivals on small boats.

“Make no mistake, more countries will be added to this list. Reform UK will protect our borders and do whatever it takes to ensure illegal immigrants are deported,” he added.

Separate data shows more than 40,000 people claimed asylum after first entering the UK on valid visas last year; This figure is roughly equal to the number arriving in small boats crossing the Channel.

Pakistan features prominently in all major visa categories where immigrants subsequently seek asylum, ranking in the top three for student, business, visitor and other routes. A total of 9,783 Pakistani citizens used this route in 2024; this accounts for almost a quarter of visa-to-asylum transitions.

A Home Office spokesman reportedly said: “As the UK and Pakistan work in partnership on shared migration and return priorities, our message is clear: cooperate on return or face the consequences.”