UK Threatens Visa Restrictions for Countries Rejecting Deportees

The United Kingdom has warned it may suspend visas for countries that do not cooperate in taking back nationals who have been denied the right to remain in Britain.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood issued the warning during a Five Eyes intelligence summit in London, where she emphasised the need for coordinated action on immigration enforcement. Addressing representatives from the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, Mahmood said the UK would explore joint strategies to manage countries that fail to assist in deportation efforts. 

“We think there is interesting space for collaborating,” she said, “particularly on how we deal with countries who do not take their citizens back.”

The announcement comes amid a sharp rise in unauthorised migration to the UK, particularly through small boat crossings. So far in 2025, more than 30,000 people have arrived in the UK by crossing the English Channel—a 37 percent increase from the previous year. On Mahmood’s first full day in office, over 1,000 people reportedly made the crossing, a figure she described as “utterly unacceptable.”

While Mahmood did not name any specific countries, her comments are being closely watched in Kenya, which has longstanding migration ties with the UK. Approximately 180,000 Kenyans currently live in Britain, including students, professionals, and long-term residents with family connections. Although Kenya is not currently subject to visa restrictions, its inclusion in recent UK immigration policies suggests it is under increased scrutiny.

One such policy is the “Deport First, Appeal Later” framework, which permits the immediate deportation of foreign nationals convicted of crimes, with any legal appeals to be conducted from their home countries. Kenya’s inclusion in this programme marks a shift in how the UK handles cases involving Kenyan citizens, particularly those with criminal records.

The UK government’s tougher approach reflects a broader move towards linking immigration cooperation with visa access. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has previously supported making visa policies conditional on a country’s willingness to facilitate deportations. Similar measures are also being considered by the UK’s Five Eyes partners.

For Kenya, delays in processing deportation requests or disputes over the identity of returnees could risk classification as a non-cooperative state, potentially leading to visa restrictions. Such a move would have implications for bilateral relations and could affect travel, education, and professional exchanges between the two countries.