For many of us, the cost of securing Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) is simply out of reach. At £3,029 per person, it is a price most families already struggling with the rising cost of living simply just cannot afford.

Many of us on the 10-year route are single parents, working long hours in low-paying jobs, doing everything we can to support our families. We can’t access higher education to re-train for better opportunities due to ineligibility for student finance, and we are often misrepresented in the media and as a result we get cut off from public support. For us, life is already a daily struggle.

Most people on the 10-year route are here because of deep roots in the UK. We have children, families, and community ties. Many of our children are British citizens. And yet, the system keeps us in a constant state of uncertainty. It feels like we are being punished for trying to stay with our British families.

We have done everything that has been asked of us, lived here for a decade, paid taxes, contributed to our communities. But still, we are forced to renew our visas over and over, not because we are ineligible for ILR, but because we simply cannot afford the fee. This leaves many of our families stuck in limbo, unable to plan for the future, sinking deeper into poverty and mental stress.

Imagine surviving ten years of instability, financial hardship, mental health strain, and fear of being priced out of the renewal cost each year, only to face yet another barrier of securing permanent status after finishing the 10-year route. It does not feel fair. For most of us, the 10-year route feels more like a sentence than a pathway to settlement.

A fee waiver for ILR would change everything. It would offer families the chance to finally build a secure and stable life in the UK. It would allow parents to, access higher education, find better jobs and give their children the future they deserve.
We already have fee waivers for other immigration applications for those who cannot afford them. Extending this support to ILR applicants on the 10-year route would not only change lives, it would reduce pressure on the Home Office and help more people contribute fully to the UK economy.

Those of us on the 10-year route are not outsiders, we are your neighbours, your carers, your shopkeepers, your friends, your family. We are already part of this country; we have deep roots in the UK. All we ask is the chance to live here with dignity, without being priced out of a secure future not just for ourselves, but for our children as well.

This is why RAMFEL has this week started a survey on the cost of ILR applications in the UK to gain a deeper understanding of peoples’ experiences regarding the settlement fees. Our aim is to explore how these costs affect those eligible for settlement but are priced out from attaining settlement and also understand the general public’s views on these extortionate fees. We are requesting you to please take our short survey and share your views on this.
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News that the UK government released data of up to 100,000 Afghan nationals with ties to the UK is shocking and incredibly dangerous. The affected individuals worked with UK armed forces and officials in Afghanistan, and this disclosure exposed them to risk of torture or execution by the Taliban, a group not known for forgiveness. 

The risk was so severe that the then Conservative government introduced a secret resettlement scheme, the Afghanistan Response Route (ARR), for those endangered by the data breach. It appears that the UK government ultimately agreed to resettle around 4,500 people under the ARR, though some have still not actually made it here. This is less than 5% of the people potentially endangered by the breach.

This week, the Labour government informed the UK High Court that a “super injunction”, issued in 2022 and prohibiting reporting of the breach, could be lifted. They also closed the ARR, meaning no more visas will be issued under this route.

Labour’s closure of the ARR swiftly follows their ruthless and cruel decision earlier this month to close two other Afghan resettlement routes. There are now no safe routes for Afghans to reach the UK.

It also follows a change in approach to Afghan asylum claims. Before last year’s general election, 98% of Afghan asylum claims were approved. Since the election, the grant rate has plummeted to 37%. The government’s guidance on Afghan asylum cases was changed in August 2024, and now states that the country is essentially as ‘safe’ as it was pre-Taliban takeover.

Limited information has been provided about why the UK government considers Taliban ruled Afghanistan to now be safer, but this assessment was likely reached at the upper echelons of government. A lack of diplomatic ties with the Taliban though means the UK government cannot actually return these failed asylum seekers. There are now then several thousand Afghan nationals stuck in immigration limbo, unable to work, unable to leave the UK and housed in asylum accommodation at public expense for an indefinite period. 

Since news of the data breach broke, Labour have continued to callously and flippantly bat away concerns about Afghans’ safety. Defence Secretary, John Healey, stated on Wednesday that not only does the data breach not give people the right to resettlement, but it also does not give them the right to claim asylum. 

Healey’s positions are deeply troubling, but reflect his government’s rapid and total abandonment of Afghan nationals. Any Afghan exposed to danger because of this data breach should without question be offered safe passage to the UK. However, whilst Healey and his government have refused to do this, they have gone even further by effectively pre-determining any asylum claims based on the data breach.

Asylum claims cannot be lodged overseas and people have to first make it to the UK to submit a claim. The inability to apply for asylum from abroad is why people fleeing conflict and persecution have no choice but to take dangerous journeys to the UK. 

Afghans make up around 15% of people crossing the Channel, and until recently 98% of their asylum claims were approved. Whilst the Labour government has already adopted an increasingly harsh approach to Afghan asylum claims, Healey’s statement indicates that they will look to refuse any claims that evidence a risk of torture or worse due to the person’s data being leaked.

The phrase, we are here because you were there, is rightly used to explain why many people from countries still suffering the affects of UK colonial atrocities make their way to these shores. This is never more apt than in the case of Afghanistan, which more than any country in recent history has suffered because of the dreadful policies pursued by UK and other western governments.

Throughout the last 20 years, it has been clear that western governments do not value Afghan lives, and the amount of human suffering this has led to is unfathomable.

Whilst the UK has now pulled out of Afghanistan, they continue to treat Afghans with contempt and make clear that they simply do not consider their safety an issue of great importance. This was the case when Boris Johnson’s administration prioritised the evacuation of animals over Afghan people, it was the case when Rishi Sunak’s administration was fighting desperately to send Afghans to Rwanda and it is the case now as Keir Starmer’s administration slams the door shut on all forms of Afghan resettlement.

Afghanistan remains unsafe. It remains under the control of a brutal and oppressive regime. The UK government should remember the role it has played in making Afghanistan what it is today. They should also remember that it is the Afghan people who continue to suffer as a result and have no choice but to seek safety elsewhere. Rather than turning them away, we should recognise our role and responsibility and immediately ensure that those needing protection and with clear ties to the UK are afforded safe passage.

We are devastated to learn that the UK Government has ruthlessly shut down its resettlement routes for Afghans fleeing the Taliban. Without warning or public consultation, the Home Office buried this decision in a technical memorandum to new immigration rules, cutting off almost the only safe ways for Afghans to reach the UK.

This move is not only cruel but counterproductive. At a time when the Government claims it wants to reduce dangerous boat crossings, it has shut down a pathway that allowed eligible Afghans - many with ties to Britain - to come here safely. These changes will only push more people into riskier routes.

The schemes themselves were already extremely restrictive, with the vast majority of people not eligible. With most people locked out, Afghan refugees have long been forced to take dangerous journeys and account for 15% of people arriving by boat. Expect this figure to rise further now these schemes are closed.

The schemes themselves were far from perfect. Many Afghans eligible for relocation were wrongly rejected due to errors by Home Office caseworkers. Our client Hamidullah, who worked at the British Embassy in Kabul for 18 years, remains separated from his two sons in Afghanistan. His story was recently featured in The Independent: “I worked for the British in Kabul embassy for 18 years. Let me reunite with my sons”.

This is not an isolated story; but these schemes did at least offer hope to Afghan refugees. The government has removed that hope.

What We Got Up To This June
Despite the tough news, we continue to build and celebrate the power of community.

Refugee Week: Community as a Superpower
We hosted a vibrant Refugee Week celebration at our community hub in Ilford. The theme this year “Community as a Superpower” was brought to life by our clients: refugees, asylum seekers and migrants from across London. There was food, music, games, and connection. If you missed it, watch our short highlight video for a dose of hope and solidarity.

London Legal Walk
We also took part in the London Legal Walk, standing with others to demand a properly funded legal aid system. Everyone deserves access to justice, not just those who can afford it. The legal aid crisis is pushing too many into homelessness, detention, destitution, and even deportation. We walked to say: enough is enough.
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Casework Successes in June
In June, our casework team helped change lives:
✅ 21 families secured permanent immigration status
✅ 16 people were granted leave to remain
✅ 10 individuals gained British citizenship