Removals and voluntary departures
Valid: 24 November 2011 to 23 February 2012
Interpreting the figures
The figures relate to people leaving the United Kingdom either voluntarily or forcibly whom, in the main, the UK Border Agency has sought to remove. The User Guide provides further details, including defining the various types of removal and voluntary departure.
This briefing generally refers to total numbers of people, including dependants, removed and departing voluntarily, which are referred to here as ‘departing’. While individuals removed at a port of entry have not necessarily entered the country, their removal requires action by the UK Border Agency, such as being placed on a return flight, and are therefore included unless stated otherwise.
Key facts
In recent years, the number of people departing has decreased, compared to the peak in 2008; the number of people departing during 2010 was 60,244, down 11% from the peak of 67,981 during 2008.
However, when excluding port removals, the total number of people forcibly removed or departing voluntarily during 2010 was 41,968, 10% higher than during 2009 (38,052) and the highest figure since 2006 (prior to this, data are not directly comparable). The overall fall in 2010 can be mostly accounted for by the significantly lower number of non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed (down 37% from 29,162 during 2009 to 18,276 during 2010) and has also been affected by decreasing numbers of asylum cases.
Data for the third quarter of 2011 show a similar picture; 13,253 people departed, a 13% fall from 15,261 during the third quarter of 2010 – and a 27% fall compared to 18,078 during the third quarter of 2008. This is the second lowest quarterly figure since the third quarter of 2001, although all the various types of removals and voluntary departures are higher than the previous quarter, which was the lowest quarterly figure.
Departures by type
Chart notes
Source: Home Office, Immigration Statistics July – September 2011, removals and voluntary departures table rv.01.q
The chart shows that the numbers of enforced removals and notified voluntary departures in the third quarter of 2011 appear to have partially recovered from the low seen in the second quarter of 2011.
Data tables
Further data are available in removals and voluntary departures tables rv.01 to rv.08.
Asylum and non-asylum cases
Within the total number of people departing during the third quarter of 2011, there were 2,120 people (including dependants) who had claimed asylum (19% lower than during the third quarter of 2010) and 11,133 non-asylum cases (12% lower than during the third quarter of 2010). Compared to the previous quarter when removals were lower than usual, asylum and non-asylum removals are both up.
Looking longer term, during 2010 there were 10,394 people departing who had sought asylum at some stage (either as a main applicant or dependant), down 11% compared to during 2009 (11,636) and 43% lower than the peak of 18,280 during 2006. This decrease in asylum cases departing can be viewed in the context of a general decreasing trend in asylum applications since 2001.
There were 49,850 non-asylum cases departing during 2010, 10% lower than the figure of 55,578 during 2009. Although those refused entry at port and subsequently removed has been decreasing (see ‘Other data on departures’ below), the number of non-asylum cases forcibly removed or departed voluntarily has increased by 20% from 26,416 during 2009 to 31,574 during 2010. This is the highest figure since 2006 (before which, data are not directly comparable).
Departures by ‘harm’ assessment
Based on management information, of the total 41,264 people forcibly removed or departed voluntarily subject to assessment for a harm rating during the 2010/11 financial year, 11% of removals were assessed as ‘higher harm’. These include those who have committed serious criminal and immigration offences.
Compared to the last financial year, this is an overall increase of 9% (37,746 removals were assessed during 2009/10), with an increase of 6% in removals of individuals assessed as ‘higher harm’.
Other data on departures
Of the total number of departures during 2010, 43% were from Asia, 21% from Africa and 20% were from the Americas. The top countries of nationality were India (12%), Brazil (7%), China (7%), Pakistan (6%) and Nigeria (6%).
The number of non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed has fallen sharply in recent years, to 18,276 during 2010 from 29,162 during 2009 and 32,367 in 2008. In the third quarter of 2011, there were 4,141 such cases, 12% fewer than in the third quarter of 2010 (4,730).
Figures based on management information indicate that 1,056 foreign national offenders were removed during the third quarter of 2011, the second lowest quarterly figure since the first quarter of 2009 – the first quarter published within this release. During the financial year 2010/11, 5,339 foreign national offenders were removed; the UK Border Agency target for 2010/11, set under the previous Government, was to remove 5,500 foreign national prisoners.
Information on numbers of people removed upon leaving detention is available in the ‘Detention’ topic.
Date: Thu Nov 24 09:30:00 GMT 2011