UK threatens Eritrea with visa bans unless it accepts more migrant return cases under new policy

Measures begin Thursday

The UK plans to restrict Eritrean diplomats’ movements beyond London from Thursday. They will need permission to travel more than 60km from the capital, while fast-track visa services for VIPs will be suspended.

Mahmood has warned that a wider entry ban could follow unless Eritrea agrees to accept more returns. The British government says Eritrean authorities abruptly ended co-operation earlier this year.

Mahmood explains the threat

Mahmood said Eritrea had been given sufficient opportunity to take back people convicted of crimes and others without permission to remain in the UK. She said further action could be taken against countries that do not co-operate.

The Home Office said the travel limits on Eritrean diplomats reflect restrictions placed on British officials in Asmara. The Eritrean embassy in London was contacted for comment.

Questions over likely impact

Madeleine Sumption, who leads the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said the measures might have little effect. She cited roughly 7,000 Eritrean asylum applications in the latest year of data, about 8% of the UK total.

Sumption said 84% of Eritrean applications succeed at the first decision, with further cases succeeding on appeal. About 1,400 applicants were initially refused, she said, but that figure would fall after appeals.

Other countries and return figures

The UK has previously used visa pressure in discussions with Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Home Office says measures against the DRC were lifted after improved co-operation, while Angola and Namibia made changes before restrictions began.

Sumption said the UK could be reluctant to target countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh because visa penalties might affect trade, students and workers. More than 20,400 people had arrived in the UK by small boat so far this year, 40% fewer than over the same period last year.

The UK recorded more than 40,600 returns and deportations between July 2025 and June this year, an 8% rise year on year. Fewer than 6,000 of those returned had been convicted of a criminal offence.