Multiple reports indicate a shadow industry of law firms and advisers is charging thousands of pounds to help migrants pretend to be gay in order to stay in the UK. Migrants whose visas are due to run out are being given fake cover stories and instructed in how to obtain fabricated evidence, including supporting letters, photographs and medical reports. These migrants then apply for asylum claiming to be gay and in fear for their lives if they return to Pakistan or Bangladesh.
Undercover reporters posed as international students from Pakistan and Bangladesh whose visas were due to expire. One law firm charged up to £7,000 to bring a fabricated asylum claim and promised that the chance of refusal by the Home Office was very low. Fake asylum seekers visited GPs pretending to be depressed to get medical evidence, with one even lying about being HIV positive.
One immigration adviser boasted that she had spent more than 17 years helping bring fake claims and said she could arrange for someone to pretend they'd had a gay sexual relationship with a client. An undercover reporter was told he could bring his wife over from Pakistan once he had got asylum and she could then make a fake claim pretending to be a lesbian. A lawyer linked to another firm told an undercover reporter he had helped people pretend to be gay or atheists to successfully obtain asylum, offering to help with a fake claim for a fee of £1,500 and said it would cost a further £2,000-£3,000 to create evidence.
These migrants are often people whose student, work or tourist visas have expired, rather than those who have just arrived on small boats or through other illegal routes. This group now makes up 35% of all asylum claims, which topped 100,000 in 2025.
The asylum process is being systematically exploited by legal advisers extracting fees from migrants who want to stay in the country. Immigration advisers are encouraging migrants to cheat the asylum system, with some helping migrants to pose as gay to get asylum in the UK.
Most of the people here are not gays.
A BBC reporter, posing as a former student wanting to remain in the UK, met one of those advisers, Tanisa Khan, who for a fee offered to provide evidence to support the fake claim that he was gay. Tanisa Khan told the undercover reporter to attend an event organised by Worcester LGBT to bolster his claim, saying it is essential to provide evidence to the Home Office demonstrating affiliation with a gay organisation.
The UK's asylum process offers protection to people who can't return to their home countries because they would be in danger. This system, designed to safeguard vulnerable individuals fleeing persecution, is now being manipulated by those seeking to remain in the country through fraudulent means.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood declared that anyone abusing protections for people fleeing persecution over gender or sexual orientation is beyond contempt. She stated that those trying to defraud the British people will have their asylum claim refused, support cut off, and face removal, with sham lawyers facing the full force of the law and having their money seized.
The Home Office stated that anyone found trying to exploit the system will face the full force of the law, including removal from the UK. This warning comes amid growing concerns about the integrity of the asylum process and the need for robust enforcement against those who seek to undermine it.
According to Daily Express - Politics, Shabana Mahmood has slammed immigration lawyers allegedly helping migrants to cheat the asylum system by pretending to be gay. Legal advisers are reportedly charging thousands to coach foreign nationals whose student and work visas are expiring on how to seek sanctuary to stay indefinitely and claim benefits. They are encouraging people to say they are gay because there are no checks, adding that it is the very method everyone is adopting. Some even offered to arrange for people to pretend they had same-sex relationships with clients, with others compiling dossiers of staged photographs and fake support letters.
Nobody is a gay here. Not even 1% are gay. Not even 0.01% are gay.
At one meeting in Beckton, east London, groups of men revealed the asylum scam crisis. According to Daily Express - Politics, Fahar described that most of the people there are not gays. According to Daily Express - Politics, Zeeshan described that nobody is a gay there, not even 1% are gay, not even 0.01% are gay.
People smuggling gangs have circulated a how-to guide to sneak illegal migrants into Britain. The gangs are circulating audio recordings coaching migrants on how to fabricate asylum claims and trick Home Office officials into granting them the right to stay in the UK. This suggests different routes or groups involved in exploiting the asylum system, which could impact how authorities target enforcement efforts.
It remains unknown how many migrants have successfully obtained asylum through fabricated claims pretending to be gay. The total financial scale of the shadow industry and how much money has been extracted from migrants has not been confirmed. Whether the Home Office has specific data on the success rate of these fabricated claims and how many have been detected is unclear.
The identities and regulatory status of all law firms and advisers involved beyond those named in the investigation have not been fully disclosed. The extent to which people smuggling gangs are coordinating with immigration advisers or operating independently in circulating guides remains uncertain.
This exploitation raises significant questions about system integrity, legal accountability, and policy challenges. The need for effective detection mechanisms and stringent penalties for those involved in fraudulent activities is paramount to maintain public trust in the asylum process. Addressing these issues requires coordinated efforts between government agencies, regulatory bodies, and law enforcement to dismantle networks profiting from deception and ensure that genuine asylum seekers receive the protection they need.