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Thousands of families, including more than 6,000 children, will be hit by the shutdown of a lifeline visa route that allows refugees to reunite in the UK, according to new analysis that reveals the true impact of the crackdown.
A temporary ban on new applications from refugees wanting to bring their loved ones to safety in the UK was announced in September by then-home secretary Yvette Cooper, who said the scheme was putting pressure on council housing and was being manipulated by people-smuggling gangs.
But data analysis by the British Red Cross has now estimated that thousands of families will be left separated as a result of the temporary ban.
It found that at least 4,900 families will be affected by the pause between September 2025 and April 2026, according to estimates based on previous Home Office data. This could include 6,300 children, of whom 1,500 are unaccompanied.
The vast majority of people who benefited from the refugee family reunion scheme were women and children, accounting for 91 per cent of visas granted by the Home Office since 2010.
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Umer Heyi is unable to reunite in the UK with his wife, whose face is blurred for security reasons. (Umer Heyi/Supplied)
New requirements for refugees are expected to be announced next spring and are likely to introduce financial requirements that many will struggle to meet. Charities have already said the crackdown may fuel more dangerous Channel crossings as women and children left in warzones attempt to reunite with their families in the UK.
In a new report, published on Tuesday, the British Red Cross warned that unaccompanied children will be left trapped in danger due to the scheme’s pause.
They are calling on ministers to exempt unaccompanied children trying to reunite with parents in the UK from any future financial requirements.
In the case of one family supported by the charity, a Sudanese man was able to reunite with his children in the UK, but only after they came close to tragedy. He said: “I applied immediately for my family because the situation was critical in Sudan. My children, if they had been one day late, they would have died. Just one day. But they left early in the morning. They left the village at 7am. At 10am, [the fighters] raided the village. Many people died.”
Another Afghan man told the charity that, before he was able to reunite with his family, he was “always worried that maybe someone will kidnap my kids”. He added: “I was always thinking about them, about their security, about their living conditions, because they were alone there. I have got family there, but still, when a father is not there, it’s not enough.”
One Ethiopian computer science student, Umer Heyi, told The Independent of his heartbreak at missing the deadline to apply to bring his wife and two-year-old son to the UK.
Umer received his refugee grant on 4 September and tried to start an application for his family, but the scheme closed at 3pm that day.
Speaking about his son, he said: “If I can’t save him, if I can’t protect him, then what have I got?
“We just want the opportunity to save our lives and not stay separated.”
With the refugee family reunion scheme closed, those settled in the UK can only sponsor immediate family members to come to the UK if they can meet the salary threshold of £29,000 per year.
Umer, who has a degree in computer science, is currently doing a course in cyber security so that he can find work in the UK.
Olivia Field, head of policy at the British Red Cross, said: “We know that being reunited with family is vital to wellbeing and integration.
“The government’s proposed changes to refugee family reunion risk leaving unaccompanied children in dangerous situations and will increase the anxiety of people already in the UK as they worry over the safety of their loved ones.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We have recently moved to suspend the refugee family reunion route, acknowledging the pressures it is putting on local authorities and public services.
“We understand the devastating circumstances of some families, which is why there are other routes which individuals may be eligible to apply for in order to reunite with family.”