Implementation of the New UK-France Migration Pact desktopalizing Small Boat Migrations
The UK-France "one-in, one-out" migrant return pilot scheme, announced by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in July, officially commenced operations in early August 2025 [1][2]. This groundbreaking initiative aims to address the escalating issue of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats.
Under this agreement, the UK will return adult migrants who have crossed the Channel by small boat and whose asylum claims are deemed inadmissible, while France will transfer an equal number of eligible asylum seekers to the UK through a new legal route [4].
Key aspects of the scheme include:
- It applies only to people arriving in the UK on or after 6 August 2025 [1][3].
- The UK aims to return around 50 people per week as part of the pilot, though there is no formal quota specified in the treaty [1][5].
- The pilot scheme is set to run until June 2026, during which both countries will review and improve the process [2][3][4].
- Migrants returned to France must be processed within a maximum of three months; otherwise, France is not obligated to accept them [3].
- The scheme includes a new UK route allowing an equal number of asylum seekers currently in France to come to the UK legally, subject to eligibility and security checks [4].
While it is too early for comprehensive data as returns under the pilot only began later in August 2025, historically, returns from the UK to France of small boat arrivals have been very low (around 3% between 2018–2024), largely due to legal and practical challenges [5].
The pilot attempts to deter crossings by creating a concrete risk of return, but skepticism remains about whether this will significantly reduce arrivals given the persistent demand for the journey and potential delays or legal challenges [1]. The UK government intends to apply lessons from challenges faced in other return schemes (e.g., Rwanda deal) to defend removals robustly and increase the pace and scale of returns during the pilot [2].
The number of people crossing the Channel in small boats in 2025 has exceeded 25,000, reflecting a nearly 49% increase compared to the same period in 2024. The UK government has announced a £100 million investment to deploy an additional 300 officers from the National Crime Agency to combat human smuggling [6].
Criticism of the scheme has come from various quarters. Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp has criticized the current plan compared to a previously proposed Rwanda removal strategy. The charity Asylum Matters has criticized the scheme, asserting that the only viable solution to prevent perilous crossings is to provide genuine safe routes for individuals seeking asylum [7].
In summary, the scheme is operational but in its early stages, with ambitions to improve returns and reduce dangerous Channel crossings, but its overall effectiveness remains unproven as of August 2025 [1][2][3][5].
[1] BBC News. (2025, August 5). Channel migrant returns: UK and France to launch pilot scheme. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58114081
[2] The Guardian. (2025, August 5). UK and France launch Channel migrant returns pilot scheme. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/05/uk-and-france-launch-channel-migrant-returns-pilot-scheme
[3] Home Office. (2025, August). UK-France Migrant Return Pilot Scheme. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-france-migrant-return-pilot-scheme
[4] The Independent. (2025, August 5). UK and France launch 'one-in, one-out' migrant return pilot scheme. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/channel-migrant-returns-pilot-scheme-b2159904.html
[5] The Telegraph. (2025, August 10). Channel migrant returns: UK-France pilot scheme 'too early to tell' if it will work, says expert. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/08/10/channel-migrant-returns-ukfrance-pilot-scheme-early-tell-expert/
[6] The Times. (2025, August 12). UK to spend £100m on extra border police to tackle Channel migrant crisis. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/uk-to-spend-100m-on-extra-border-police-to-tackle-channel-migrant-crisis-7k6c5j88m
[7] The New European. (2025, August 15). Asylum Matters slams 'one-in, one-out' Channel migrant returns pilot scheme. https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/news/home-news/asylum-matters-slams-one-in-one-out-channel-migrant-returns-pilot-scheme-1-10026692
- The 'one-in, one-out' migrant return pilot scheme, a collaboration between the UK and France, has initiated operations, marking a significant venture in policy-and-legislation, specifically within crime-and-justice and general-news spheres.
- The UK government's announcement of a £100 million investment to combat human smuggling, as part of the escalating crime-and-justice issue related to migration, is a crucial facet of their overall migration policy-and-legislation strategy.
