Britain will initially admit hundreds of refugees through its reopened resettlement scheme and three new sponsorship routes, with the government saying the total could eventually grow into the low thousands as illegal migration falls.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood reopened the UK Resettlement Scheme for new referrals on Monday, 28 September. The first arrivals are expected before the end of 2026, while an annual cap will limit the number admitted.
Hundreds First, Low Thousands Later
The Home Office said the projected numbers cover both the UK Resettlement Scheme and three new community sponsorship routes for refugees.
Total arrivals will initially number in the hundreds. The government says that figure will increase into the low thousands as levels of illegal migration decline, directly linking the expansion of safe and legal routes to its wider immigration strategy.
A new cap will be set each year, meaning the scheme does not come with an unlimited commitment on future admissions.
Mahmood said the government would work with the United Nations to take vulnerable refugees from camps around the world and offer them a new life in Britain.
The UK Resettlement Scheme differs from the asylum process faced by people who reach Britain independently. Refugees are identified and referred before travelling to the UK through established processes involving the UN Refugee Agency and International Refugee Assistance Project.
This Government will reopen the UK Resettlement Route in partnership with the United Nations.
— Shabana Mahmood MP (@ShabanaMahmood) September 28, 2026
We will take vulnerable refugees from camps across the world and give them the chance of a new and better life here in Britain.
With the first arrivals beginning this year. pic.twitter.com/xYfy9j4EQb
Afghan Women And Palestinians Among Referrals
Around one in four referrals under the reopened scheme are expected to be Afghan women and girls and Palestinian refugees fleeing war and persecution.
Referrals reopened immediately in partnership with local authorities.
The government is also preparing three sponsorship routes covering communities, universities and employers.
Charities and non-profit organisations will be able to apply from October to sponsor refugees through a community route, while universities will be able to sponsor refugee students. The first arrivals through both routes are expected in autumn 2027.
Applications for companies wishing to participate in a refugee work sponsorship route will open in spring 2027, with arrivals expected later that year.
Sponsors will be responsible for accommodation, integration support and helping refugees find employment, which the Home Office says will reduce pressure on councils.
Five-Year Route To Permanent Settlement
People admitted through the reopened and new legal routes will be placed on a five-year path to permanent settlement.
The government explicitly describes that arrangement as more generous than the treatment planned for people arriving by small boat or other illegal means. It says the distinction is designed to discourage irregular journeys while encouraging capped legal alternatives.
The reopening comes after the UK Resettlement Scheme stopped accepting new referrals in December 2024.
Official figures show 543 people arrived through the UK Resettlement Scheme and Mandate Scheme during 2025, while thousands more were resettled through separate Afghan programmes.
The Home Office says more than 48,000 attempted small-boat crossings have been prevented since the general election and that more than 80,000 people without a right to remain have been removed since July 2024.
For prospective refugees, the immediate numbers remain relatively small. The more consequential change is the government's plan to expand legal resettlement into the low thousands if illegal migration continues to fall.
