- Latest edition of The mental health of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK highlights huge economic, social and health costs of the ban on asylum seekers working.
- Allowing asylum seekers to work after six months would save the country £4.4 billion in government expenditure, grow the economy by £1 billion, reduce the mental health impacts of worklessness and destitution on asylum seekers, promote better integration, and allow less dependence on taxpayer support.
Asylum seekers waiting longer than six months for their claim to be processed must be given the right to work if the UK is to address its ongoing asylum and economic crises, the Mental Health Foundation has said. The warning comes as the charity releases the latest edition of its report The mental health of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK, which now covers the new UK government’s actions since the 2024 General Election.
The Foundation, which supports asylum seekers and refugees with their mental health through programmes across the UK, is highlighting findings showing the detrimental impacts on asylum seekers of not allowing them to work, including a loss of self-esteem, loneliness, and an increased risk of depression. This results in a greater likelihood of asylum seekers having to use already oversubscribed NHS mental health services in the future.
Currently, asylum seekers are only granted the right to work after 12 months in specific circumstances, and even then are limited to jobs on the Immigration Salary List, which in reality rarely gives asylum seekers the ability to work.
Changing these rules to allow working after six months, with no restriction on the type of jobs, would bring £4.4 billion in government savings, made by reducing the number of asylum seekers dependent on the state, deliver an estimated £1 billion in growth to GDP, and raise £880 million in new tax revenue. [See note 1 to editors.]
Ishmail Yambasu, a refugee who was a social worker in Sierra Leone before he had to flee the country, told us about his experiences of being denied permission to work while he was an asylum seeker. Ishmail said:
“I came here with over 10 years’ experience as a social worker. When I arrived, I wanted to work and to contribute, I wanted to help and give back. But instead, I was forced to rely on just £49.18 a week. My hands were tied because I wasn’t allowed to work. I struggled for food when I wasn’t working, I had to rely on charities and food banks. I wasn’t able to eat healthily - the doctors told me I wasn’t eating well enough, and my anxiety was getting worse.
“The right to work is not just the right to work. It’s the right to freedom for asylum seekers. It builds community – a social network – and allows asylum seekers to give back to society, so we can contribute to taxes and give back to the country. Everyone in my community wants to contribute.
“While I was an asylum seeker, my dream was to give back to the community as a social worker. Now I’ve been given refugee status, I’m doing my masters in Social Work and Welfare at Strathclyde University, and hope to get involved in the UK social work system in the future.”
Alongside the right to work, the charity is also calling for asylum seekers who are not in work to be given free access to bus travel. This is essential to allow them to build and maintain better connections with their communities and increase the chance they will be able to find employment. Asylum seekers and refugees also must be supported with improved English language lessons, to allow them to better integrate into society, achieve work, and help them support their own wellbeing.
Mark Rowland, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation, said:
“There is a clear-cut moral, economic, and public health case for giving asylum seekers the right to work after six months on the waiting list. As our latest report into the mental health of asylum seekers and refugees lays out, such a move would bring billions of pounds of economic benefits to the UK, reduce the strain on asylum seekers’ mental health, and build connections between asylum seekers and their new communities. Many of the arguments given in opposition to this change are based on myths and misunderstandings, most notably a non-existent ‘pull-factor’, while the benefits seem to be under-appreciated.
“Giving asylum seekers the right to work is a no-brainer. Everyone - from asylum seekers, to businesses, to the government, to the NHS, to our communities - benefits when asylum seekers are given the ability to support themselves. The current system, which is both harmful and expensive, cannot continue as it is.”
Mahdi Saki, a Refugees & Asylum Seeker Programme Development Officer at the Mental Health Foundation, who experienced the asylum system himself after fleeing Iran, said:
“As someone who waited four years for my asylum claim to be processed without permission to work, I now work alongside incredible asylum seekers and refugees who volunteer their time and effort in civic forums to make Scotland a better place.
“Every day I see the value asylum seekers want to add to our country, and the benefits that their work brings us all. It gives asylum seekers roots in the community and positively impacts their mental health. I’m also keenly aware of how damaging it can be for asylum seekers’ mental health when they’re denied the opportunity to contribute, and how their difficult financial situations can impact them. Giving asylum seekers the right to work after six months would be revolutionary.”
The latest edition of The mental health of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK also contains further recommendations for reforming the asylum system for the betterment of everyone, including changes to avoid re-traumatisation of asylum seekers, improving accommodation arrangements, and creating a more inclusive environment.
Notes to Editors
- Figures on the economic benefits of allowing asylum seekers to work after 6 months were calculated by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research. For more information, please get in touch.