UK records over 22000 asylum-seeking Nigerians Between 2010 and 2024
Between 2010 and 2024, the United Kingdom Home Office received a total of 22,619 asylum applications from Nigerian nationals.
Nigerians accounted for approximately one in every 30 asylum claims during this period, placing them 11th on the Home Office’s newly published year-end Asylum and Resettlement statistics.
The number of Nigerian applicants nearly doubled in 2024, rising from 1,462 in 2023 to 2,841 in 2024. That year also marked the highest volume of asylum applications to the UK on record, with a total of 108,138 individuals applying, representing a 378% increase since 2010. Most of these were first-time applicants from South Asian and Middle Eastern countries.
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Iran topped the list with 75,737 asylum seekers, driven largely by the intensifying persecution of political dissidents. Pakistan followed with 57,621 applications, including 10,542 in 2024 alone—a surge linked to post-election instability, rampant inflation, and a rise in blasphemy-related prosecutions, which human rights organizations argue constitute strong grounds for asylum.
Afghanistan ranked third, with 54,363 applications filed since 2010. In 2024 alone, 8,508 Afghans sought asylum in the UK, reflecting continued displacement following the Taliban’s 2022 ousting of the Karzai government. That crisis triggered 11,358 Afghan asylum claims in 2022 and another 9,710 in 2023.
Other Leading Sources of UK Asylum Claims Include Albania, Iraq, and Eritrea
Albania (50,944), Iraq (45,711), Eritrea (37,687), Syria (34,997), and Bangladesh (31,744) also featured prominently among the top sources of asylum applications to the UK. Notably, the number of Bangladeshi asylum seekers rose from 5,097 in 2023 to 7,225 in 2024—a spike that aligned with the ousting of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Sudan and India completed the top ten, with 30,897 and 30,179 applications, respectively.
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Nigeria, with 22,619 filings, ranked just ahead of Sri Lanka’s 22,059 and above countries like Vietnam, China, and Turkey. Nations such as Brazil, Kuwait, Yemen, Colombia, and Jordan appeared lower on the list, each recording fewer than 6,500 claims over the 14-year span.
According to the UK Home Office, asylum applicants must show a “well-founded fear of persecution” based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group, as defined under British law.
For Nigerian nationals, the majority of applications reportedly cite political persecution—often related to Nigeria’s expansive cybercrimes law—or discrimination based on sexual orientation, both of which are recognized under the Refugee Convention’s criteria.
Initial asylum decisions are made by the Home Office, with the right to appeal negative outcomes to the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.
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