The UK has deported an Indian national to France under the new "one-in, one-out" migrant return deal between the two countries. The deportation, confirmed by both the UK and French governments, marks the first removal under the agreement, which aims to curb illegal English Channel crossings.
The Indian national, who arrived in the UK via a small boat in August, was removed on a commercial flight to Paris. Upon return to France, he will be offered a voluntary repatriation scheme to India. Refusal to comply with the voluntary scheme would bar him from applying for asylum and could result in enforced removal.
UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood described the deportation as an "important first step" in securing the UK's borders. "It sends a message to people crossing in small boats: if you enter the UK illegally, we will seek to remove you," Mahmood stated. She added that the government would challenge "last-minute, vexatious" attempts in court to frustrate removals and emphasized that Britain would continue to provide refuge through "safe, legal, and managed routes – not dangerous crossings".
The "one-in, one-out" deal, agreed upon by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in July, allows the UK to return small-boat migrants to France if they are deemed ineligible for asylum, including those who have passed through a "safe country" to reach the UK. In return, the UK will accept an equal number of migrants from France who can apply for a UK visa via an online platform. The pilot scheme, which came into force in August and is set to run until June 2026, intends to ease the strain on Britain's asylum system and reduce the dependence on costly hotel accommodation. The first arrivals to the UK from France under this reciprocal route are expected in the coming days.
The UK Home Office indicated that further removals are expected in the coming weeks. Home Office officials said that the deported migrant would be offered voluntary return to India once in France. He cannot apply for asylum in the UK under the new scheme and may face enforced removal if he refuses voluntary return.
The implementation of the agreement has already faced legal challenges. Recently, the High Court blocked the removal of an Eritrean asylum seeker, who was scheduled to be deported, to allow his lawyers more time to provide evidence that he may have been a victim of modern-day slavery. Despite these challenges, the Home Secretary has made it clear that the Home Office will robustly defend legal challenges to removal. A rapid review of modern slavery legislation has commenced to prevent its misuse.
The returns agreement is part of a broader package of reforms aimed at fixing the UK's asylum system. Official data indicates that 2,715 Indian nationals were in UK immigration detention as of August, more than double the figure from the previous year. In the past year, over 35,000 people with no right to remain were removed from the UK, with returns of foreign criminals up 14% and asylum-related returns up 28%.
