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Sir Keir Starmer’s government has stopped issuing fast-track visas to people coming from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the first time Britain has imposed a visa ban on a country over migrant returns.
In November, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmoud warned DR Congo, along with Angola and Namibia, that they would face visa penalties if they did not improve cooperation in returning failed asylum seekers and foreign criminals.
According to the UK government, while Angola and Namibia agreed to improve their processes, DR Congo failed to do so.
As a result, fast-track visa processing services, which allow people to pay a fee to obtain expedited work, study, and travel visas, have been canceled for all citizens of the country.
DR Congo’s senior decision makers and VIPs will also be stripped of their right to preferential migration rules, and will instead have to apply for visas in the same manner as other citizens.
Mahmoud warned DR Congo that unless cooperation rapidly improves, further sanctions will be imposed, including potentially stopping the issue of visas for all DR Congo citizens.
“We expect countries to play by the rules. If any of their citizens don’t have the right to be here, they have to take them back,” he said.
She added, “I thank Angola and Namibia and welcome their cooperation. Now is the time for the Democratic Republic of the Congo to do the right thing. Take back your citizens or lose the privilege of entering our country.”
The restrictions reflect visa restrictions and travel bans imposed on nearly 40 countries by US President Donald Trump since he took office earlier this year. In his pre-Christmas address, Trump expanded the list by easing some sanctions on countries, including Turkmenistan, citing “significant progress” in his relations with Washington.
The UK visa ban is part of a raft of measures introduced by the Labor government over the past few months as it tries to convince the public it has a practical plan to reduce small boat traffic into Britain.
These measures include ending asylum seekers’ automatic right to residence and increasing the period they typically have to wait before receiving permanent settlement, from five to 20 years.
Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has called on British diplomats to take a more “transactional approach” to illegal migration, with embassies and high commissions playing a role in the government’s efforts to reduce migration to Britain.
The intervention comes at the end of a year in which transit by small boats in Britain has surged, with about 41,500 people traveling across the Channel so far this year, up from 36,800 last year.
The total number is still lower than in 2022, when a record 45,774 people arrived on small boats.
The move to impose visa restrictions is the first time Britain has invoked the powers, introduced into law in 2022 under the previous Conservative government.
