Will UK-France migrant swap deal stop the small boats?

LONDON - With soaring numbers of migrants arriving in Britain on small boats from France, the government is testing a new "one in, one out" scheme to crack down on the illegal crossings.

The first deportations under the agreement have begun, but at a slower pace than anticipated due to legal challenges.

More than 31,000 people have crossed the English Channel illegally in small boats this year, a 38% rise on the same period in 2024.

The new scheme allows Britain to detain people who arrive this way and send them back to France. In return, Britain will accept an equal number of asylum seekers who apply from France through a new legal route.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is under intense pressure to end small boat arrivals as populist Nigel Farage's anti-immigrant Reform UK party surges ahead in opinion polls.

How will it work?

Migrants in France who want to come to Britain must apply for the new legal route online and will be subject to security checks.

Priority will be given to nationalities accounting for high numbers of Channel crossings and those most likely to be granted asylum. Preference will be given to people who have previously spent time in Britain, who may be more likely to integrate.

After arriving in the UK, successful applicants will have three months to make an asylum claim.

Nationalities with currently high asylum-recognition rates include Sudanese, Syrians and Eritreans.

However, anyone who has previously tried to make a small boat crossing will be barred from applying for the new scheme.

Contrary to widespread media reports, applicants do not have to have links to family in Britain.

How will people be returned to France?

Britain started detaining migrants in early August shortly after striking the deal with France.

Under the treaty, Britain must make a request to return an individual within 14 days of his or her arrival.

France does not have to accept unaccompanied minors or people who pose a security threat.

Britain will pay for the flights of both the migrants it sends back to France and those it takes in return.

The government, which has said the experiment will start small, has not set any targets for the number of returns.

Rights group Medical Justice says many of those already detained are survivors of torture and trafficking.

Doesn't the UK have to hear asylum claims?

Britain cannot refuse to hear asylum claims, but it can declare them inadmissible if the person has passed through a country en route to Britain that is considered safe - even if they have fled war or persecution at home.

Some Mediterranean nations have opposed the "one in, one out" deal, fearing France could send migrants back to the countries through which they first entered Europe.

Will it work?

Britain says the scheme will help break the business model of organised crime gangs that facilitate the crossings and will save lives.

More than 70 people died trying to cross last year, five times more than in the previous year.

Critics say the "one in, one out" scheme is too limited to act as a deterrent, but Starmer's government says it is part of a wider plan that includes sanctioning those accused of involvement in people smuggling and clamping down on migrants working illegally, particularly in the gig economy, which is perceived as a draw.

The government will also continue to work with other countries like Albania, Nigeria and Vietnam to take back nationals who have no right to stay.

Britain and France will jointly monitor and fine-tune the "one in, one out" scheme during the pilot phase, which runs until June 2026, before taking a long-term decision.

What's the wider background?

The arrival of people on small boats has been a headache for successive British governments since late 2018.

The rise in crossings followed the tightening of security around French ports and the Eurotunnel to prevent people stowing away on trucks and ferries or boarding trains.

France has previously refused to take back small boat arrivals.

"This is something Britain has been chasing since 2021," said Mihnea Cuibus, a researcher with the Migration Observatory based at Oxford University.

"It's diplomatically and politically a success for the government, but the big question now becomes logistics."

The scheme has already been hit by legal challenges with an Eritrean asylum seeker winning a High Court bid to temporarily block his removal.

This article was updated on Friday 19 September 2025 at 11:58AM with the latest developments.

(Reporting by Emma Batha; Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst.)