Amnesty International and GAPS Call for Reform as Afghan Refugee Acceptance Rates Plummet in the UK

Amnesty International and the Gender Action Group (GAPS) have issued a joint report criticizing the steep decline in the acceptance rate of Afghan refugees in the UK, calling for an end to London’s stringent policies against women and girls from Afghanistan. Recent statistics reveal a drop in approval rates from 96% to an alarming 34% this year.

​The Refugee Admissions Crisis: Unprecedented Decline in the UK

On April 16, Amnesty International and the Gender Action Group for Peace and Security (GAPS) released a report that sharply criticized the UK government’s immigration policies. According to the findings, the acceptance rate for Afghan asylum requests in the UK has plummeted from a previous 96% to an unprecedented 34%. The organizations emphasized that hundreds of Afghan women’s asylum requests were denied by relevant authorities in the UK during the year 2025 alone.

​Contradictions Between Gender Restrictions and Diplomatic Responses

This report emerges at a time when women and girls in Afghanistan are facing some of the most severe gender restrictions in the world. The joint report states that the denial of the right to education, banned employment, and widespread restrictions on freedom of movement have placed women’s lives in Afghanistan at serious risk. Human rights activists contend that in such dire circumstances, the closure of legal pathways for asylum by the UK has essentially deprived this vulnerable group of security and justice.

​Criticism of London’s Stringent Immigration Policies

The human rights organizations warn that the new and stringent immigration policies in London are directly targeting those who are most in need of international support. They argue that by dramatically reducing acceptance rates, the UK has effectively closed its doors to women and girls fleeing serious threats. The statement concludes with a call for London officials to promptly end this escalating approach that hinders Afghan women’s access to their right to seek asylum and to uphold their humanitarian commitments.