An undercover BBC investigation has exposed a shadow industry of advisers and some lawyers charging migrants thousands of pounds to manufacture asylum claims based on sexual orientation.
Reporters who posed as international students from Pakistan and Bangladesh with expiring visas recorded advisers offering fabricated cover stories and instructions for producing false supporting evidence—such as letters, photographs and medical notes—to back claims that the applicants would be persecuted if returned home.
The Home Office said it will take action against anyone exploiting the system and stressed that the asylum process has safeguards to ensure claims are thoroughly assessed.
What the investigation found
– One firm quoted up to £7,000 to put together a knowingly fabricated asylum claim and told the reporter the chance of refusal was “very low.”
– Advisers accompanied clients to GPs and coached them to say they were depressed; one was advised to claim he had HIV to obtain supporting medical evidence.
– An adviser said she had more than 17 years’ experience in producing false claims and could arrange for people to pretend to have had sexual relationships with applicants.
– A reporter was told that after obtaining asylum he could bring his wife to the UK and then be coached to turn her into a false lesbian claimant.
– A lawyer associated with another firm said he had helped people pose as gay or atheist, offering to draft a fake claim for about £1,500 and charge an additional £2,000–£3,000 to create evidence.
Claims and community events
At an east London LGBT event promoted by a group called Worcester LGBT, an undercover reporter was told by several attendees that many people present were not actually gay. The reporter first made contact with Mazedul Hasan Shakil, a paralegal at Law & Justice Solicitors and the founder/chairman of Worcester LGBT, and then communicated with an organiser identified as Tanisa Khan.
Tanisa outlined how applicants could prepare for Home Office interviews by learning a rehearsed narrative and submitting a “comprehensive package” of evidence: photos from clubs and pride events, tickets, organisational letters and statements purporting to describe personal relationships. She quoted a fee of £2,500, warning costs could rise if a claim was refused and required an appeal, and suggested attending group meetings to obtain membership letters she said carried weight. She also said she could influence scenarios once relatives were brought to the UK.
Regulation, office use and firm responses
Tanisa is not a regulated immigration adviser; it is illegal in the UK to provide immigration advice without appropriate regulation. She told the reporter she worked with lawyers who would “show the way” while she handled the fieldwork. Meetings took place in private settings and were sometimes held in Law & Justice offices. The firm said it had passed the reporter’s details to Tanisa without knowing she would propose fabricating claims and said it was investigating unauthorised access to its office.
At Connaught Law in London, a senior legal adviser, named in the investigation, told the undercover reporter he could advise on where to go to obtain photos and offered to find someone to pose as a partner, charging about £7,000.
Legal and ethical concerns
Experienced immigration lawyers warned the practices recorded are illegal and damaging to genuine asylum seekers. Ana Gonzalez, an immigration lawyer with three decades’ experience, described the deliberate manufacture of claims as fraud and said it undermines credibility in sexual-orientation cases, where evidence is often subjective and relies on how convincing the applicant appears.
Community groups
Worcester LGBT’s public material says it supports genuine gay asylum seekers; the group said it is investigating the conduct of the organiser identified in the footage and denied any institutional endorsement of fabricated evidence. Other community groups, including the Muslim LGBT Network, reported being targeted by people seeking letters of support and said some approaches explicitly stated the applicant was not gay but wanted to remain in the UK.
Scale and official statistics
It is difficult to quantify how many asylum applications are fabricated. Home Office data for 2023 show there were 3,430 initial decisions on LGBT-related asylum claims and nearly 1,400 new claims lodged on grounds of sexual orientation. Pakistani nationals made up 42% of those sexuality-based claims, despite representing a much smaller share of overall asylum applications; they were the largest nationality for such claims in each of the previous five years. Home Office statisticians have recorded a rise in asylum claims from Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian nationals who originally came on study or work visas. In 2023, nearly two-thirds of sexual-orientation claims were granted at the initial stage.
Personal accounts
One man, identified only as Ali in the investigation, said a lawyer advised him to claim to be gay when his student visa expired. He was told to obtain GP letters indicating depression and to gather photos at pride events and clubs. After an initial refusal and costly appeals, his legal costs topped £10,000. He returned to Pakistan in 2019 but said three friends later obtained asylum after making false sexuality claims.
Home Office response and aftermath
The Home Office said making an asylum claim involving deception is a criminal offence that can lead to imprisonment and deportation, and called misuse of protections for genuine victims “deplorable.” The department said it actively works to detect abuse and reviews procedures to prevent exploitation.
After the BBC showed footage to those recorded, the organiser denied advising falsification of claims and said some communications were misunderstood. The paralegal who had been named denied the group created or supported fabricated evidence and said an investigation was under way. One firm said the reporter was never a client.
The investigation suggests some advisers are exploiting pressures and recent changes in the immigration system by encouraging rushed or fabricated applications. Those who offered coaching often urged potential clients not to delay applying and to refer others in need of help.
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