Asylum in the UK — statistics for Ukraine
Ukraine nationals in the UK asylum system: how many apply, who gets protection, how long the wait is. Latest Home Office data for the year ending June 2026.
This is not legal advice. The numbers show what happens on average — your case may be different. For advice on your situation, ask an IAA‑accredited lawyer.
Ukrainian nationals mostly come to the UK under the Homes for Ukraine scheme (a separate route, not asylum). That is why their asylum numbers are relatively low. → More about Ukrainian schemes
How applications from Ukraine are changing
Year‑by‑year trend of main applicants (excluding family members). Helps to see whether the flow is growing or shrinking.
Applications per year, 2015–2025
Source: Home Office
Outcomes by year, 2019–2024
Source: Home Office
How long people wait for a decision
As of 31 June 2026, 76 people from Ukraine are waiting for an initial decision. Below is how long they have been waiting.
Distribution by waiting time
Source: Home Office
What happens after
Figures on outcomes and returns for 2025.
Case outcomes
How case outcomes break down for Ukraine — compared with the UK average and post‑Soviet countries.
Decisions on cases from Ukraine
830 initial decisions on 2025 cases
Another 39 cases were withdrawn — not counted in the 100
Source: Home Office, 2025 cases
Rank among the 12 countries
How Ukraine compares with the other post‑Soviet countries by number of applications.
Applications ranking, 2020–2025
Source: Home Office
Share of the total flow
Source: Home Office, 2025 applications
Frequently asked questions
How many Ukraine nationals apply for asylum in the UK?
In 2025 — 893. This is one of the largest sources of applications from post-Soviet countries. Full 10‑year chart above.
What is the success rate for Ukraine nationals?
According to Home Office data for 2025 — 7%. This is substantially below the UK average — most receive a refusal at initial decision.
How long do people typically wait for a decision?
As of 31 June 2026, 76 people from Ukraine are in the queue. Of these, roughly 37% have been waiting more than a year. The average UK decision time is 12–18 months.
What happens after a refusal for Ukraine nationals?
In 2025 the Home Office carried out 3 enforced and 176 voluntary returns to Ukraine. In parallel: refusals can be appealed to the Tribunal (14‑day deadline); about half of appeals succeed. → More at /en/asylum-support/appeals/
Where can I find a lawyer for Ukraine cases?
On the /en/database/lawyers/ page — filter by specialisation and language. Importantly: free legal aid (Legal Aid) is available to those at initial decision stage who have not been refused a financial eligibility check.
What this means
In 2025 Ukrainian citizens lodged 893 asylum claims — the highest of the 12 countries in this overview (28% of all claims) and a record for any year: 306 more than in 2024 (587). In the first half of 2026: 79.
Decisions are strict: 7% of claims made in 2025 were granted protection (59 of 830 initial decisions). Claims from that year are almost fully decided — 93% — so the figure is already stable. A refused asylum claim is not the only route: most Ukrainians in the UK hold separate visa-scheme statuses, which this statistic does not cover.
The queue is short — 76 cases as at 30 June 2026, 28 of which have waited over a year; counting children and spouses that is 125 people. In 2025, 176 people returned voluntarily and 3 were removed. 1,511 people received British citizenship — the second-highest of the 12 countries.
Where these numbers come from
All data on this page is official Home Office statistics (Immigration System Statistics, quarterly release; current cut — year ending June 2026).
We count main applicants — as in the release tables.
We don't recalculate or estimate anything — we show the official figures in plain words and update the page after every release.
Download the data: CSV (asylum) · CSV (citizenship) · CSV (returns) · JSON
Data: Home Office, release 27 August 2026 (year ending June 2026). Country source — Data_Asy_D01/D04/D03.