In response to the recent crisis in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover, the UK Home Office announced that protection will be provided for vulnerable Afghans fleeing the country. Under the new resettlement programme, the UK is planning to welcome up to 5,000 people in the first year and up to 20,000 individuals in the long term. This programme will be similar to Syrian vulnerable persons resettlement scheme under which 20,000 Syrian refugees have been successfully resettled in the UK between 2014 and 2021.
We understand that the priority will be given to women, girls, children, and other individuals in need who are most likely to be victims of human rights abuses and ill-treatment by the Taliban forces.
This new scheme is not yet open and as at today we do not have any precise details as to how it will be put in practise.
This is in addition to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) which is currently in operation from April 2021. Under this policy any current or former locally employed staff who worked for the UK Government and who are assessed to be under serious threat to life are being relocated to the UK regardless of their employment status, rank or role, or length of time served. There have been over 2,000 Afghans already resettled in the UK under this policy since June 2021.