U.K. Government Issues Guidance Warning Asylum Seekers Not to Rape or Perform Female Genital Mutilation
The United Kingdom’s Home Office released guidance, informational pamphlets, and posters on Wednesday to inform asylum seekers of British laws against rape, female genital manipulation, and forced child marriage, among other things.
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A Home Office pamphlet titled “,” explains that women have equal rights to men and can make decisions about marriage, education, and work.
The new guidance comes as the U.K. struggles to assimilate asylum seekers from countries outside of the European Union, many of whom entered the country on small boats, and growing outrage about the “grooming gangs” that are largely formed of men with Pakistani or Muslim backgrounds.
In relaying basic cultural expectations to the newcomers, the authors of the Home Office guidance implicitly acknowledged the prevalence of objectionable practices among a significant portion of asylum seekers.
A pamphlet issued by the government explains that even a family member of a woman, like a husband or father or brother, may not prevent a woman from working, stop her from studying, “control” her clothing, restrict her free movement, prohibit her from seeing friends or family, or make decisions on her behalf without her consent.
A section of the new government guidance titled “sex and consent” explains that “rape” is “a serious crime” defined as “hav[ing] sex with someone without their consent.” The guidance explains that “consent” requires both people to agree freely without pressure or threats, and that consent can be rescinded. It further explains that a person who is asleep, drunk, or unable to respond is incapable of consenting, and that a person under age 16 is unable to consent to sex.
In a section titled “respect in public,” the government explains that “you must treat others with respect, even if you disagree with their beliefs or how they live.”
“When you are in public spaces, alone or with friends, you must never: [1] make sexual comments to someone, even if you think it is a compliment, [2] whistle or make kissing noises at someone, [3] follow someone or block their path, [4] make rude or offensive gestures, [and 5] verbally abuse someone because of their gender, religion, or how they look,” says the pamphlet.
A pamphlet titled “” warns against corporal punishment, leaving infants unattended, child neglect, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and child pornography.
Another pamphlet explains that “” encompasses “sexual abuse,” which is when someone is “making you do sexual things you do not want to do (this is wrong even if you are married),” and “honour-based violence,” which is when someone is “hurting you because your family says you have brought shame (this includes forced marriage and female genital mutilation).”
The new guidance comes just more than a year after the United Kingdom released the “Casey Report” on child sexual exploitation by “grooming gangs,” which found that South Asian men are significantly overrepresented among the groups of men who sexually exploit vulnerable young girls. The Rape Gang Inquiry Report — a crowd-funded independent investigation led by Member of Parliament Rupert Lowe — published in June found evidence of the gangs operating in at least 149 local authority districts across the U.K.
In a titled “Choosing where to stay as an asylum seeker,” the government describes the benefits of residing with family or friends who are already living in the United Kingdom. It states that the advantages include living closer to people you already know, potentially receiving government money weekly if eligible, cooking your own food, and feeling more at home.
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While the government tells asylum seekers of the advantages from staying with friends or family, some asylum seekers are provided with housing and a weekly stipend by the British government, which has contracted hotels and apartment buildings across the country. The government reported that there were just over 36,000 asylum seekers housed in hotels as of September, 2025. The Home Office and Ministry of Justice spent around £4.9 billion on asylum in 2024-2025, of which about £2.7 billion went towards accommodation.
In addition to the guidance booklets, the British government also published six one-page posters to relay the message to new arrivals.
“Sex or sexual contact with anyone under the age of 16 is a serious crime in the UK,” about the age of consent. It continues, “Even if they look older, or it is allowed in another country, you must never have sex with anyone under 16.”
The illustration on the flyer is a passport of a girl “Janine Cooper” with the “British Citizen” nationality and a birthdate of April 17, 2010, which would be about 16 years and four months old as of today and therefore capable of consenting to sex under the law.
warns against mutilating female genitals, a common practice in certain parts of Africa. The U.K. government estimated in 2024 that some 137,000 women and girls living in the United Kingdom have been subjected to genital mutilation, while another 60,000 girls under the age of 15 are currently at risk.
The poster explains that “you must never. . . cut or harm a girl’s genitals (known as female genital mutilation).” The poster about consent and rape states that “” if you are married or in a relationship with the person, or if the person previously agreed but changed their mind.
The posters about , , , and suggest that committing such crimes could lead to consequences for an individual’s status as an asylum seeker and/or received government benefits. By contrast, only the posters about and explain that “you could go to prison” and “this will affect your asylum claim.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who was elected as leader of the Labor Party just last month, defended the new government guidance.
“It’s made explicitly clear what the UK law is and what the societal norms of the UK are, and that’s why this approach is being taken,” he said.
Burnham also said that the government has increased deportations. The Home Office disclosed on Thursday that it had deported more than 80,000 people between July 1, 2024 and July 31, 2026.
For the year ending in March 2026, roughly 94,000 people claimed asylum. There were about 29,000 voluntary returns and nearly 10,000 forced returns, though those people are not necessarily among the 94,000 who claimed asylum that year.
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