Asylum seekers could be charged about £10,000 for their support. The Home Office has not said what it would raise

A flat charge of around £10,000. On 30 June 2026 the Home Office announced that adults who have received asylum support, such as subsistence or accommodation, will be required to pay towards it if they have the means. The press release says they are “expected to have to pay a total sum of around £10,000”, which the Home Secretary will be able to adjust.

How it would work. From the press release and the Bill’s impact assessment:

• It covers support given under section 95 and section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Children are exempt, and further exemptions, including for victims of modern slavery, are left to secondary legislation.
• Adults would pay an amount each month above a set threshold. The threshold will not be set at a level that could make someone destitute.
• Payment would be direct to the Home Office, with deductions from Universal Credit also provided for. Recovery through HMRC is proposed, but the impact assessment records it as awaiting final clearance.
• The charge must be paid in full before a person can apply to settle. Anyone who leaves the UK would have to pay it before returning.
• It applies only to people who claim asylum after the measure comes into force, so nobody in the system today would pay it.

What it would raise is not stated. The impact assessment lists the benefit as “non-monetised”: it puts no figure on how much would come back. The flat rate and the thresholds are to be set later in regulations.

Set against the cost. The Home Office told the Home Affairs Committee that in April 2026 it cost £25 a night to house a person in dispersal housing and £199 in a hotel. On those figures, £10,000 is roughly 400 nights in dispersal housing, or about 50 in a hotel. That is our arithmetic, not a Home Office figure, and the charge is flat: it does not rise with the support someone actually received.

Where the Bill is. The Immigration and Asylum Bill had its second reading in the House of Commons on 13 July 2026 and began its committee stage on 15 September 2026.

What asylum seekers are paid now: how much do asylum seekers get a week. What their housing costs: how much does an asylum hotel cost per night.

Sources: Home Office, asylum seekers will pay towards costs of accommodation, 30 June 2026. Home Office, Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026 impact assessment, 30 June 2026. UK Parliament, Immigration and Asylum Bill. Anna Turley MP, letter to the Home Affairs Committee, 26 August 2026. Open Government Licence v3.0 and Open Parliament Licence.