Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is preparing to unveil a major overhaul of the UK’s immigration and asylum rules later this month after sending senior Home Office officials to study Denmark’s approach. The Danish system — regarded as among the toughest in Europe — has tightened family-reunification rules, limited many successful asylum grants to temporary status, and expanded grounds for expulsion. Denmark has driven successful asylum claims to a 40-year low (excluding 2020), and UK ministers say they want to reduce pull factors while making removals easier. The proposals come amid an intense political debate inside Labour about how far to follow Denmark’s model.
Key takeaways
- The Home Office dispatched officials to Copenhagen in October to examine Danish immigration measures being considered for the UK.
- Denmark restricts many refugees to temporary residence and revokes settlement when authorities judge the country of origin safe; the UK is weighing similar time-limited protections.
- Danish family-reunion rules include minimum age 24, a three-year non-claims-on-benefits requirement, financial guarantees and language tests; UK policy on family reunion was suspended in September pending new rules.
- Denmark has used voluntary return incentives reported to reach up to the equivalent of £24,000 in some cases; there is no sign the UK will match that level of payments.
- Denmark says it has reduced successful asylum claims to a 40-year low, with 2020 an exception because of pandemic travel limits.
- The proposal aims to reduce incentives that draw irregular migration while strengthening routes to remove people with no right to remain.
- Within Labour there is a split: some MPs call the Danish route too hardline, while others argue tougher rules are necessary to neutralise political threats from Reform UK.
Background
Labour’s Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, publicly pledged at the party conference in September to “do whatever it takes” to regain control of Britain’s borders. That promise reflected intense political pressure: Reform UK leads some polls, and migration remains a central voter concern in many marginal constituencies. Denmark, a Social Democrat-led government, has pursued hardline measures that appear to have reasserted centre-left control by addressing voters’ immigration concerns while allowing progressive domestic agendas to proceed.
The Danish package combines legal changes, procedural tightening and incentives for voluntary return. Politically, Copenhagen has argued the changes protect social cohesion in a country with a population under 6 million — roughly a tenth of the UK’s. Practically, Danish rules now link settlement and family-reunion rights to conditions such as employment, age thresholds and documented self-sufficiency. That mix draws attention in London because it offers both operational tools and a messaging model for centre-left governments.
Main event
In late October senior Home Office officials visited Denmark to examine specific measures: temporary rather than permanent asylum status for many refugees, stricter family-reunion criteria, higher thresholds for settlement and streamlined grounds for expulsion. Danish minister Rasmus Stoklund, of the Social Democrats, told visiting UK officials Copenhagen has tightened laws, made expulsions more frequent for criminality and limited family reunion in multiple ways.
Denmark now requires refugee sponsors and joining partners to be at least 24 years old, bars reunion for households in designated “parallel societies” (areas where more than half the residents are classed as non-Western), demands a three-year period without benefit claims by the sponsor, a financial guarantee, and a Danish-language test. UK officials are reported to be closely examining which components could be transplanted to British law.
The BBC notes there is no firm indication the UK will adopt Denmark’s reported practice of offering substantial cash packages — sometimes reported up to the equivalent of £24,000 — to encourage voluntary return. Mahmood is said to favour measures that reduce pull factors and speed removals, but ministers acknowledge practical and legal constraints in the UK context, including different population size, language prevalence and migration routes such as small boats crossings.
Analysis & implications
If the UK adopts elements of the Danish model, the immediate aim would be twofold: lower the number of successful asylum claims and increase the rate and speed of removals for those judged not to have a right to stay. Time-limited protection shifts the default away from permanent settlement, which can reduce long-term welfare and housing costs but raises legal and ethical questions about the stability of families and integration prospects.
Stricter family-reunion tests — age floors, benefit-history checks, financial guarantees and language requirements — are likely to reduce arrivals through that route. Policymakers argue such rules discourage sham marriages and forced unions, but critics say they risk separating families and disproportionately affecting vulnerable people who lack resources to meet new thresholds.
There are legal and human-rights trade-offs. Denmark faces similar debates about the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the limits it places on deportation. UK ministers have said they do not want to leave the ECHR but are interested in reforms that might ease removals; any change in legal architecture would be complex, politically sensitive and subject to court scrutiny.
Politically, a Danish-style hardening could blunt the appeal of right-wing challengers by addressing voter concerns, a dynamic cited by some Labour ministers and campaigners. However, an excessively restrictive tilt risks alienating the party’s progressive base and advocacy groups, potentially producing electoral backlash in different constituencies.
Comparison & data
| Policy area | Denmark (selected features) | UK (current/under review) |
|---|---|---|
| Asylum status | Many grants limited to temporary residence; revocation when origin deemed safe | Permanent settlement common; Home Office exploring time-limited protections |
| Family reunion | Minimum age 24, 3-year benefits rule, financial guarantee, language test | Scheme suspended in Sept; pre-Sept rules exempted some income/English tests |
| Voluntary return | Incentives sometimes up to ~£24,000 (equivalent) in reported cases | No indication UK will match large cash packages |
| Recent trend | Successful asylum claims at a 40-year low (excluding 2020) | UK claims and small-boat crossings remain politically salient |
The table highlights core differences and areas of overlap. Denmark’s approach relies on legal tightening plus operational measures to increase returns; the UK faces logistical challenges in applying identical measures because migration routes, language context and scale differ. Any UK policy translation will require legal assessments, resource planning for returns, and consideration of international obligations.
Reactions & quotes
Denmark’s immigration minister framed his country’s recent changes as practical tightening to protect social cohesion and increase returns, a message pitched to visiting UK officials as a potential model to study.
“We have tightened our laws in many ways. We return more people back home and made family reunification more difficult,”
Rasmus Stoklund, Danish Minister for Immigration and Integration (official)
Back in the UK, some Labour MPs warn a Danish-style shift risks adopting rhetoric associated with far-right parties, while others argue it neutralised a toxic political issue and allowed progressive domestic policies to proceed.
“Denmark’s approach is, in parts, a hardcore route that echoes far-right talking points,”
Clive Lewis, Labour MP (parliamentary critic)
Conversely, MPs in Labour’s Red Wall contingent press for tougher action to avoid electoral losses to Reform UK and say clearer, stricter rules could be politically necessary.
“If we do not strengthen policy, Labour could be punished in many seats by a rising Reform challenge,”
Jo White, organiser of Red Wall Labour MPs (party representative)
Unconfirmed
- There is no confirmed decision that the UK will offer cash packages similar to Denmark’s reported payments (up to ~£24,000) for voluntary return.
- Details of any specific legal changes to the UK’s use of time-limited protection or settlement thresholds have not been finalised publicly and remain under internal Home Office review.
- Any review of the European Convention on Human Rights in relation to deportations is reported as under discussion but the shape and timetable of potential changes are unconfirmed.
Bottom line
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s engagement with Denmark signals a potential move toward stricter, more conditional immigration rules that emphasise temporary protection, tougher family-reunion tests and increased returns. The proposals aim to address electoral and operational pressures: cutting incentives for irregular migration while seeking tools to remove those with no lawful right to stay.
Transplanting Danish measures to the UK will not be straightforward. Legal constraints, differences in migration routes and scale, and internal party divisions mean ministers will likely adopt a selective approach rather than a wholesale import. Parliament, courts and campaign groups can be expected to scrutinise any changes intensely once the Home Office publishes proposals later this month.
Sources
- BBC — “UK seeks inspiration from Denmark to shake up immigration system” (media report, BBC)
- BBC Radio 4 — “Immigration: the Danish Way” programme listing (broadcast schedule)
- Danish Ministry publications and statements (official government materials)