The United Kingdom's "one in, one out" agreement with France, designed to return some migrants who crossed the English Channel by small boat, has been scrapped. The pilot scheme, which began just over a year ago, allowed the UK to send back a number of small boat arrivals while agreeing to accept an equivalent number of individuals from France who were deemed to have a legitimate claim to come to Britain.

This initiative was part of broader efforts by both nations to manage the significant increase in Channel crossings, which have become the most common route for illegal immigration into the UK since 2020. Under international law, most individuals arriving by small boat claim asylum and are permitted to remain in the UK while their applications are processed, a situation that has placed considerable strain on the UK's asylum system.

Since its inception, the scheme facilitated the removal of only around 1,500 people to France. The UK government acknowledged that while they would have preferred the scheme to continue, it did not achieve the desired scale of operations. A Home Office spokesperson stated that lessons learned from the pilot would be instrumental in accelerating efforts to remove small boat migrants who do not have the right to remain in the UK.

The UK government stated that the pilot with France for removing asylum seekers in exchange for an equal number of legal migrants is no longer processing new cases. However, deportation flights are expected to continue in the coming weeks to swiftly remove individuals without the right to stay in the UK. The spokesperson also indicated that collaboration with France to combat small boat crossings would persist, highlighting that significant progress has been made, with numbers down considerably compared to the previous year.

The French Interior Ministry confirmed to the BBC that discussions are underway with the British government regarding the terms for exiting the agreement. This development comes as statistics reveal a notable decrease in Channel crossings. Between January 1 and September 27 of the current year, 19,135 people crossed the Channel by small boat from France, a 42% reduction compared to the same period in the prior year.

Despite the overall reduction, the average number of people per boat has more than doubled since 2021, with boats arriving between September 2025 and September 2026 carrying an average of 67 people. Experts suggest this overcrowding increases the risks associated with the crossings. In 2024, at least 84 individuals died while attempting the perilous journey across the Channel, according to United Nations data.

Small boat arrivals constitute a significant portion of asylum applications in the UK, making up 40% of applications between July 2025 and June 2026. The government has pledged to dismantle the criminal networks responsible for facilitating these crossings as a primary strategy to reduce numbers. In addition to small boats, other methods of unauthorized entry, such as hiding in vehicles or travelling on ferries and through airports, also account for a substantial number of individuals entering the UK without permission.

Between July 2025 and June 2026, 4,712 individuals were detected entering the UK without permission through these alternative means, a decrease of 17% from the previous year. The figures also indicate that a considerable number of small boat arrivals are identified as potential victims of human trafficking or modern slavery, with at least 2,335 such cases recorded by the Home Office in the period from January to December 2025. Eritrea was identified as the country of origin for 18% of arrivals between July 2025 and June 2026.