New statistics published by the Home Office this morning show that 4,232 more asylum seekers were staying in hotels at the end of September 2025 compared to June 2025.
Thousands more asylum seekers were housed in hotels over the summer, official data shows.
This means that a total of 36,273 asylum seekers were being accommodated in hotels across the country, an increase of 13 percent over the summer.
It is not clear what the number is currently as of today.
The numbers are also higher than at the end of September last year, when 35,628 asylum seekers were in hotels.
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New figures published today reveal that 898,000 people came to the UK in the year ending June 2025, while 693,000 people emigrated out of the country.
This means that net migration – the overall total of immigration and emigration – stands at 204,000 people, which is the lowest figure since 2021.
It is also down 69 percent, more than two-thirds, from 649,000 net migration the year prior.
An exodus of 252,000 Brits out of the country has also contributed to the fall in net migration.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who vowed to close every single asylum hotel, said: ‘Net migration is at its lowest level in half a decade and has fallen by more than two-thirds under this government.
‘But we are going further because the pace and scale of migration has placed immense pressure on local communities.
‘Last week, I announced reforms to our migration system to ensure that those who come here must contribute and put in more than they take out.’
The government also confirmed there are now fewer than 200 hotels being used to house asylum seekers.
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A spokesperson for the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants said net migration numbers should not be treated as a ‘crisis’ or as ‘something to celebrate.’
They continued: ‘But the government treats it as both, stoking a panic of its own making.
‘Some politicians and media outlets have spread misinformation and falsehoods and sought to scapegoat migrants for their own ends.
‘This fixation is a distraction at its core and keeps migration at the centre of debate while real issues are pushed aside.
‘While they talk about numbers, people are living with crumbling housing, rising prices and a cost of living crisis that deepens each month.
‘We need to stop playing along with the hate. Movement is human. People move. We always have, and we always will.’
The Home Office’s data also reveal that 111,651 people are now receiving taxpayer-funded asylum support, up nearly 5,600 in three months.
This is below the peak of just under 124,000 hit in September 2023.
The majority, more than 71,000, are being housed in other forms of accommodation which are not hotels.
Asylum seekers moving into hotels have sparked demonstrations across the country.
In August, protests erupted in Bristol, Exeter, Tamworth, Cannock, Nuneaton, Liverpool, Wakefield, Newcastle, Horley, Canary Wharf, Aberdeen and Perth in Scotland, and Mold in Wales.
The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, became the center of heated and at times violent anti-immigration protests over the summer after an asylum seeker staying there was charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, an Ethiopian national, was jailed for a year in September before being mistakenly freed and placed back behind bars.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer criticized the ‘clearly unacceptable’ violence towards police during the Bell Hotel protests in July.
A coalition of over 200 organizations, including Refugee Action and Amnesty International UK, also signed an open letter condemning the ‘pernicious and insidious currents of racism and hatred’.
The new Home Office data also shows that since July, 9,600 children were granted asylum by the government.
The asylum applications backlog fell by 12 percent down to 62,000 cases over the summer.
Enver Solomon, Chief Executive of the Refugee Council, said: ‘Thousands of families and individuals are still waiting months or even years for a decision – unable to rebuild their lives, find work or education, or give their children the stability they so desperately need.
‘Instead of bringing certainty, the government’s new plans risk pushing people into a whole new backlog.
‘This winter, our frontline teams are supporting thousands of families who have come to the UK in search of safety – parents who want nothing more than to work, rebuild and give their children stability after fleeing unimaginable violence.
‘But instead of finding welcome, too many are being met with hostility, isolation and long delays.’
The Office for National Statistics also confirmed today that net migration – the population change due to the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving – has dropped sharply to 204,000.
They chalked it up to fewer non-EU nationals coming to work and study, as well as a ‘gradual increase in the levels of emigration’.
Among these were 252,000 Brits who left the country in the year leading to June, with 76 percent of those being under 35.
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