A Home Office-commissioned study released on 11 June recommends doubling the ‘move-on’ period granted to refugees—from 28 to 56 days—to reduce homelessness and benefits gaps after they receive status. Researchers at NatCen and Fortia Insight assessed a pilot that paired extended support with Asylum Move-on Liaison Officers in 18 local authorities. The pilot aided nearly 10,000 refugees between September 2024 and September 2025 and resolved 94 per cent of urgent issues, such as National Insurance delays and GP registrations. The evaluation concluded that the extra four weeks saved local councils an estimated £7 million in emergency accommodation costs and improved labour-market outcomes. For employers running corporate refugee-hiring programmes the findings are significant: participants were twice as likely to start work within three months of status recognition compared with a control group. That aligns with the objectives of the Refugee Employment Network, whose members include IBM, IKEA and several FTSE-100 firms. The Home Office says it is “carefully considering” whether to make the 56-day period standard. If adopted, HR departments would face fewer obstacles when onboarding refugee talent but should still plan for gaps in documentation while ID cards are printed. Advocates want ministers to go further by granting immediate access to mainstream Universal Credit rather than relying on discretionary hardship funds during the transition.
Source: Electronic Immigration Network
