Individuals who advertise illegal Channel crossings online could face imprisonment of up to five years under a proposed new offense being considered by the government.
The offense, which the government aims to establish through the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill currently under parliamentary review, is intended to bolster efforts to reduce the number of migrants arriving in the UK via small boats.
While assisting illegal immigration to the UK is already a criminal act, officials believe this new offense would provide law enforcement agencies with enhanced authority to disrupt organized criminal networks.
Recent figures indicate that over 25,000 migrants have reached the UK by means of small boats in 2025 thus far, marking a record high for this point in the year.
The proposed UK-wide offense would criminalize the creation of online content that promotes or offers services facilitating breaches of UK immigration law.
This would encompass individuals utilizing social media to advertise fraudulent passports or visas, or to promise illicit employment opportunities within the UK, and could result in both substantial fines and imprisonment.
According to Home Office analysis, approximately 80% of migrants arriving in the UK via small boats have reported using social media during their journey, including to contact agents associated with human smuggling operations.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated, “Profiting from the false promise of safe passage to the UK and a life in this country, whether online or offline, is utterly immoral.”
“These criminals brazenly exploit social media to lure migrants into life-threatening situations. We are committed to employing every available measure to stop them.”
The National Crime Agency (NCA) is already collaborating with social media platforms to address online content promoting organized immigration crime, resulting in the removal of over 8,000 posts in 2024.
The NCA has taken action against numerous human smuggling networks that have utilized social media accounts to advertise crossings.
One such network, operated by Preston-based smuggler Amanj Hasan Zada, who received a 17-year prison sentence, posted videos of migrants expressing gratitude for his assistance.
NCA Director General of Operations Rob Jones stated that the proposed new offense would broaden their options for targeting criminal organizations and their business models.
The Home Office indicated that cases involving Albanian human smugglers, who have used social media to promote £12,000 “package deals” to Britain that include accommodation and employment upon arrival, would fall under the scope of the proposed offense.
Policing Minister Diana Johnson explained that the law would be drafted to enable “extra-territorial reach,” meaning that if an advertisement was produced abroad and the perpetrator subsequently traveled to the UK, British authorities “would be able to deal with them.”
She added, “We will continue to collaborate with authorities in other countries, as we have been doing for many months, to hold these individuals accountable, dismantle these criminal networks, and disrupt their business model.”
However, the Conservatives have criticized the plan as “too little, too late.”
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp stated, “Tinkering at the edges will not resolve the issue.”
He further asserted that the Conservative Deportation Bill would empower law enforcement agencies to “remove illegal arrivals immediately and without delay.”
Downing Street has expressed a desire for closer collaboration with France to reduce the number of crossings.
A deal was reached in early July between Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron to return some migrants arriving on small boats to France.
For each migrant returned, France would send an asylum seeker to the UK, potentially one with a family connection to Britain.
Critics have pointed out that this would involve a minuscule proportion of those currently crossing and have questioned whether the scheme would deter migrants.
The government has also strengthened regulations to make it nearly impossible for individuals arriving in the UK on small boats to obtain British citizenship.
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