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Rwanda: UK Wins Court Case Over Canceled Rwanda Asylum Plan
DW, 1 June 2026
An international court has rejected a Rwandan claim for millions in damages over a scrapped deal to send asylum seekers to the East African nation. Read more »
The UK will not have to pay Rwanda compensation after an international court ruled in favour of the British government for the collapsed Rwanda asylum deal. Rwanda had sought more than £100 million. They argued that the UK breached the agreement after Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped the scheme shortly after taking office in 2024.
The plan was originally introduced under Boris Johnson and later championed by Rishi Sunak. It aimed to send asylum seekers who arrived illegally in the UK to Rwanda for processing and possible resettlement. However, it faced repeated legal challenges, including intervention from the European Court of Human Rights, and was eventually abandoned by Labour as part of its election promises.
Rwanda argued it had spent heavily preparing for the partnership and had not been properly informed before the cancellation, but the Hague tribunal rejected its claims. Following the ruling, both governments said they considered the matter concluded, while critics and supporters of the scheme continued debating its effectiveness and impact on migration policy.
After facing resistance and demands for amendments from the House of Lords, a controversial United Kingdom government bill proposing to send asylum seekers to Rwanda has finally secured approval. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that the government had made arrangements, including chartering commercial jets, to initiate deportation flights within a few months.
In April 2022, the UK signed an
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The government has launched legal action against the UK, filing a case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague over payments it said were owed under the now-scrapped migrant deal between the two countries.
Rwanda argued that the UK failed to honour financial commitments made under the agreement, which the former Conservative
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New British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to scrap the Rwanda deportation plan implemented by the previous Conservative government, saying that the policy intended to curb irregular migration has had the "complete opposite effect".
The five-year Rwanda plan, costing U.S.$494 million, proposed flying asylum seekers to Rwanda to apply for refuge there instead of Britain.
The scheme faced
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