A BBC undercover investigation has uncovered a shadow industry in which legal advisers and immigration consultants allegedly help migrants falsely claim to be gay in order to secure asylum in the UK.
The scheme targets people whose student, tourist or work visas are expiring, rather than those arriving illegally.
Many are told to apply for asylum by claiming they would face persecution in countries such as Pakistan or Bangladesh, where same-sex relations are criminalised.
The Home Office said anyone attempting to exploit the asylum system would face “the full force of the law, including removal from the UK.”
Undercover reporters posing as migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh found advisers offering fake backstories, staged photographs, support letters and coaching for Home Office interviews.
One adviser, Tanisa Khan, allegedly offered a “comprehensive package” for £2,500, including photographs at LGBT events, letters of support and even a statement from someone falsely claiming to have had a sexual relationship with the applicant.
She reportedly told the undercover reporter: “There is nobody who is real. There is only one way out in order to live here now and that is the very method everyone is adopting.”
The BBC said Khan also suggested that if the applicant’s wife later joined him in Britain, “we can make her a lesbian” so she could submit her own asylum claim.
Khan denied advising anyone to make false claims, saying there had been misunderstandings caused by language difficulties.
The investigation also linked Khan to Worcester LGBT, a support group for asylum seekers. At one meeting attended by more than 175 people, several men allegedly admitted many attendees were not genuinely gay.
One man told the BBC: “Most of the people here are not gays.” Another claimed: “Nobody is gay here.”
Worcester LGBT denied creating false evidence and said it was investigating Khan’s conduct. Founder Mazedul Hasan Shakil said she had no decision-making authority in the group.
Law & Justice Solicitors, where Shakil works, said Khan had no professional connection to the firm and it was investigating possible unauthorised access to its London office.
In a separate case, BBC reporters met Aqeel Abbasi, a senior legal adviser at Connaught Law, who allegedly offered to help prepare a false asylum claim for £7,000. He reportedly promised the chance of refusal was “very low” and advised the reporter to visit gay clubs and obtain staged evidence.
Connaught Law said Abbasi had been suspended while an internal inquiry takes place and the matter had been reported to the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Abbasi denied dishonesty or malpractice, saying all applications are based strictly on client instructions.
Immigration lawyer Ana Gonzalez said such practices damage genuine asylum claims, especially for LGBT applicants, whose cases often depend heavily on personal testimony rather than physical evidence.
Official data shows Pakistani nationals make up a disproportionately high number of sexuality-based asylum claims. In 2023, 42% of such applications came from Pakistanis, despite accounting for only 6% of all asylum claims overall.
Nearly two-thirds of asylum seekers claiming persecution on the basis of sexual orientation had their claims approved at the initial stage in 2023.
Courtesy of the BBC
