The purpose of the changes is to “Enhance capacity to treat as inadmissible asylum claims made by those who either passed through or have connections in a safe third country,” by changing the rules on inadmissibility.

A new paragraph says:

An asylum application can be treated as inadmissible and not considered if the Secretary of State determines that the applicant could enjoy protection in a safe third country because:

(a) they have already applied for protection in that country; or

(b) they could have applied for protection to that country but did not do so with no exceptional circumstances preventing it, or

Inadmissibility is not conditional on that other country readmitting the asylum seeker anymore. That safeguard has been removed along with the need for a “sufficient degree of connection”.

A new paragraph 345D continues:

Where an application is treated as inadmissible and

(i) removal to the safe third country within a reasonable time is unlikely; or

(ii) the Secretary of State determines that removal to the safe third country is inappropriate

the applicant’s claim will be readmitted for consideration in the UK.

The changes also change the Rules on where in the UK an asylum claim may be lodged. It now requires this to be done at a “designated place of asylum”:

(i) asylum intake units;

(ii) immigration removal centres;

(iii) ports or airports;

(iv) a location the person was directed to by the Secretary of State; or

(v) anywhere else that an officer authorised to accept asylum applications is present

The new rules clarify that “an officer is not capable of receiving a claim in the territorial waters of the United Kingdom”.

The statement of changes finally makes some adjustments to the rules concerning international lorry drivers as visitors.

The changes take effect from 11 pm on 31^st December 2020.