Publications

This report presents the findings of a survey conducted among Afghans whose data was breached by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) after they applied for resettlement to the UK under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) or Afghan Locally Employed Staff Ex-Gratia Scheme. It is the first systematic study of the impact of the data breach among affected Afghans, documenting physical and psychological harms, as well as shortcomings with the UK Government’s response.

Four and a half years after the Taliban took control in Kabul, Afghanistan remains unstable. The sharp cuts to US overseas aid in 2025 have deepened the humanitarian crisis leaving several million fewer Afghans receiving assistance as a result. 75% of Afghan households cannot meet their daily needs, a situation worsened by the continued exclusion of Afghan women from society.

DLA Piper International, Earth Refuge and Refugee Legal Support hosted the first UK conference on international protection in the context of the climate crisis. This half- day conference addressed the urgent and evolving intersection between displacement across borders, the adverse effects of climate change and disasters, and international protection frameworks.

This report sets out the purpose, method, key findings, and recommendations arising from APBI’s qualitative study of Afghan families that have resettled in the UK. It examines how these families navigated the Resettlement Schemes, access to legal support, and integration in the UK, against the backdrop of the recent scheme closures. The study aims to document the lived experiences of Afghan refugees in the UK.

Still Waiting: The Afghans Abandoned by the UK (produced by the Afghan Pro Bono Initiative (APBI)), sheds light on the unfulfilled promises and bureaucratic hurdles that have left so many Afghans in vulnerable positions. This report builds on APBI’s 2023 report, Two Years of Empty Promises, to emphasise the urgent need for reform within the UK’s Afghan resettlement schemes and family reunion policies.

“Two Years of Empty Promises: The UK Leaves Afghans Stranded and At Risk” focuses on the challenges faced by Afghans seeking safe routes to the UK, particularly after the momentous shift in Afghanistan in August 2021, when the government collapsed and the Taliban took control of Kabul. The lack of access to safe routes has caused immense despair, fear, and desperation for many Afghans, leaving them feeling abandoned and trapped in dangerous and uncertain circumstances. For those eligible for resettlement under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and the Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), the lengthy delays, inconsistencies, and narrow eligibility criteria of these schemes have been deeply disheartening.