UK-based legal advisers advise migrants to pose as gay for asylum status

A BBC undercover investigation has revealed that some legal advisers and law firms are charging thousands of pounds to help migrants pose as gay to secure asylum status in the United Kingdom (UK).

The investigation uncovered how migrants whose visas are nearing expiry are being provided with fabricated backstories and coached on how to obtain fake evidence.

This includes forged supporting letters, staged photographs, and misleading medical reports. Applicants then claim asylum, asserting they are gay and would face mortal danger if returned to Pakistan or Bangladesh.

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According to a 2018 news report by the Guardian UK, Nigeria follows only Pakistan and Bangladesh as the third-largest source of asylum claims based on sexual orientation.

In Nigeria, homosexual acts carry a prison sentence of up to 14 years, while same-sex marriage and public displays of affection remain illegal.

According to Home Office data released in 2017, 362 Nigerians applied for asylum on these grounds during the 21-month period between July 2015 and March 2017. Following tribunal hearings, only 63 individuals were permitted to stay in the UK, resulting in a refusal rate of 81 percent.

Currently, it is not certain if there are Nigerians who applied for asylum falsely on the ground of homosexuality status.

Systematic exploitation
While the UK asylum process is designed to protect those in genuine danger, the BBC found the system is being systematically exploited by advisers targeting individuals on expired student, work, or tourist visas. This demographic now accounts for 35 percent of all asylum claims, which exceeded 100,000 in 2025.

Read also: UK to offer £40,000 to asylum seekers to leave the country

Undercover reporters, posing as students from Pakistan and Bangladesh, discovered:

One firm charged £7,000 to file a fraudulent claim, describing the risk of rejection as “very low”.

Advisers instructed clients to lie to GPs about depression or even HIV status to bolster their cases.

One legal assistant claimed she could arrange for individuals to provide statements falsely claiming they had engaged in sexual relationships with the clients.

At a community event in Beckton, East London, organised by Worcester LGBT, a group claiming to support gay asylum seekers,nattendees admitted to undercover reporters that the gathering was largely a front. One attendee, Fahar, remarked, “Most of the people here are not gays.” Another, added, **”Nobody is a gay here. Not even 1% are gay. Not even 0.01% are gay.”

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The investigation focused on Tanisa Khan, an adviser linked to Worcester LGBT. During a meeting at her home, she told a reporter who admitted he was not gay: “Listen to me. 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.”

Tanisa explained that she would provide a “comprehensive package” for a fee of £2,500. This included coaching for Home Office interviews and providing staged evidence. “I will give you a letter from someone along with which we will take a few photographs and that person will write that they have engaged in physical sex with you,” she said.

She even suggested a path for the reporter’s wife in Pakistan: “If you call her here, then we will apply for her asylum as well… Once she’s here, we can make her a lesbian.”

Tanisa Khan denied advising false claims, citing “communication difficulties” and a lack of fluency in Urdu for any misunderstandings.

 

Aqeel Abbasi, a senior legal adviser at Connaught Law, was also recorded offering to help a reporter fabricate a claim for £7,000, suggesting the reporter visit gay clubs to take staged photographs.

A growing trend
According to the UK Home Office data, Pakistani nationals account for a disproportionate number of sexuality-based asylum claims. In 2023, they made up 42 percent of such applications, despite representing only 6 percent of total asylum seekers.

The Home Office maintains that making a deceptive application is a criminal offence. A spokesperson added: “Any attempt to misuse protections designed for people fleeing genuine persecution because of their sexuality is deplorable.”