What Is An Asylum Seeker

An asylum seeker is a person who has been rushed out of their country, away from their family and friends with no time to pack clothes or other valuables. They then get left in an unfamiliar country, were they might not speak the language and have no idea what to do. Or at least, that is one way of looking at it. Others may be more sceptical about their reasons, maybe thinking that they are not in real need of escape from their country, and are just getting away from their old country. They may say that they have more time than you would think, having planned each move and where they want to go. However,you cannot generalize asylum seekers. Each and every person is in a different situation.

Asylum Seekers do not come from certain places around the world. They can be anyone of any race and religion who has been forced out of their country into a completely different place with no where to go.

They are unable to return home and so they have to stay in the unknown country and try to build a new life. Asylum seekers are given accommodation and receives a positive basic subsistence of 70-90% of income support. If their application is accepted she/he is entitled to claim benefits. They can become a refugee when the Home Office has accepted their asylum claim, which then allows them to work.

Asylum seekers can be removed from one area of the country and placed in another by the Government, causing them to have to start over. They get no say in the matter.

For further details on each aspect of an Asylum Seeker have a look at all of the other pages available on this website.