Over 62,000 visa overstayers flagged as United Kingdom struggles to track illegal migrants
More than 60,000 migrants have no right to be in the country, a damning leaked Government report reveals.
The Sun has obtained an unpublished watchdog report exposing the scale of visa overstayers.
The report found Immigration Enforcement had identified 62,675 “possible overstayers” as of last July.
It covers people suspected of staying in Britain after their visas expired.
All were in Immigration Enforcement’s active caseload, meaning the Home Office had some form of contact with them within the previous two years.
Inspectors warned officials do not know the true number as the Home Office does not keep official figures.
Instead, they rely on internal databases and estimates to identify those who may still be here without permission.
The watchdog also uncovered a backlog of 89,000 work visa cancellation cases.
Some were taking up to seven months to process.
The findings are contained in an unpublished report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, which examined the system between March and October 2025.
Inspectors were warned that migrants who stay in the country for years can become harder to deport as they are more likely to be able to use Article 8 human rights claims to fight their removal.
The report comes days before ministers unveil a major new Immigration and Asylum Bill.
The legislation, due to be introduced to Parliament next Tuesday, will include measures aimed at making it easier to remove people with no right to remain in the UK.
Ministers say changes to Article 8 human rights claims and modern slavery laws are needed because they are too often used to block removals.
The Government is also planning a major expansion of immigration enforcement.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is set to double Immigration Enforcement funding by 2028-29 and increase staffing by 60 per cent compared to 2023-24.
Officials last night also insisted improvements have already been made since the inspection was carried out, with new technology and extra resources cutting visa cancellation processing times from months to weeks.
Head of Investigations
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