Number of Indians in UK jails at its highest since 2018, shows latest data

Number of such offenders exceeds that of Pakistani inmates for the first time in recent years

The United Kingdom (UK) has added India to the list of countries under its “Deport Now, Appeal Later” scheme, wherein foreign national offenders (FNOs) from these nations, whose asylum appeals are active, will now be deported before any appeal can be started against their deportation.

 

The appeals will be heard remotely from overseas using video technology so as to stop the duration of stay of these FNOs in the UK, which often got prolonged as their appeals dragged on. 

 

There were 320 Indian prisoners languishing in UK jails as on June 30, 2025 — the highest since 2018 when 244 Indians were incarcerated.

 

Compared to 2018, the number of Indian FNOs lodged in UK jails declined in 2022, before it rose two notches in 2023 and then increased sharply to 273 in 2024, and further to 320 now.

 

Meanwhile, the UK had already returned 45 Indians back to India or some other country in the first six months of calendar year 2025. 

 

For the first time in recent years, the number of Indian prisoners (320) exceeded that of the Pakistanis (317) as on June 30 this year. At the same time, the share of Indian prisoners among all FNOs in UK jails was 2.97 per cent, up from 2.23 per cent as on June 30, 2019.

 

Albanian prisoners accounted for the maximum number of FNOs in the UK with their share at more than 11 per cent as on June 30 this year. Other European countries such as Poland, Romania, Ireland, and Lithuania also had a significant share of their citizens in UK jails. 

 

According to the Ministry of External Affairs’ (MEA’s) parliamentary report 2024-25, there were 10,152 Indians present in foreign jails. Out of these, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) accounted for the largest cohort of Indians in their jails. Over 60 per cent of Indian prisoners were present in the jails of West Asia.