Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2018 to question 121556, on Asylum, what steps her Department plans to take with the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure refugees are not left destitute following a successful asylum application.

Asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are provided with accommodation and a cash allowance to cover their other essential living needs.

If they are granted refugee status this support stops 28 days after they are given notice of the decision and provided with a Biometric Residence Permit, which is the evidence they need to prove that they are able to take employment or apply for mainstream benefits from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP). The permit now contains their national insurance number.

The Home Office now has in place a scheme involving the Department for Work and Pensions which involves contacting the refugees at the point

when they are granted their status to see if they wish to apply for benefits and require assistance to do so. If they say they do, an appointment at a local DWP office is arranged for them.

This process is designed to ensure that refugees receive the first payment of any benefit they are entitled to before the 28 days period expires, either by full payment of the benefit or an advance payment of Universal Credit where this is needed.