The number of asylum seekers being housed in UK hotels has dropped to its lowest point in 18 months, according to new figures from the Home Office.
Data show that 30,657 people were living in temporary hotel accommodation at the end of 2025. This marks a 45% decrease from the peak of 56,018 recorded at the end of September 2023.
The use of hotels to house asylum seekers became a major political issue last year, with protests taking place outside some locations. The Labour government has committed to ending the use of asylum hotels by the close of this Parliament in 2029, if not sooner.
READ NEXT: Just one in 10 Brits have positive view of ICE as Reform announces plans for UK equivalent
In October, the Government confirmed that former barracks in Scotland and southern England would be used to temporarily accommodate around 900 men, part of broader efforts to phase out hotel use.
Hotel occupancy reached its highest level under the previous Conservative Party government in September 2023, before falling to 29,561 by the end of June 2024, shortly ahead of the general election. The most recent figures show that numbers in December were 15% lower than at the end of September, when 36,273 people were staying in hotels.
Statistics on hotel accommodation represent a snapshot of the population at a specific point in time and have been recorded since December 2022.
Overall, 101,000 people applied for asylum in 2025, 4% fewer than in 2024. Around half of applicants arrived through irregular routes, including small boat crossings, while 39% had previously entered the UK on a visa or other form of permission.
A total of 135,000 initial decisions were made on asylum applications in 2025 – 56% more than the previous year and the highest number since comparable records began in 2002.
Meanwhile, 23,000 people entered immigration detention in 2025, an 11% increase compared with 2024, continuing a rise that began in 2023. The Home Office said this may reflect greater use of detention to support an increase in removals.
There were 9,900 enforced returns during the year, up 21% on 2024, extending an upward trend seen since 2020.