France will suspend the implementation of the “one in, one out” pilot agreement signed with the United Kingdom in July 2025 to curb illegal migration, effective October 1.
Sea-news.az reports according to the French Ministry of the Interior, conditions for exiting the agreement are currently under discussion with London. Paris considers that the mechanism, which remained in force for over a year, failed to deliver the expected results.
Under the agreement, a portion of migrants reaching the United Kingdom by crossing the English Channel on small boats was returned to France, in exchange for which the UK accepted a specified number of asylum seekers located in France through legal pathways.
Despite this, approximately 50,000 individuals attempted to cross the English Channel in small boats in 2025. In the first seven months of 2026, this figure stood close to 17,000. Meanwhile, the total number of individuals returned from the UK to France under the scheme reached only 1,400.
The financial burden of the program was also substantial. According to UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, returning each individual to France cost an average of £56,000, or approximately €65,000.
