In November, Rwanda began interstate arbitration proceedings under the Asylum Partnership Agreement.
Published January 27, 2026
Rwanda has taken legal action over Britain’s refusal to pay under a now-abandoned and controversial agreement to host deported asylum seekers in Kigali, according to Rwandan officials and British media reports.
Rwanda on Tuesday began arbitration proceedings against Britain through the Permanent Court of Arbitration, based in The Hague. Britain is seeking compensation of 50 million pounds ($68.8 million) after the country failed to formally end the controversial deal nearly two years ago, the Telegraph reported.
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“Rwanda regrets that it has had to pursue these claims in arbitration, but in the face of the UK’s stubborn stance on these issues, it has no other choice,” Michael Butera, chief technical adviser to the justice minister, told AFP news agency.
Butera added that Kigali had sought diplomatic engagement before resorting to legal action.
A plan was agreed in a treaty between London and Kilgarri to transport some of the people who arrived in Britain in small boats to East Africa. This was intended as a deterrent to those attempting to come to Britain in a similar manner.
However, only four volunteers ultimately arrived in Rwanda.
When Prime Minister Keir Starmer took office in July 2024, he scrapped the deal brokered by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative government in 2022, declaring it “dead and buried”.
London had already paid Kigali 240 million pounds ($330.9 million) before breaking the deal, with a further 50 million pounds ($68.9 million) due in April.
Mr Starmer’s official spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday: “We remain steadfast in our position to protect British taxpayers.”
Last year, Britain cut most of its funding to Rwanda for supporting the M23 group’s attacks in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Kigali termed the move “punitive.”
The agreement faced a series of legal challenges, and in November 2023 the UK Supreme Court ruled it illegal under international law.
Rwanda initiated interstate arbitration proceedings under the Asylum Partnership Agreement in November, and the status of the case is listed as pending, according to the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s website.
Migration has increasingly become a central political issue since Britain left the European Union in 2020, largely due to promises to “take back control” of its borders.
Around 37,000 asylum seekers, including refugees from Syria and Afghanistan, crossed the Channel in 2024, and more than 40,000 people crossed the Channel in 2025, the highest number since 2022, when nearly 46,000 people crossed. Dozens of people died attempting this journey.
The British government has announced that it has forcibly removed 50,000 illegal immigrants living in the country.
In September, Britain and France implemented a “one-in-one-out” immigration deal that aims to send asylum seekers back to France while accepting those with family ties in the UK. However, this policy has faced criticism regarding its effectiveness. NGOs and charities have also described the plan as a “cruel” measure aimed at restricting asylum rights.
