A record 230 people crossed the English Channel in a single small boat on Saturday, as 258 migrants in total made the journey on four separate vessels. These crossings have become the primary method for individuals detected entering the United Kingdom without authorization since 2020.
Between January 1 and August 3, 2026, a total of 14,561 people crossed the Channel by small boat from France, a 43% decrease compared to the same period the previous year. Despite the overall decline, the average number of people per boat has increased, more than doubling since 2021. Boats arriving in the UK from August 4, 2025, to August 3, 2026, carried an average of 67 individuals, a figure experts suggest makes the crossings riskier due to overcrowding.
In the latest figures covering January 2025 to December 2025, at least 2,000 individuals who arrived by small boat were identified as potential victims of human trafficking or modern slavery, according to the Home Office. People from Eritrea constituted 18% of all arrivals between April 2025 and March 2026.
Nearly all individuals arriving by small boat claim asylum, which, under international law, permits them to remain in the country while their applications are processed. Small boat arrivals accounted for 42% of all asylum applications from April 2025 to March 2026. The government has committed to combating the organized groups facilitating these crossings.
Beyond small boats, 4,535 individuals were detected entering the UK without permission through other means, such as hiding in vehicles or traveling on ferries and through airports, between April 2025 and March 2026. This represents a 22% reduction from the same period the previous year. Additionally, some individuals arrive legally on work or study visas and subsequently overstay their permitted duration, though the exact number of such cases is unknown.
According to the United Nations, at least 84 people died attempting to cross the Channel in 2024. The scale of small boat crossings represents approximately 5% of the total immigration into the UK from January to December 2025.