The UK threatened to impose a visa ban on foreign nationals from countries that refused to accept the return of their citizens deported from the UK. This threat led to two of the three identified African nations, Angola and Namibia, agreeing to take back their deported migrants. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), however, failed to make the necessary changes, resulting in the UK revoking its fast-track visa processing and halting preferential visa treatment for its diplomats and VIPs.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood stated that countries must cooperate in taking back their citizens who have no right to be in the UK, warning that failure to do so would result in the loss of visa privileges. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper highlighted that the government has removed over 50,000 individuals without the right to remain in the UK and is committed to maintaining this pace, emphasizing that diplomatic efforts are prioritizing returns. In the year leading up to June, the UK issued hundreds of thousands of visas, with a small percentage of those going to nationals from the DRC, Angola, and Namibia.