Asylum: Sudan

All asylum and human rights claims, including those from Sudanese nationals, are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with our international obligations.

In 2023, there was a process in place called the Streamlined Asylum Process for certain nationalities, including Sudanese nationals, who had claimed asylum before 7 March 2023. This process enabled asylum claims to be considered without a substantive interview, including through the use of an asylum questionnaire, where certain eligibility criteria were met. Decision‑makers were required to continue to apply the relevant Immigration Rules, country information and asylum policy guidance in all cases. The Streamlined Asylum Processing guidance setting this out was published on GOV.UK at the time. This guidance has been superseded and is no longer in use.

Following the conclusion of the streamlined asylum process for all nationalities, all adult claimants are now expected to attend a substantive asylum interview as part of the standard process. This gives them an opportunity to provide relevant evidence about why they need international protection, and it enables the person conducting the interview, to help draw out and test that evidence.

Asylum decision makers carefully consider each claimant’s protection needs by assessing all the evidence provided by the claimant in light of published country information guidance. They receive extensive training on considering asylum claims and must follow published Home Office policy guidance. Our guidance for considering asylum claims is available on GOV.UK at:

Asylum decision making guidance (asylum instructions) - GOV.UK

Ministers receive a range of information relating to asylum operations and policy, including material relevant to particular cohorts, where this is necessary to support decision-making. The provision of such advice is an ongoing process and not limited to specific nationalities or timeframes.

The Department also maintains internal guidance for decision-makers, which is kept under review to ensure claims are considered in line with the appropriate legal framework.

The Home Office publishes Country Policy and Information Notes (CPINs), which provide comprehensive country of origin information, along with analysis, for use by Home Office decision makers when assessing protection and human rights claims. Each Note addresses the circumstances for specific groups, drawing from a broad range of sources such as media and local and international entities, and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, all in line with relevant asylum policies and refugee law. Current versions of CPINs are published on GOV.UK, while historic versions are available on ecoi.net and Refworld. The following CPINS on Sudan were available to decision makers in 2023:

• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Nuba”, Document #2042769 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Opposition to the government [Version 3.0]”, Document #2049355 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Non-Arab Darfuris [Version 5.0]”, Document #2062863 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity / Expression [Version 1.0]”, Document #2073777 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Security situation [Version 1.0]”, Document #2093601 - ecoi.net (published in June 2023)
• UK Home Office (Author): “Report of a fact-finding mission to Khartoum, Sudan; Conducted between 10 and 17 August 2018”, Document #1452806 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Return of unsuccessful asylum seekers”, Document #1440156 - ecoi.net
• UK Home Office (Author), published by DIS – Danish Immigration Service: “Sudan, Situation of Persons from Darfur, Southern Kordofan and Blue”, Document #1145688 - ecoi.net

CPINs are kept under constant review and are updated periodically. A new CPIN on Sudan: Security situation was published in June 2023. It is available here: UK Home Office (Author): “Country Policy and Information Note Sudan: Security situation [Version 1.0]”, Document #2093601 - ecoi.net.

All asylum claims, including those from Sudanese nationals, are subject to appropriate screening and security checks. This includes consideration of identity, nationality and security matters, as well as any relevant exclusion considerations under the Refugee Convention. Leave is granted only where an individual meets the requirements of the Immigration Rules and it is appropriate to do so.