AFGHAN evacuees living in Britain could face destitution and homelessness because of delays to the renewal of their visas, lawyers have warned. 

The Home Office promised last August that Afghan refugees evacuated to Britain would be granted indefinite leave to remain after they were initially given temporary visas valid for six months. 

However, the Law Society warned yesterday that many have yet to receive new visas, despite their present ones coming to an end in the next few days and weeks.

Without the documentation to prove that they are in the country legally, they could soon be subject to the government’s hostile environment regime. 

“Refugees and asylum-seekers in the UK need valid immigration status to rent a home, open a bank account or find work and access NHS treatment free of charge,” said Law Society president I Stephanie Boyce.

“For people who were evacuated from Afghanistan in fear of their lives, this omission is deeply distressing.

“Solicitors tell us they have been seeking clarity from the Home Office for months and are worried that if their clients become ‘overstayers’ by omission, they may face homelessness and destitution.

Ms Boyce said that without visas, Afghan evacuees could “mistakenly be made homeless, denied work or charged for NHS care.”

She said: “While we understand the Home Office has assisted some people who are staying in Home Office accommodation, all the people who have not yet been contacted are increasingly anxious. 

“The UK’s ‘warm welcome’ is meaningless if the government does not provide concrete assurances which could allay the fears of thousands of people and give them the legal certainty they need to begin to rebuild their lives in their new home country.”

The government evacuated about 15,000 Afghans amid the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021. Of those, 12,000 are still living in temporary hotel accommodation, according to the Home Office. 

A Home Office spokesman accused the lawyers of “needless scaremongering.” 

He said: “The Afghan nationals resettled here already have the right to work, access to education, healthcare and can apply for public funds.

“While we are in the process of granting all indefinite leave to remain, all have valid leave while this is ongoing, so to suggest they are at risk of losing their rights is completely wrong.”