This report separates three stages of the return process: orders signed by the Minister, orders issued to recipients, and removals carried out. The gap between them is the core enforcement question.

7,111Deportation orders signed in the available monthly series.
6,753Orders issued in the available monthly series.
1,748Removals carried out across the same period.
May 2026Latest month in the current source-backed series.

Latest Month

MonthOrders signedOrders issuedRemovals
May 202637030150

Interpretation

  • An order signed is not the same as a person removed.
  • Removals can include people whose order was signed in an earlier month or year.
  • The monthly arrivals/removals comparison is a scale comparison, not a same-person pipeline.

Cross-dataset scale: from April 2024 to May 2026, compiled arrivals were 31,705 and removals were 1,748. That is a 5.5% removals-to-arrivals comparison over the shared window, not a formal removal rate for individual applicants.

Source

Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration: International Protection in Numbers.

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