UK Home Office Awards £322,000 AI Age-Check Contract for Asylum Seekers as Child Groups Warn of Errors
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 1
UK Home Office Awards £322,000 AI Age-Check Contract for Asylum Seekers as Child Groups Warn of Errors
1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 1
Summary
£322,000 over three years will fund Akhter Computers Ltd to test and develop facial age-estimation software for disputed-age asylum seekers, with the Home Office targeting rollout in 2027.
The system would estimate age in seconds from facial photos already taken of small-boat arrivals at Dover, while ministers say it will help identify adults making false claims to be children.
More than 100 refugee children’s organisations said the technology could wrongly classify minors as adults, exposing them to adult accommodation, detention centres or prisons.
Home Office data cited by campaigners shows young asylum seekers are more than twice as likely to be recorded as children by social workers than by immigration officers at the border, with more than two-thirds ultimately assessed as minors.
The consortium said trauma, malnutrition, exhaustion and dataset bias can distort facial appearance, urging the government to keep AI advisory only and preserve human-led assessments, legal advice and appeal rights.
With a 2.5-year error margin, will new AI send more children to adult prisons?
Can AI tell a child's age when trauma and hunger have changed their face?
UK Home Office Implements £322,000 AI Age Assessment for Asylum Seekers: Promise, Pitfalls, and Public Backlash
Overview
The UK Home Office is moving forward with AI technology to assess the age of asylum seekers at the border, responding to government concerns that some adult migrants are making false age claims to exploit the asylum system. This exploitation can redirect essential support away from vulnerable children. The AI rollout is designed to quickly identify and remove those who abuse the process, while ensuring that genuine child asylum seekers receive the protection and care they need. However, age assessment remains a complex and contentious issue, as child asylum seekers have distinct legal protections and are placed in local authority care.