GLA AEB Eligibility for Afghan Citizens arriving in the UK

This document outlines the three main routes through which Afghan Citizens will seek refuge in the UK. It provides guidance on associated eligibility for GLA funded AEB provision.

This is a bespoke resettlement scheme launched on 1 April 2021 for current and former Locally Employed Staff (LES) in Afghanistan. Under the policy, any current or former locally employed staff who are assessed to be under serious threat to life are offered priority relocation.

People coming to the UK through ARAP will receive immediate ‘indefinite leave to remain’ (ILR) and are AEB eligible on arrival. 

People already relocated to the UK under ARAP will be able to apply to convert their temporary leave into indefinite leave. There is no 3-year residency requirement for those with Indefinite Leave to Enter/Remain (ILR/E).

Please see paragraph 42 of the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Grant Funded Providers 2021/22 and paragraph 60 of the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Procured Providers.

Husbands, wives, civil partners and children of people arriving via ARAP will also be eligible for AEB provision.

In addition to being AEB eligible, a maximum of £850 is available per adult (19+) arriving under ARAP for ESOL funding up to Level 1. This can be drawn down via Local Authority Resettlement Teams and is intended to facilitate access to informal ESOL, or 8 hours of formal provision per week, within one month of arrival. Please see Home Office guidance for further details (see page 20).

The Afghanistan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme will welcome 5,000 Afghans in the first year and up to 15,000 people in the coming years. Once open, those already in the UK and eligible for the ACRS will be able to apply.

Those resettled through the ACRS will be granted ‘indefinite leave to remain’ and are therefore AEB eligible on arrival.

As above, there is no 3-year residency requirement for those with Indefinite Leave to Enter/Remain. Husbands, wives, civil partners and children of people arriving via the ACRS will also be eligible for AEB provision.

In addition to being AEB eligible, a maximum of £850 is available per adult (19+) arriving under ACRS for ESOL funding up to Level 1. This can be drawn down via Local Authority Resettlement Teams and is intended to facilitate access to informal ESOL, or 8 hours of formal provision per week, within one month of arrival. Please see Home Office guidance for further details (see page 20).

Some Afghans will come to the UK through other routes and seek refuge in the UK through claiming asylum. In this instance, normal AEB funding rules for asylum seekers apply. See paragraph 49 and 50 of the AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Grant Funded Providers 2021-22 and paragraphs 62 to 71 of the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Procured Providers.

It is important to emphasise that those coming to the UK under the ARAP scheme, and those coming through the future ACRS are not asylum seekers.

Afghan citizens who arrive in the UK through Route 1 or 2 are AEB eligible upon arrival in the UK. Therefore, the standard learner support funding rules apply. See paragraphs 250 to 275 of AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Grant Funded Providers 2021-22 and paragraphs 246 to 276 of the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Procured Providers for information relating to learning support.

For those seeking refuge in the UK through Route 3, standard AEB funding rules for asylum seekers apply. In addition to the sections highlighted above, providers should note paragraph 266 of AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Grant Funded Providers 2021-22 and paragraph 266 of the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Procured Providers, which refer specifically to learning support available for asylum seekers facing hardship.

Afghans arriving under the ACRS or ARAP resettlement scheme will be issued with a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) which will state ‘Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme (or ACRS) - Indefinite Leave to Enter/Remain’.

We are aware of some delays in people receiving their BRP. In the absence of a BRP, all Afghan arrivals have been issued with a document showing evidence that they have “Leave outside of the Rules” immigration status. Providers should accept this as proof of residence.

AEB procured providers will need to comply with the ESF requirements for evidence of participant eligibility, which differ slightly from the AEB requirements. Where evidence of a learner’s eligibility for AEB is available but evidence of their eligibility for ESF is not available, the learner can be supported through the Flexible Allocation, as set out in the GLA AEB Funding and Performance Management Rules for Procured Providers.

Asylum Seeker status may be evidenced by an Application Registration Card (ARC) or a document from the Home Office confirming status.

Additional information on support for refugees and asylum seekers arriving in London can be found on the GLA website.

Issue date: 01 October 2021

Amendment made from previous version: N/A

Approved by: Michelle Cuomo-Boorer, Assistant Director of Skills and Employment

Review date: December 2021

Senior owner: Forogh Rahmani, Senior Manager, Skills and Employment

Document owner: Beth Wheaton, Senior Policy Officer, Skills and Employment

For a large print, Braille, disc, sign language video or audio-tape version of this document, please contact us at the address below:

Public Liaison Unit
Greater London Authority
City Hall
The Queen’s Walk
More London
London SE1 2AA

Telephone 020 7983 4100
www.london.gov.uk

You will need to supply your name, your postal address and state the format and title of the publication you require.

If you would like a summary of this document in your language, please phone the number or contact us at the address above.