# Foreign National Offenders in UK Prisons

> **Key finding:** As of December 2025, **10,361 foreign nationals** are in UK prisons (12.4% of the population). **5,632 FNO deportations** in 2025 — 68% of all enforced removals.

Sources: MoJ Offender Management Statistics (January 2026), Home Office (February 2026).

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## Key Statistics

| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Foreign nationals in prison (Dec 2025) | 10,361 |
| Share of prison population | 12.4% |
| Total prison population | 87,334 |
| FNO deportations (2025) | 5,632 |
| FNO as % of enforced removals | 68% |
| Court interpreter demand: Albanian ratio | 53× population share |

## Prison Population vs FNO Deportations by Nationality (2025)

| Nationality | In prison | FNO deported | Deportation rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 944 | 1,549 | 164.1% |
| Ireland | 679 | — | — |
| Poland | 677 | 464 | 68.5% |
| Romania | 658 | 1,015 | 154.3% |
| India | 389 | 102 | 26.2% |
| Jamaica | 364 | 24 | 6.6% |
| Pakistan | 326 | 61 | 18.7% |
| Iran | 290 | 10 | 3.4% |
| Iraq | 284 | 23 | 8.1% |
| Lithuania | 283 | 299 | 105.7% |
| Afghanistan | 273 | 3 | 1.1% |
| Portugal | 266 | 141 | 53.0% |
| Nigeria | 255 | 46 | 18.0% |
| Somalia | 247 | 14 | 5.7% |
| Sudan | 209 | 1 | 0.5% |
| Algeria | 190 | 38 | 20.0% |
| Eritrea | 153 | 2 | 1.3% |
| Italy | 151 | 77 | 51.0% |
| Zimbabwe | 148 | 20 | 13.5% |
| Bulgaria | 146 | 164 | 112.3% |
| Vietnam | 143 | 102 | 71.3% |
| Bangladesh | 141 | 24 | 17.0% |
| Netherlands | 134 | 98 | 73.1% |
| France | 133 | 45 | 33.8% |
| Turkey | 130 | 18 | 13.8% |

## Top FNO Nationalities by Deportation Volume (2024)

| Nationality | FNO returns |
|---|---|
| Albania | 1,619 |
| Romania | 953 |
| Poland | 437 |
| Lithuania | 303 |
| Bulgaria | 145 |
| Malaysia | 106 |
| United States | 86 |
| Latvia | 84 |
| Portugal | 84 |
| Canada | 72 |
| India | 70 |
| Brazil | 67 |
| Slovakia | 60 |
| Vietnam | 59 |
| Czechia | 56 |

## Overrepresentation Note

Raw comparison: 12.4% of prisoners vs ~9.3% of general population (2021 Census).
Migration Observatory (September 2025): when adjusted for age and sex profile,
foreign nationals are **slightly underrepresented** in prison relative to their demographics.

## ECHR Context

Of 29 UK deportation cases at the Strasbourg court since 1980:
- **16** ruled deportation was lawful
- **13** blocked it (typically citing Article 3 or Article 8 ECHR)

## Related Pages

- [Returns & Deportation](https://www.deported.co.uk/returns/) | [returns.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/returns.md)
- [Why People Are Not Deported](https://www.deported.co.uk/not-deported/) | [not-deported.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/not-deported.md)
- [Returns by Nationality](https://www.deported.co.uk/nationality/) | [nationality.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/nationality.md)

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## All Pages

- [Returns & Deportation](https://www.deported.co.uk/returns/) | [returns.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/returns.md)
- [Foreign National Offenders](https://www.deported.co.uk/foreign-national-offenders/) | [foreign-national-offenders.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/foreign-national-offenders.md)
- [Why People Are Not Deported](https://www.deported.co.uk/not-deported/) | [not-deported.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/not-deported.md)
- [Cost of Deportation](https://www.deported.co.uk/costs/) | [costs.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/costs.md)
- [Asylum Statistics](https://www.deported.co.uk/asylum/) | [asylum.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/asylum.md)
- [Foreign Nationals and Benefits](https://www.deported.co.uk/benefits/) | [benefits.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/benefits.md)
- [Asylum Accommodation Costs](https://www.deported.co.uk/accommodation/) | [accommodation.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/accommodation.md)
- [Labour Market](https://www.deported.co.uk/labour-market/) | [labour-market.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/labour-market.md)
- [Returns by Nationality](https://www.deported.co.uk/nationality/) | [nationality.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/nationality.md)
- [Sponsor Register](https://www.deported.co.uk/sponsored-workers/) | [sponsored-workers.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/sponsored-workers.md)
- [Policy Timeline](https://www.deported.co.uk/policy-timeline/) | [policy-timeline.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/policy-timeline.md)
- [Party Policies](https://www.deported.co.uk/party-policies/) | [party-policies.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/party-policies.md)
- [2025 Annual Review](https://www.deported.co.uk/2025/) | [2025.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/2025.md)
- [2024 Annual Review](https://www.deported.co.uk/2024/) | [2024.md](https://www.deported.co.uk/2024.md)

- [llms.txt](https://www.deported.co.uk/llms.txt) | [sitemap.xml](https://www.deported.co.uk/sitemap.xml)

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