The UK Home Office updated its transparency release on returns from the UK and illegal working enforcement activity on 8 October 2026, extending the published data to cover returns through 31 July 2026 and enforcement activity through 30 June 2026.

The statistical release, first published on 15 December 2024, provides an overview of the number of people returned from the UK and the government's ongoing effort to tackle illegal employment and the exploitation of vulnerable people in the country. The Home Office describes it as covering returns from the UK and illegal working activity.

What is new in the 8 October 2026 update?

The latest revision adds statistics on Northern Ireland enforcement activity covering the two-year window from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2026. The Home Office has also revised some previously published figures. It directs readers to the notes sections of two datasets — "Returns from the UK between 1 July 2024 and 31 July 2026" and "Returns from the UK between 1 December 2022 and 31 January 2026" — for full details of the changes.

Which datasets does the release cover?

The release has grown substantially since it first appeared. Its published components now include:

• Returns from the UK between 1 December 2022 and 31 January 2026
• Returns from the UK between 1 July 2024 and 31 July 2026
• A note on family returns from the UK between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2025
• Illegal working and enforcement activity to the end of December 2025, including a breakdown by illegal working sector
• Northern Ireland enforcement activity between 1 October 2022 and 31 May 2026
• Statistics on illegal working activity during the periods 14–17 November 2025 and 25–27 November 2025

What does the enforcement record show?

Beyond the headline datasets, the release documents specific enforcement operations. It records a weeklong intensification by Home Office Immigration Enforcement teams in the week of 20–26 July, targeting what the release describes as illegal working hotspots. It also covers disruptions under the marriage referral and investigation scheme between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2025.

Who is affected and why the release matters?

The data touches two groups: people returned from the UK, including families tracked in a dedicated note covering 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025, and employers and workers caught up in illegal working enforcement. The sector-level breakdown of illegal working activity to the end of December 2025 signals where enforcement attention has concentrated.

One correction is worth noting. The Home Office updated the "Illegal working activity since 5 July 2024" section to correct information about civil penalty notices, so readers relying on earlier versions should consult the current text. The Home Office also republished "returns from the UK and illegal working activity between 5 July and 7 December 2024" after that dataset had previously been published and then overwritten.

Where to find the figures?

All datasets sit on the Home Office's official transparency page, which lists every update since the release first appeared in December 2024. The Home Office, as the publishing authority, remains the definitive source for the underlying numbers, and the notes accompanying each dataset explain revisions in full.