WHAT HAPPENED: An undercover investigation by Britain‘s public broadcaster, the BBC, has exposed immigration law firms and advisers charging thousands of dollars to assist migrants in fabricating asylum applications by falsely claiming to be homosexual. Migrants were coached to fabricate backstories, forge supporting documents, and even obtain fake medical records to help their claims.

DETAIL: The investigation revealed that one firm charged as much as $8,900 for a fabricated asylum claim, while others offered services ranging from $1,900 to $3,800 for producing fake evidence. Migrants were advised to falsely claim they were at risk of persecution in countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh, where homosexuality is criminalized. Some were instructed to feign depression or even claim to be HIV positive to secure favorable outcomes. One supposed LGBT asylum seeker event was found to have been attended largely by migrants who admitted they were not homosexual.

KEY QUOTE: “Nobody is a gay here. Not even one per cent are gay. Not even 0.01 percent are gay.” – attendee at an event for LGBT asylum seekers.

IMPACT: The findings highlight the exploitation of the British asylum system while exposing those who are profiting from it. The Home Office—roughly equivalent to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security—has claimed it will take action against those abusing the system.

 FLASHBACK: Authorities in Britain and other Western countries, such as Germany and the Netherlands, have previously identified patterns of asylum seekers falsely claiming persecution on the basis of sexual orientation or feigned religious conversions, particularly to Christianity, to strengthen their asylum cases. In some instances, migrants were reportedly coached on how to describe religious practices, memorize Bible passages, or demonstrate knowledge of LGBT culture to appear credible during asylum interviews.