Rwanda Sues UK, Demands £100m Compensation Over Scrapped Migrant Deal
Rwanda has formally taken the United Kingdom to court, seeking £100 million in compensation following the cancellation of the controversial Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP), a scheme designed to relocate asylum seekers from the UK to Rwanda.
The Rwandan government confirmed that it has initiated arbitration proceedings against the UK at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, accusing London of breaching a legally binding treaty and failing to honour key financial and resettlement commitments agreed under the deal.
According to Kigali, the dispute centres on two unpaid instalments of £50 million each, which were due in April 2025 and April 2026. Rwanda says these payments were confirmed through a binding exchange of diplomatic notes and were intended to support refugee hosting, infrastructure development, and economic integration programmes linked to the partnership.
The MEDP was originally signed in 2022 under the UK’s former Conservative government and came into force in April 2024. However, the deal was abruptly halted after a change of government in Britain, with the new Labour administration declaring the scheme “dead and buried” shortly after taking office in July 2024. Rwanda argues that this announcement was made without prior consultation and violated the spirit and terms of the agreement.
In a statement, Rwanda said it attempted diplomatic engagement for several months after the UK signalled it would no longer proceed with relocations under the scheme. Kigali also claims that London later asked Rwanda to forgo the outstanding payments in anticipation of formally terminating the treaty, an approach Rwanda says it was willing to consider only if new terms were negotiated. Those talks, however, failed to produce an agreement.
In a statement, Rwanda said it attempted diplomatic engagement for several months after the UK signalled it would no longer proceed with relocations under the scheme. Kigali also claims that London later asked Rwanda to forgo the outstanding payments in anticipation of formally terminating the treaty, an approach Rwanda says it was willing to consider only if new terms were negotiated. Those talks, however, failed to produce an agreement.
Beyond the financial dispute, Rwanda has also accused the UK of failing to meet another key obligation under the partnership — the commitment to resettle a portion of the most vulnerable refugees currently hosted in Rwanda. Kigali says the UK has made clear it has no intention of honouring that aspect of the deal.
Rwanda submitted its Notice of Arbitration in November 2025, formally triggering legal proceedings under Article 22 of the MEDP treaty. Shortly after Rwanda filed its response, the UK notified Kigali of its intention to terminate the agreement. Under the treaty’s terms, the termination is set to take effect on March 16, 2026, though Rwanda maintains that obligations accrued while the deal was in force remain legally payable.
The UK government has said it will contest the claim, arguing that the scheme was costly, ineffective, and delivered no meaningful results. British officials have previously stated that hundreds of millions of pounds were spent on the plan, while only a handful of migrants were ever relocated under the arrangement.
The case marks a new chapter in the highly contentious migration policy, which faced legal challenges, political opposition, and public scrutiny throughout its lifespan. The arbitration process is expected to determine whether the UK is legally required to pay the disputed £100 million and whether it breached other obligations under the now-terminated agreement.
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