UK Visitor Visa Rejections Reach Record High Among African Applicants

According to data from the UK Home Office visa outcomes, African applicants for visitor visas were rejected at a rate of 33.4% in 2025, making it the continent with the highest refusal rate among six regions.

This means that out of 521,431 visitor visa decisions involving African applicants during the year, 173,611 were refused. In contrast, European applicants had an issue rate of 88.4%, while Asian and American applicants had rates of 81.3% and 79.7% respectively.

The UK Home Office data also shows that Africa's refusal rate has been consistently high over the past two decades, with African applicants recording the lowest likelihood of securing a UK visitor visa in 18 out of 21 years since 2005.