Aspen card does not give asylum seekers £175 a week
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What was claimed
Every illegal immigrant receives a payment card loaded with £175, which is renewed weekly, in addition to free meals a day.
Our verdict
Payment cards currently worth £40.85 a week are given to eligible asylum seekers who cannot afford food. Those who receive free meals receive much less money.
A post being shared on Facebook includes a screenshot claiming that ‘every illegal immigrant’ receives a payment card ‘pre-loaded with £175.00 (renewed weekly by the Home Office)’. It also claims that this is ‘free spending money, on top of their 3 free meals a day’.
These claims are not correct.
It is true that some asylum seekers, some of whom may have entered the UK illegally, receive a payment card from the Home Office.
However, it is not true that every asylum seeker receives one, nor that they receive £175 each week (this is more like the monthly figure), nor that this money is provided in addition to free meals.
How the ‘Aspen’ card works
People seeking asylum are not a...
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