Judge Accuses Home Office of AI Hallucinations in Asylum Case

A senior judge has accused the Home Office of using information that may have been generated by artificial intelligence to refuse an asylum claim. The case involves a Moroccan woman and her child who sought refuge in the UK, fearing violence from her husband. The Home Office had rejected her application, citing a country policy information note (CPIN) that purportedly confirmed Morocco as a safe country for her return.

Non-Existent Document Cited

The upper tribunal judge stated that the specific CPIN document, which was relied upon by a lower court to reject the woman's initial appeal, could not be found. The Home Office's own country policy and information team was also unable to confirm its existence. The judge noted that the reference to the document in the Home Office's refusal letter bore characteristics consistent with an AI "hallucination," describing the reliance on a non-existent document as "analogous to relying on bogus evidence."

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Following inquiries, the Home Office provided a different internal document, a country information note (CIN), which was not disclosed during earlier legal proceedings. This internal guidance does not establish Morocco as safe for women in the claimant's situation. It highlights that Moroccan law does not explicitly criminalise marital rape and notes that women reporting such acts could face accusations of sex outside marriage if disbelieved.

Home Office Response

A spokesperson for the Home Office stated that asylum claims are evaluated on their individual merits and based on the most current evidence. The department is committed to reviewing its asylum system to ensure that only those genuinely in need receive protection. The woman's case is ongoing.

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