Foreign nationals will be barred from living in social housing under Conservative plans revealed today.
In a bold move, the Tories have vowed to scrap tenancies for non-EU nationals already living in social housing – and to block all foreign citizens from taking out new tenancies.
Those affected would have six months to vacate the property – with their homes given to British families most in need of housing.
Changing these rules would see almost 230,000 houses freed up for British people to move into and help reduce the skyrocketing welfare bill, the party has said.
Shadow housing spokesman Sir James Cleverly said: ‘The people whose taxes paid for building social housing are now being sent to the back of the queue for it. Putting that right should not be controversial. Every home handed to someone who arrived last year is a home withheld from a family who has waited a decade on the list.
‘We will put British citizens first and stop spending taxpayers’ money on social housing for foreign nationals.’
The number of foreign nationals moving into British social housing has been steadily increasing. The share of new social homes given to non-EU nationals reached 11.3 per cent last year – increasing from 10.4 per cent in 2023 and 5.8 per cent in 2010, according to figures from the Centre for Policy Studies think-tank.
Pictured: Shadow Housing Secretary Sir James Cleverly. The Tories have vowed to scrap tenancies for non-EU nationals already living in social housing – and to block all foreign citizens from taking out new tenancies
New-build homes in Leeds. Certain local authorities also recorded disproportionately high numbers of non-EU nationals living in social homes
There are an estimated 470,000 non-UK and non-Irish citizens currently living in social housing.
And in 2025, according to the English Housing Survey, nearly 12 per cent of main householders – the person in whose name the social home is rented – were non-UK or Irish nationals.
Certain local authorities also recorded disproportionately high numbers of non-EU nationals living in social homes, with a third of social homes in Brent, north London, given to foreign citizens, more than a quarter in Leicester and more than one in five in Manchester.
Under the plans, the Conservatives would terminate existing social housing tenancies for foreign nationals from outside the European Union, and bar all non-British citizens from taking out new tenancies.
Any single person from outside the EU living in social housing – with or without children – would see their tenancies ended, as well as couples where both partners are non-EU citizens.
However, any couple where one partner is either a British, Irish or EU citizen would be able to stay.
The Conservatives estimate that 228,144 households would become ineligible for social housing under their proposal.
Reform UK’s home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf last night said: ‘The Tories are trying to copy Reform UK policy, but they still end up betraying their instincts to prioritise foreigners.
‘Incredibly, Kemi Badenoch’s new policy is to allow tens of thousands of foreign nationals from the EU to occupy British social housing funded by British taxpayers. Reform UK will ensure British social housing is strictly for British citizens.’
Leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage. Reform said in June it would ban foreign nationals from living in social housing, with tenants required to find private accommodation within three months or face possible deportation
Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe has also proposed barring non-British citizens from accessing Universal Credit, disability benefits and social housing
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Nigel Farage said in June Reform would ban foreign nationals from living in social housing, with tenants required to find private accommodation within three months or face possible deportation. Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe has also proposed barring non-British citizens from accessing Universal Credit, disability benefits and social housing.
Rob McNeil, deputy director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said the Tories’ proposal has ‘appeared in different forms for some time’.
He said: ‘If the policy is eventually implemented either by the current government or a future one, the impacts on British citizens’ access to social housing is likely to be small if responsibility for housing non-citizens at risk of homelessness simply shifts to temporary accommodation.’
Charities expressed anger at the plans. Sarah Elliott, of Shelter, said: ‘There are already strict rules on eligibility for social housing. These divisive plans would brutally kick people out of their homes. And let’s not forget that social tenants pay rent, which goes back to the public purse and into society.
‘It is completely senseless to ruin people’s lives, drive up homelessness and put extreme pressure on councils. This policy does nothing to deliver new social homes, which is what we desperately need.’
Under plans brought forward by the last Conservative government, foreign nationals must have lived in the UK for ten years before qualifying for social housing. But Labour scrapped the plans on taking power.
A Labour Party spokesman said of the Tory initiative: ‘This is an unserious, unworkable proposal, copied from Reform.
‘People without indefinite leave to remain are already ineligible for social housing, so this policy would primarily affect refugees and long-term UK residents who have contributed to this country but are not British citizens, including NHS staff.’
