The UK benefits more than £ 5 million by charging children who fled war-torn Syria to apply for British citizenship. The government has been accused of exploiting the conditions of vulnerable children and making an unexpected profit by increasing the burden on vulnerable families.

According to participants in a campaign for the benefit of refugees, the government receives money whether or not the applications of Syrian children are accepted. If rejected, the funds will not be returned to the applicants. If children apply for citizenship, they must pay the fees again. The director of the International Observatory for Human Rights, Valerie Bay, has called for an end to "the practice of profit from vulnerable children." The UK is charged 10 times more than any other European country for a child's citizenship fee, more than £ 1,000 for a child, £ 19.20 for vital information and an additional charge of £ 80 if the person is 18 years old during the filing process the demand.

Fees have risen by 51% in the past five years, during the period when the Teresa Mai Ministry of the Interior began a "hostile" policy to reduce immigration. "Unlike any other country in the European Union, the British government has chosen to raise £ 640 for every child entitled to apply for British citizenship," says Bai. "These fees put great pressure on families. It would not be right for a family of three children to pay £ 5448 to try to secure a secure future for them, with no guarantee at the end of the process.

"Instead of pushing families into the debt problem, we call on the government to stop this practice and join the rest of the EU in its approach to humanitarian support," says Bai.

Children who have arrived in the UK since January 2014 can not apply for citizenship because they have to wait for six years, without obtaining most of the benefits, before they can apply for citizenship. But next year, the first arrivals will be able to register. "As this flow of demand approaches, the Ministry of the Interior is well prepared for the profits it is making in this process," Bai said. "These figures are contradictory and hypothetical, since it is not compulsory to apply for citizenship to live, study and work in the UK," said an Interior Ministry spokesman, who declined to be named. "There is no fee to apply for a settlement As a refugee or as a person granted humanitarian protection. "

"Without nationality, the person does not have the right to vote," Bay said. "International students must be paid for continuing education without access to study loans."

• It is not compulsory to apply for citizenship to live, study and work in the UK.