A senior judge has accused the Home Office of using "AI hallucinated" information to refuse an asylum claim, according to a decision made on 14 July. The case involves a Moroccan woman and her child who sought asylum due to fears for her life from her husband.
The Home Office refused the claim, citing a country policy information note (CPIN) which they stated confirmed Morocco would be safe. However, this document could not be found, and a judge in the upper tribunal stated, "It appears that no such CPIN has ever existed." The judge added that the Home Office's country policy and information team was unable to confirm its existence.
The judge noted that the Home Office's refusal letter bore "hallmarks consistent with the use of artificial intelligence," suggesting that references to the document might be an "AI 'hallucination'." He described relying on a non-existent document as "analogous to relying on bogus evidence" and a "procedural irregularity."
The Home Office later provided an unpublished internal guidance document, a country information note (CIN), after initially sending a link to an archive where the cited document was not found. This internal document, which was not disclosed to the court, does not conclude that Morocco is safe for the forcible return of women in similar circumstances.
A Home Office spokesperson stated that claims are always considered on their individual merits and based on the latest evidence. Home Office sources indicated they could provide additional information requested by the judge.