The UK-Belgium Law Enforcement Cooperation Agreement, announced on 10 September 2026, lets police in both countries share intelligence autonomously, without prior judicial approval for certain exchanges. It targets migrant smuggling and wider organised crime.
The UK-Belgium Law Enforcement Cooperation Agreement (LECA) was signed by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin. The Home Office announced it on 10 September 2026.
Under the agreement, police officers in both countries can exchange intelligence autonomously and more quickly. The Home Office says this is intended to help identify, disrupt and dismantle organised criminal networks, including those involved in migrant smuggling.
The source says certain information exchanges previously needed judicial approval before intelligence could be shared. It describes this as causing delays at critical stages of investigations. The new agreement removes those barriers, so officers can share information autonomously.
The agreement is also intended to strengthen joint investigations and specialist training. These cover criminal activity linked to small boat crossings and wider organised crime, such as drugs and firearms smuggling.
The Home Office gives these figures on joint enforcement and related activity:
- Joint UK-Belgium enforcement activity has led to more than 50 arrests linked to migrant smuggling and over 40 vehicle seizures this year.
- Adem Savas was sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment and fined €400,000 in Belgium for supplying thousands of boats and engines to criminal networks involved in migrant smuggling across the English Channel. The conviction followed a joint investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Belgian authorities, after his arrest at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in November 2024.
- The number of NCA officers dedicated to organised immigration crime has risen from 276 at the start of 2025 to almost 800.
- Working with international partners, those officers have helped seize more than 1,100 boats and engines since the election.
The source does not give a date from which the agreement takes effect.
What this means for applicants
The announcement describes cooperation between UK and Belgian police on intelligence sharing. The source sets out no requirements for applicants, sponsors, employers or landlords.
Sources
- UK and Belgium strike deal to target small boat gangs, GOV.UK, 10 September 2026