On Wednesday (January 7) an Afghan teenage migrant appeared at Margate Magistrate’s Court in the UK, charged with endangering others during a sea crossing to the UK. Aman N. pleaded guilty to the offense.

A Dari interpreter was provided for the court hearing and Aman N. was remanded in custody to appear at Canterbury Crown Court, also in Kent on Friday (January 9). Although he only spoke to confirm his name and date of birth, Aman N. also added in court that he was "forced" to pilot the boat, reported the private radio station LBC.

A prosecutor in the case said in court that they believe Aman N. piloted a boat across the Channel, reported BBC. Julie Farbrace, the prosecutor, was quoted as saying: "There were 46 other people on that boat and that by piloting the boat he put them in danger."

Read AlsoUK: Migrants sentenced for smuggling but boats keep coming

New law

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has confirmed that Aman N. is the first person to be charged with this particular offense under the new law, which came into force on January 5. The law is part of a range of measures introduced by the Labour government to try and limit the number of migrants attempting to cross the Channel in small boats.

Following the initial hearing, District Judge Archie Mackay said that "the harm that was risked [during the crossing] was potential fatalities," reported LBC.

The measures have been gathered together under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act which was passed into law in December.

The British Home Office (Interior Ministry) told the BBC that the new offense would be used to charge those they believed endangered others during a sea crossing and was also designed to stop more people from being crammed into unsafe boats. They said they would apply the law to anyone involved in physical aggression and intimidation, as well as anyone who resists rescue.

When this particular offense was announced a year ago, Home Office sources told the BBC that they hoped it would be able to stop what they described as "floating crime scenes," where they believed some of those on board the boats acted in such a reckless manner that people died on board either through being crushed, or by falling in the water and drowning.

Those found guilty of the offense could face up to six years in prison.

Read AlsoUK: Young migrant jailed in first 'boat pilot' manslaughter conviction

Previous prosecutions

Before this law came into effect, a few other migrants have been prosecuted for piloting small boats towards the UK. Organizations who work with migrants often point out during these cases that often those seen to be piloting the boats are not directly part of the smuggling organizations, but often just the poorest migrants who perhaps got a cheaper crossing if they agreed to steer a boat.

In some cases, those who steer the boats might have previous sea-faring experience, and perhaps have worked in fishing, or have grown up near the sea. In other cases, they have claimed in court that they were forced, sometimes at gunpoint to pilot the boat, or they took over when things got difficult to try and save themselves and everyone else on board.

In 2025, more than 41,000 migrants crossed the Channel and reached the UK. This was the second highest tally on record, topped only by the number of crossings in 2022.

According to French and British sources, at least 29 people died trying to cross the Channel during 2025, reported the French news agency Agence France Presse (AFP).

On Wednesday, Britain’s Migration Minister Mike Tapp said the new measures were aimed at "restoring order and control to our borders by cracking down on the people smugglers behind these unacceptable small boat crossings."

Tapp said in a statement he hoped the new measures, including the law regarding endangering life at sea, would allow British law enforcement to "disrupt and dismantle suspected people smugglers faster."

Read AlsoUK: Senegalese migrant who steered boat across Channel convicted of manslaughter