FORTY per cent of Channel boat migrants who have claimed to be kids were actually found to be adults when challenged.
The shock statistic shows the extent some will go to in a bid to cheat the asylum system.
Among them were 1,305 from Afghanistan caught lying about their age to get special protection here.
Many are thought to have destroyed their identity documents before arriving in Britain.
Child refugees cannot be deported and must be given the same level of healthcare, education and sustenance as British children in care.
Home Office figures obtained by The Sun on Sunday show that from mid-2022 to June 2024, 11,449 age disputes were raised by UK Border Force staff.
Some 8,791 were resolved with 3,570 — 40 per cent — having lied about being under 18.
Last year, 56 per cent of disputes involved migrants claiming to be kids being identified as adults.
Over the two-year period, 1,305 caught lying were from Afghanistan, while Sudan was second with 571.
And 355 Iranians, 325 Eritreans and 318 Vietnamese asylum seekers were caught out pretending to be kids.
Last week, a report by the borders inspector David Bolt found immigration staff show a “lack of curiosity” about the real age of Channel migrants.
In one case, an Iranian with grey hairs and stubble was accepted as 17.
AI age assessment tech is to be rolled out next year.
Former Tory minister Sir Alec Shelbrooke blasted: “These figures show the scale of soft touch Britain.”
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “Robust age assessments for illegal migrants are vital to maintaining border security.
“We will start to modernise that process in the coming months through the testing of fast and effective AI Age Estimation technology at key Border Force locations, with a view to fully integrate Facial Age Estimation into the current age assessment system over the course of 2026.”
A male migrant suffered a fatal cardiac arrest on a boat which launched from Equihen-Plage in northern France yesterday morning.
PAForty per cent of Channel boat migrants who have claimed to be kids were actually found to be adults when challenged[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
