Which Countries Do Not Extradite to United Kingdom
Extradition to the United Kingdom rests on bilateral treaties and on the statutory scheme that designates which states may request surrender at all. Where a state falls outside that scheme, there is generally no route by which a person can be extradited to it — but that says nothing about whether an alert circulates, or about what an immigration authority may do instead.
An Interpol alert reaches every member country’s bureau regardless of any treaty. What the absence of a treaty removes is the formal route by which surrender could follow — not the alert, and not its effect on borders, banking and visas.
How extradition to United Kingdom is governed
The Extradition Act 2003 divides the world into two categories: Part 1 territories, where requests run through a streamlined arrest-warrant procedure, and Part 2 territories, which are designated by order and generally require a treaty. A country in neither category cannot ordinarily make an extradition request to the UK at all.
Requests are heard at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, and the statutory bars — passage of time, extraneous considerations, human rights, forum — are argued there rather than before any international body.
Whether surrender is available at all is one question; whether the data behind the request should be in the Organization’s files is another, and it is decided elsewhere — red notice defence solicitors.
Countries the United Kingdom cannot ordinarily extradite to
The United Kingdom extradites only to territories designated under the Extradition Act 2003 — Part 1 territories, which use the surrender procedure, and Part 2 territories, which are named by order. A state that appears in neither cannot ordinarily make an extradition request at all, whatever an alert says.
| Country | Status | Practical position |
|---|---|---|
| China (mainland) | Not designated | No extradition route; cooperation, where it happens, is informal |
| Hong Kong SAR | Removed | Was a designated territory; the arrangement was suspended in July 2020 |
| Saudi Arabia | Not designated | No treaty and no designation; requests cannot be processed as extradition |
| Qatar | Not designated | No designation, unlike neighbouring Kuwait and the UAE, which are designated |
| Bahrain | Not designated | No extradition relationship in force |
| Oman | Not designated | No extradition relationship in force |
| Egypt | Not designated | No designation; removal on immigration grounds is a separate question |
| Pakistan | Not designated | Commonwealth membership does not by itself create an extradition route |
| Indonesia | Not designated | No treaty and no designation |
| Vietnam | Not designated | No treaty and no designation |
| Belarus | Not designated | No extradition relationship in force |
| Iran | Not designated | No extradition relationship in force |
Two entries on this list are worth reading carefully. Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates are designated, so the Gulf is not a single position — the answer differs from state to state. And the Russian Federation remains formally designated even though cooperation has not operated in practice for years, which is why formal status and practical reality have to be checked separately.
Sources: Extradition Act 2003 (Designation of Part 2 Territories) Order 2003, as amended — legislation.gov.uk, revised text current to 26 November 2025; extradition treaty list published by the Home Office and FCDO, updated 18 June 2026. The position is checked by counsel before it is relied on in a case.
What no treaty actually changes
- Court process
- With a treaty, surrender normally runs through a court that can be argued in. Without one, the route is administrative.
- Dual criminality
- Treaties usually require the conduct to be an offence in both states. No treaty means no such filter.
- Political offence bar
- Most treaties exclude political offences. That protection disappears with the treaty.
- Immigration removal
- Deportation is not extradition and is not governed by the treaty at all.
- The alert itself
- Circulates independently, and is not deleted by any treaty position.
What the alert does in the meantime: what an alert does at borders, in banking and in immigration status.
Frequently asked
Does United Kingdom act on a red notice from a country it has no treaty with?
The alert is received either way. Whether anything follows depends on domestic law, and without a treaty the formal surrender route is usually unavailable.
Can immigration powers be used instead of extradition?
In many jurisdictions yes, and they generally move faster and carry fewer procedural protections than an extradition hearing.
Does the treaty position affect the alert itself?
No. Deleting the data requires an application to the Commission, and the treaty position is irrelevant to it.