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Government sources said they were planning to approach countries in the Western Balkans, including Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and North Macedonia.
Labour's plans to deport rejected asylum seekers to "camps" abroad have won the approval of the United Nations refugee agency, a move that could be a game-changer.
Last month Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, discussed the prospect of paying countries in the Balkans to take in Britain's rejected asylum seekers in a meeting with the head of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The government is drawing up proposals to open a series of centres overseas where migrants would be sent after they have been rejected for asylum in the UK and have exhausted all avenues of appeal.
A total of 9,099 migrants have crossed the Channel on 162 boats so far this year, 45 percent more than at this time last year and 81 percent more than in 2023. There have been 2,246 migrant crossings so far this month.
The RNLI said one migrant died while trying to cross the Channel along with more than 50 others on Friday, bringing the total number of deaths this year to at least six. An estimated 78 died trying to make the crossing last year, the most on record.
UNHCR has drafted its proposal for what return centers should look like to work effectively and meet its legal standards.
Government sources said the approval of the centers was vital given UNHCR's intervention in the High Court case against the Rwandan conservative government's scheme, which ultimately led to it being declared illegal.
The UNHCR document setting out "the need for effective return systems and the potential role of return centres" said it would offer support to countries such as Britain in putting arrangements in place as long as they do not conflict with UNHCR's mandate to protect refugees.
The centers will have to monitor the agreements to ensure that human rights standards are "credibly met."
The document said that each receiving country would have to grant temporary legal status to all transferred migrants and "adequate accommodation and reception arrangements would have to be provided in the third country upon arrival to ensure that needs are met, with the support of the sending country."
The ministers have not yet opened formal talks, but government sources said they were planning to reach out to countries in the Western Balkans, including Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and North Macedonia.
Britain will host a meeting of Western Balkan leaders in London in the fall, where illegal migration will top the agenda. The European Union announced last month that it was giving the green light to member states that want to pursue return centers.
A government source said UNHCR's support had given ministers a big boost to move forward with the plans.
"It could be a game changer because it will help give us the necessary legal cover against any legal challenges and it will also help us politically with our left-wing MPs who may have reservations ," the source said.
Another source added: “We are working on a range of solutions to tackle irregular migration, including working with countries across the EU and beyond on law enforcement cooperation to dismantle criminal smuggling gangs that profit from small boat crossings. Together with other countries, we are looking at how return centres can form part of our commitment to rebuilding trust in the immigration and asylum system that was left in complete disarray by the Tories. We are in contact with UNHCR and welcome their work in this area.”
At last month's meeting, Cooper also told Filippo Grandi, the UN high commissioner for refugees, that the government would not open new safe and legal resettlement routes for refugees until Britain fixed its "broken asylum system" and significantly reduced net migration.
Sir Keir Starmer has not set a target but said it should fall "significantly" from last year's figure of 728,000. He has sought to address the small boat crisis amid record numbers of arrivals this year.
The policy is likely to face legal challenges from human rights and refugee charities.
Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: "Returning people who have no right to be in the UK is an important part of a functioning asylum system, but we are concerned that the proposed return centres will be inefficient and a waste of public funds at a time of national hardship."
Labour's plans were criticised by the Conservatives, who accused the government of delaying the UK's departures scheme.
Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said: “ This shows that the removal of illegal immigrants to countries outside Europe is being considered by more and more countries. The UK could have led the world with our Rwanda removal scheme, but Labour cancelled it before it could get off the ground and now 2025 has seen record levels of illegal crossings. It is clear that a removal deterrent is needed to stop illegal immigration. The UNHCR seems to finally be realising this, as does the next German government. The only government going the other way is ours, because it is led by Keir Starmer, a poor advocate for human rights. ”/ Adapted from “ TheSundayTimes ”
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