Home Office

The Home Office, also formally referred to as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety, border security, immigration, passports, and civil registration, as well as policing and criminal justice in England and Wales only (not Scotland or Northern Ireland where it is devolved).

The department oversees key areas of domestic policy in England and Wales, including policing, drugs policy, counterterrorism, border security, and immigration. Bodies operating within or alongside the Home Office system include Border Force, UK Visas and Immigration, and the Security Service (MI5). It was formerly responsible for His Majesty's Prison Service and the National Probation Service, both of which were transferred to the Ministry of Justice.

The department is headed by the home secretary, one of the Great Offices of State. The office has been held by Shabana Mahmood since 5 September 2025, and the department is managed on a day-to-day basis by its permanent secretary.

The Home Office's expenditure, administration, and policy are scrutinised by the Home Affairs Select Committee.