The summary maps the specific provisions concerning separated migrant children in the legislation of the Member States, including the possibility for the accompanying adult to be recognised as responsible for, or as the representative of, the accompanied separated child. It also covers the arrangements in place to preserve the relationship between the separated child and the accompanying adult, as well as the monitoring of separated children.
In the EU migration and asylum context, separated children are those migrant children who arrive on EU territory accompanied by adults other than their parents or legal guardians, for example, relatives, or non-related but known adults who do not have established rights to care for and represent them. Separated children are in a different situation from the “classic” unaccompanied minors, who arrive in the EU territory not accompanied by any adult to care for them. However, when the adults accompanying these children and caring for them do not have recognised representation powers under the law of the EU Member State of their practice, they are legally considered as unaccompanied minors for the purpose of EU asylum law.
In the context of preparations for the entry into force of the Pact legislation, the Commission aimed to obtain updated and comparable information about the specific category of unaccompanied children, namely the separated children, and about the way in which their protection needs are addressed in the Member States. The way in which the relationship between the separated children and the accompanying adults is handled has important implications for the reception conditions, procedural guarantees and assistance within the various types of asylum procedure.