Unaccompanied Minors in Belgium (EMN)
Who are the unaccompanied minors (UMAs) in Belgium? What motivates them to enter and stay in the country? What are the policies on reception, return and integration developed for UMAs in Belgium? This study addresses such questions and contains statistical information on the subject.
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About the study:
On average some 1,800 unaccompanied minors are registered each year in Belgium by the Guardianship Service. The majority of them do not apply for asylum and are intercepted by the police. Belgium is used as a transit country to the United Kingdom or Scandinavia. Street children wandering across Europe decide to stay in Belgium or they belong to the Roma community and travel. The identification of the minor, the determination of its age, the assignement of a tutor, the selection of a reception facility and various issues related to disappearances and return pose many challenges addressed in this study.
This study is available in English, French and Dutch.
Auteurs: The Belgian Contact Point of the European Migration Network