Children's Claims

UNHCR has long recognized the specific protection needs of children in asylum procedures. Children might have independent claims to refugee status separate from those of their parents or other family members, in part due to the possibility that they may experience certain child-specific forms of persecution that could give rise to a distinct claim for protection. In addition, children have inherent vulnerabilities that mandate additional safeguards as they move through the asylum process.

UNHCR offers the following summary of its position on these topics as relevant to pursuing asylum in the United States:

• UNHCR’s Views on Child Asylum Claims: Using International Law to Support Claims of Children Seeking Protection in the United States (2022)

Key UNHCR Resources

For a discussion of substantive and procedural considerations relevant to child-specific asylum claims, including in the U.S. context, see:

• Guidelines on International Protection, Child Asylum Claims under Articles 1(A)2 and 1(F) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (2009)
• UNHCR Best Interests Procedure Guidelines: Assessing and Determining the Best Interests of the Child (2021)
• Amicus Brief, Marroquin-Perez v. Barr (2020)
• Amicus Brief, Grace v. Barr (2019) 
• Amicus Brief, Matter of O.L.B.D. (2019) 
• Amicus Brief, Mejilla-Romero v. Holder (2010)
• UNHCR Recommendations to Support the Work of the Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families (2022)

For a discussion of the reasons why children who flee Central America and Mexico may need international protection, see:

• Children on the Run: Unaccompanied Children Leaving Central America and Mexico and the Need for International Protection (2014)
• Uprooted (Arrancados de Raíz) (2014) 
• Guidance Note on Refugee Claims Relating to Victims of Organized Gangs (2010)

Additional Materials

• Refworld: Children
• Webinar by UNHCR, KIND, & The Young Center: Representing Children from Central America: Leveraging International Law to Strengthen Gang Based Asylum Claims (2017) (recording and slides)