Good practices in family reunification for unaccompanied and separated children and adolescents

International law recognises that unaccompanied and separated children are entitled to special protection, care and assistance because of the distinct and significant protection risks they face in the forced migration context. These special protections include the obligation to facilitate family reunification procedures for UASC as a matter of priority in accordance with the principle of the best interests of the child. Family reunification pathways play a critical role in addressing the most fundamental protection needs of refugee children and families, enabling them to access safety, security and stability in third countries. However, many of these pathways are not designed to reflect the lived realities of UASC. 

Administrative and legal barriers—such as strict documentation requirements, narrow definitions of family, and procedural delays—often impede access and undermine timely reunification. Despite existing constraints, family reunification remains the most critical pathway for supporting third-country solutions for unaccompanied and separated children and often the only protection pathway available to them. In the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR), States committed to expand and facilitate access to family reunification procedures as a critical third country solution and complementary pathway for refugees and other beneficiaries of international protection. Promoting promising practices in family reunification for UASC can serve as a foundation for strengthening and expanding pathways for UASC globally.

This mapping has been prepared by the FRUN Working Group on UASC to highlight promising laws, policies and practices relevant to family reunification for unaccompanied and separated refugee children and other children in need of international protection. The mapping aims to raise awareness of current legal, administrative, and programmatic barriers as well as highlight a range of promising practices that enable unaccompanied and separated children to reunite with parents or other caregivers across borders. The mapping is intended to inform efforts to strengthen, adapt, and expand family reunification pathways for UASC in line with child-centred, protection-driven, and rights-based approaches