13/03/2014 Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons
The Migration Committee today called for the establishment of a transition status for unaccompanied migrant children reaching the age of majority, and for them to continue to be granted, during the transition phase, the most elementary rights. This transition category, which could cover persons between the ages of 18 and 25, should be accompanied by political measures geared to welfare assistance and education, extensions of housing assistance and access to health care, according to the report by Mailis Reps (Estonia, ALDE), adopted by the committee. Some member States, such as France, Hungary, Ireland, Spain and the United Kingdom already provide alternative care and support solutions.
The committee also recommends that the competent authorities give young migrants the benefit of the doubt when assessing their age, as there is at present no legal instrument for this purpose.
This report will be debated at the meeting of the PACE Standing Committee in Baku on 23 May.