Guide: Minor & Alone
I am a minor and alone (that means not older than 17 years and without my parents in Germany)
Specific Rights for Minors without Family
You are not yet 18 years old and came to Germany alone – that means without your parents or other legal guardians? Then you are considered an unaccompanied minor and are entitled to appropriate support and care. That’s why it is very important that you state your true age as early as possible and also mention that you came without your parents.
Contact the youth welfare office (Jugendamt) in the district where you are currently staying. They will have a conversation with you and take you into “protective custody.” This means you will be placed in a facility for children or young people. You will be assigned a guardian who makes important decisions in your best interest. For example: whether you apply for asylum or another type of residence permit in Germany, where you will live, which school you will attend, and so on.
Important:
The youth welfare office must determine whether you are actually a minor.
If you do not have identification documents, your minority status will be assessed through what is called a “visual inspection.” This involves estimating your age based on your physical appearance (height, facial hair, facial features, etc.) and personal maturity to determine whether you are considered a minor or an adult.
A medical procedure to determine your age may also be conducted. This can include a physical examination, a dental check-up, and X-rays of the bones in your hand or collarbone. However, a medical examination may only be carried out with your consent.
Your Specific Rights
- Consideration of your child-specific reasons for fleeing
- Interview about your reasons for fleeing by a specially trained officer (special representative for unaccompanied minors)
- Generally protected from deportation until your 18th birthday
- Legal representation by a guardian
- Support from child and youth welfare services
- Living together with other young people or in a foster family
- Protection from violence, mistreatment, or exploitation
- Access to education
- Rest, leisure, and play
- And many more
Counselling Centres for Unaccompanied Minors
Contact with the youth welfare office:
https://jugendamt.org/jugendaemter-sachsen-anhalt/
Complaints office:
https://ombud-lsa.de/kinder_und_jugendliche/
Youth Migration Services:
Young people with a migration background can find relevant information and guidance on the JMD portal, which brings together around 500 youth migration services from various providers across Germany. On the homepage of the JMD portal, you can also find the local youth migration service using the search function.
Project SENSA:
At the Refugee Council of Saxony-Anhalt, with a focus on unaccompanied minor refugees
The collected information was compiled and provided by the SENSA project. The project is funded by the European Union (AMIF), co-funded by the state of Saxony-Anhalt, the Free State of Thuringia, and UN Refugee Aid.
