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63 300 unaccompanied minors among asylum seekers in 2016

May 12, 2017 | News

(11 May 2017) – In 2016, 63 300 asylum seekers applying for international protection in the Member States of the European Union were considered to be unaccompanied minors.

Refugees
© Freedom House

Their number was down by about a third compared with 2015 (with almost 96 500 unaccompanied minors registered) but still about 5 times higher than the annual average during the period 2008-2013 (around 12 000 per year).

A substantial majority of unaccompanied minors were males (89%) and over two-thirds were aged 16 to 17 (68%, or about 43 300 persons), while those aged 14 to 15 accounted for 21% (around 13 500 persons) and those aged less than 14 for 10% (almost 6 300 persons).

More than a third (38%) of asylum applicants considered to be unaccompanied minors in the EU in 2016 were Afghans and about a fifth (19%) Syrians. Six in ten applied for asylum in Germany.

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