Abstract

Unaccompanied children seeking international protection face significant legal challenges, often trapped in a state of uncertainty due to their precarious legal status. This uncertainty stems from time-limited permits, prolonged delays in adjudication and insufficient legal and policy frameworks. The lack of secure legal status frequently impedes their access to essential services, such as education, healthcare and gainful employment, as they transition into adulthood. It also leaves them vulnerable to exploitation, abuse, neglect and statelessness. In South Africa, unaccompanied minors often find themselves caught between national security concerns and the protection of children’s rights, as the state attempts to balance safeguarding its citizens and resources while ensuring the protection of vulnerable foreign children. This contribution argues that legislative and administrative gaps, compounded by a rigid migration control discourse, trap unaccompanied minors in a legal limbo, preventing them from accessing the protection they require. Through the lens of South Africa’s constitutional commitment to children’s rights under section 28 of the Constitution, the contribution advocates a child-rights-based approach, urging the adoption of expedited, child-sensitive procedures and the creation of secure pathways to a durable legal status for unaccompanied children living in the country.