A durable solution is understood as “a sustainable
solution that ensures that the unaccompanied or separated child is able to
develop into adulthood, in an environment which will meet his or her needs and
fulfil his or her rights as defined by the CRC and will not put the child at
risk of persecution or serious harm. Because the durable solution will have
fundamental long-term consequences for the unaccompanied or separated child, it
will be subject to a best interests determination. A durable solution also
ultimately allows the child to acquire, or to
re-acquire, the full protection of a state.”[1]
A durable solution is considered to comprise
three different options:
the child’s return and reintegration in the
country of origin;
the child’s integration in the country of
arrival, as a recognised refugee, by granting international protection or
other legal residence status; or
[1]United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, United Nations Children’s Fund, Safe
and Sound, What States can do to ensure respect for the best interests of
unaccompanied and separated children in Europe, 2014, p. 22.
[2]European
Commission, Action
Plan on Unaccompanied Minors (2010-2014), COM(2010)213 final, Brussels, 6
May 2010, p. 12.