Unaccompanied minor asylum seeker
You are considered an unaccompanied minor asylum seeker if you are a foreign national, under the age of 18, who arrives in Denmark and applies for asylum without your parents or other adults who can be considered to have taken the place of your parents.
Questions and answers
Any unaccompanied minor foreign national in Denmark can submit an application for asylum. You can apply for asylum regardless of whether you entered Denmark illegally or if you have a residence permit or visa.
You can only apply for asylum if you are in Denmark.
If you are in a country other than Denmark, you cannot apply for asylum in Denmark. This includes requests made in person at a Danish diplomatic mission (embassy or consulate) or by writing to the Immigration Service, the police or the Ministry of Immigration and Integration.
You will normally need to meet the same requirements as other asylum seekers in order to be granted asylum in Denmark. Read more about the requirements for asylum
Because unaccompanied minor asylum seekers are considered to be a particularly vulnerable group, special guidelines for processing these types of applications have been drawn up. This means that your application will be processed quickly, and that you will be housed in special asylum centres with specially trained staff. You will also be assigned a personal representative who can support and counsel you.
Read more about special rights of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers
If you are not mature enough for your application to be processed
The Immigration Service will determine whether you are mature enough to go through the asylum application process. If the Immigration Service finds that you are not mature enough, you can in certain situations be granted a residence permit without your application for asylum being processed.
If this is the case, it is a requirement that you do not have a family network in your home country and returning you would leave you to fend for yourself, since you would not have access to public services or the like. Information about your health and need for special care and assistance, as well as the general situation in your home country, such as war, will be considered when evaluating whether you can be returned to your country of origin.
Furthermore, it is also a requirement that you would not have access to a reception or care centre in your home country.
In these cases, a residence permit will be granted under the terms of Aliens Act, section 9 c (3) (i).
If you are rejected asylum
If you are deemed sufficiently mature to go through the application process, and your application is subsequently refused, you can be granted a residence permit if you do not have a family network in your home country and returning you would leave you to fend for yourself, since you would not have access to public services or the like.
Furthermore, it is also a requirement that you would not have access to a reception or care centre in your home country.
In these cases, a residence permit will be granted under Aliens Act, section 9 c (3) (ii).
How you can apply for asylum depends on whether you have a residence permit in Denmark.
If you do not have a residence permit, you can apply for asylum by showing up in person at a police station in Denmark or at the police in Centre Sandholm.
If you already have a residence permit (on other grounds than asylum) in Denmark, you can apply for asylum by showing up in person at the police in the district where you live.
Denmark is divided into 12 police districts (ex the police in Greenland and the police in the Faroe Islands). See more at the police’ website
If you live in the police district of Nordsjælland which means one of the following municipalities: Allerød, Egedal, Fredensborg, Frederikssund, Furesø, Gentofte, Gribskov, Halsnæs, Helsingør, Hillerød, Hørsholm, Lyngby-Taarbæk, Rudersdal, you must be registered at the police in Centre Sandholm.
If you live in another police district than Nordsjælland we recommend that you contact your local police station before you show up in person, because not all police stations are capable of doing an asylum registration.
You can be granted two different types of residence permits as an unaccompanied minor.
Residence permit on the grounds of asylum
If you are granted asylum, your residence permit will be temporary. Depending on your situation, your residence permit will be valid for between one and two years. Before your residence permit expires, the Danish Immigration Service will automatically decide whether your residence permit can be extended.
If you are over 18, you can be granted a permanent residence permit if you meet the requirements.
If you are under 18, or if you do not meet the requirements for a permanent residence permit, you can apply for an extension of your residence permit, if you still meet the requirements.
Residence permit as an unaccompanied minor
If you are granted a residence permit as an unaccompanied minor under the terms of Aliens Act section 9 c (3) (ii), your residence permit, if you are under 15, will remain valid until you turn 15, with a minimum validity period of one year. If are over 15, your residence permit will be extended for one year at a time.
Your residence permit can continue to be extended until you turn 18, if you continue to meet the requirements.
Your residence permit will always expire when you turn 18. After this point, you will normally have to leave Denmark.
Under very special conditions, it is possible, exceptionally, to grant a residence permit after you turn 18, cf. Aliens Act section 9 c (1).
Residence permit as an unaccompanied minor not mature enough to go through the application process
If you are under 15 and are granted a residence permit as an unaccompanied minor who is not mature enough to go through the application process under the terms of Aliens Act section 9 c (3) (i), your residence permit will remain valid until you turn 15, with a minimum validity period of one year. If you are over 15, your residence permit will be extended for one year at a time.
When you apply to have your residence permit extended, the Immigration Service will consider whether you are mature enough to go through the asylum application process. If this is the case, your application for asylum will be processed. If you are not mature enough to go through the asylum application process, your residence permit can be extended for a year, if you still meet the requirements.
An evaluation of your maturity level will be carried out again the next time you apply for an extension. When you turn 18, your residence permit will expire and you will not qualify for an extension. However, you cannot be deported until a decision about your application for asylum has been made.
Under very special conditions, it is possible, exceptionally, to grant a residence permit after you turn 18, cf. Aliens Act section 9 c (1).