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Chapter 5 | Age Disputes
5.1 Policy and Procedures for
Determining Age
There is written policy on how to assess the
age of an unaccompanied or separated child
but the terminology is imprecise and open
to individual interpretation. Up until 30 August 2005,
Immigration Officers were just advised:
[W]hen an unaccompanied [or separated] child applies
for asylum at a port of entry or a local enforcement
office but his or her appearance strongly suggests...
that he or she is over eighteen years old, it is the
Immigration Service’s policy to treat him or her as
an adult until there is credible documentary evidence
or a full age assessment from a local authority social
services department to demonstrate that he or she is
the age he or she claims to be. 10
They were also advised that this policy must be
applied robustly. In borderline cases, the unaccompanied
or separated child was supposed to be given
the benefit of the doubt. However there is little evidence
that this ever happened. The guidance 11 was
later somewhat strengthened and the instructions
were that “a claimant must be given the benefit of
the doubt with regards to their age unless their
physical appearance strongly suggests that they are
aged eighteen or over” (emphasis added). However,
the Refugee Council’s Children’s Panel has not
reported any decrease in the number of unaccompanied
or separated children being age disputed
since that new guidance.
A significant number of unaccompanied or
separated children and legal representatives report
a persistent refusal by the Immigration Service and
Immigration and Nationality Directorate to accept
documentary evidence of age. It does not seek
expert assistance to verify or challenge contested
documents. Since August 2005 the Home Office has
accepted as sufficient proof of age an original and
genuine passport, travel document, or national identity
card showing a claimant as under 18 at the time
of the application. 12 However, photocopies or faxed
copies of these documents are not accepted. This
change in policy is helpful but problems still arise as
the Immigration and Nationality Directorate usually
retain the original document submitted and only
return a photocopy to the child. This can make it
difficult for the child or legal representative to challenge
subsequent assertions that the original document
was not genuine.
It is also Home Office policy to accept an original
and genuine birth certificate as sufficient proof
of age. 13 However, there is no evidence that this happened
in practice and the Process Manual notes that
“caution should be exercised because birth certificates
in some countries are readily obtainable and
these documents may not necessarily have been legitimately
issued or obtained.” Immigration officers are
advised to consult the relevant Country Report for
country specific guidance on birth certificates.
“An Albanian age disputed child at Oakington
Reception Centre was told that the original of his
birth certificate was not being accepted because
Albanian documents were often forgeries.” 14
“Y” had fled from Chad after being imprisoned
on account of his father’s political involvement
with an opposition party. He claimed asylum on
the day of his arrival. He reported becoming very
upset when immigration staff were rude and kept
laughing at him when he showed them his birth
certificate and said that he was 16. 15
According to an interviewed solicitor, 16 the London
Asylum Screening Unit’s approach to age assessment
was very troubling. She had heard stories of case
workers calling over their colleagues and standing
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