{ "id": "R43623", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R43623", "active": true, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com, University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 449222, "date": "2016-01-27", "retrieved": "2016-04-06T17:25:01.766023", "title": "Unaccompanied Alien Children\u2014Legal Issues: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions", "summary": "The beginning of FY2016 has seen an uptick in the number of alien minors apprehended at the U.S. border without a parent or legal guardian in comparison to the same time period in the prior year. This increase has prompted renewed questions regarding so-called unaccompanied alien children (UACs), many of which were previously raised in FY2013-FY2014, when a significant number of UACs were apprehended along the southern U.S. border.\nSome of these questions pertain to the numbers of children involved, their reasons for coming to the United States, and current and potential responses of the federal government and other entities to their arrival. Other questions concern the interpretation and interplay of various federal statutes and regulations, administrative and judicial decisions, and settlement agreements pertaining to alien minors. This report addresses the latter questions, providing general and relatively brief answers to 15 frequently asked questions regarding UACs.\nIn particular, some of the questions and answers in this report provide basic definitions and background information relevant to discussions of UACs, such as the legal definition of unaccompanied alien child; the difference between being a UAC and having Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) status; the terms and enforcement of the Flores settlement agreement; and why UACs encountered at a port of entry\u2014as some recent arrivals have been\u2014are not turned away on the grounds that they are inadmissible. Other questions and answers explore which federal agencies have primary responsibility for maintaining custody of alien children without immigration status; removal proceedings against such children; the release of alien minors from federal custody; the \u201cbest interest of the child\u201d standard; and whether UACs could obtain asylum due to gang violence in their home countries. Yet other questions and answers address whether UACs have a right to counsel at the government\u2019s expense; their ability under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations to have consular officials of their home country notified of their detention; and whether UACs are eligible for inclusion in the Obama Administration\u2019s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative. \nOther CRS reports address the pre-FY2015 surge in the number of UACs encountered at the U.S. border with Mexico, as well as how UACs who are apprehended by immigration officials are processed and treated. These include CRS Report R43599, Unaccompanied Alien Children: An Overview, by William A. Kandel and Lisa Seghetti; CRS Report R43628, Unaccompanied Alien Children: Potential Factors Contributing to Recent Immigration, coordinated by William A. Kandel; CRS Report R43734, Unaccompanied Alien Children: Demographics in Brief, by William A. Kandel and Austin Morris; CRS Insight IN10107, Unaccompanied Alien Children: A Processing Flow Chart, by Lisa Seghetti; and CRS Report R43664, Asylum Policies for Unaccompanied Children Compared with Expedited Removal Policies for Unauthorized Adults: In Brief, by Ruth Ellen Wasem. \nYet other CRS reports discuss the circumstances in foreign countries that some see as contributing to UACs\u2019 unauthorized migration to the United States. These include CRS Report R43702, Unaccompanied Children from Central America: Foreign Policy Considerations, coordinated by Peter J. Meyer; CRS Report R41731, Central America Regional Security Initiative: Background and Policy Issues for Congress, by Peter J. Meyer and Clare Ribando Seelke; CRS Report RL34112, Gangs in Central America, by Clare Ribando Seelke; CRS Report R43616, El Salvador: Background and U.S. Relations, by Clare Ribando Seelke; CRS Report R42580, Guatemala: Political, Security, and Socio-Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations, by Maureen Taft-Morales; and CRS Report RL34027, Honduras: Background and U.S. Relations, by Peter J. Meyer.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R43623", "sha1": "0ec2a97625958cd5010f4c224da0647b3370520b", "filename": "files/20160127_R43623_0ec2a97625958cd5010f4c224da0647b3370520b.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R43623", "sha1": "41e84a1eb91e911bd91b690c9260fe9747ccd51e", "filename": "files/20160127_R43623_41e84a1eb91e911bd91b690c9260fe9747ccd51e.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc462400/", "id": "R43623_2014Jul18", "date": "2014-07-18", "retrieved": "2014-12-05T09:57:41", "title": "Unaccompanied Alien Children--Legal Issues: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions", "summary": "This report addresses the questions regarding the number of children arriving at the United States southern border, their reasons for coming to the United States, and current and potential responses of the federal government and other entities to their arrival", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20140718_R43623_202aa318d853c55301c6d7ab109e72200810623d.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20140718_R43623_202aa318d853c55301c6d7ab109e72200810623d.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Immigration policy", "name": "Immigration policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Immigration law", "name": "Immigration law" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Children", "name": "Children" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Border patrols", "name": "Border patrols" } ] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc332955/", "id": "R43623_2014Jun27", "date": "2014-06-27", "retrieved": "2014-08-27T12:47:05", "title": "Unaccompanied Alien Children--Legal Issues: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions", "summary": "This report addresses the questions regarding the numbers of unaccompanied alien children involved, their reasons for coming to the United States, and current and potential responses of the federal government and other entities to their arrival.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20140627_R43623_8396d5051a90c89b26e7a6d042cb2b6722f9e074.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20140627_R43623_8396d5051a90c89b26e7a6d042cb2b6722f9e074.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Immigration policy", "name": "Immigration policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Immigration law", "name": "Immigration law" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Children", "name": "Children" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Border patrols", "name": "Border patrols" } ] } ], "topics": [ "Foreign Affairs" ] }