Collaborative on Global Children's Issues

Despite the increased number of migrant children arriving in Mexico, few have applied for asylum. In 2021, migrant children and adolescents made up 25% of all Mexican migrant apprehensions; during this period, only 41% of them applied for asylum in Mexico. COMAR received only 1,281 asylum applications from unaccompanied children, accounting for 0.9% of the total share of all asylum applications in that period. During that same period, unaccompanied children were 5% of all apprehensions, suggesting they are disproportionately unlikely to apply for asylum. Several reasons may explain such low asylum application rates. First, some children may opt not to request asylum in Mexico because they want to join family members in the United States. Second, the lack of access to legal counsel while in CAS facilities and inadequate screenings for immigration relief by authorities may also contribute to low asylum requests. Third, according to MPI interviews of international organizations and Mexican civil society organizations, Mexican authorities are prioritizing the assisted return of children to their countries of origin rather than providing them transparent guidance on their right to seek asylum in the country. Moreover, some children who requested asylum in Mexico have attempted to escape DIF facilities and abandon their legal procedures due to the lack of information regarding the timeline of their procedure and restrictions on their freedom of movement.

For several years, civil society and international organizations have proposed alternatives to any form of detention—including immigration detention centers and CAS shelters—to uphold children's rights and preserve their sense of safety and protection. Since the implementation of the 2020 reforms UNICEF, Save the Children, and partners from civil society began piloting alternative community-based program models. Similar to the foster care system in the United States, the Foster Family Program is a temporary care initiative in which a volunteer family—previously identified, screened, and trained—hosts an unaccompanied child until a more durable solution is available. Foster families are responsible for covering the child's basic needs and contributing to their psychosocial and emotional development in a loving, respectful, and stimulating home environment. In the case of adolescents, foster families should also assist them in the development of a life plan to facilitate a smooth transition into young adulthood. Similarly, UNICEF has also recommended apartment-groups as a possible path to deinstitutionalization for older migrant children (ages 16 through 18) who are about to transition to adult life. In this model, fewer than eight children share an apartment under some, albeit limited, supervision by a DIF specialist who checks in with them daily and is reachable at all times.

These alternative solutions offer different approaches to addressing both the immigration and child protection needs of unaccompanied minors. For instance, migrant girls—who made up 43% of children and adolescent arrivals to Mexico in 2021—often experience sexual violence during the journey to Mexico or the United States and therefore need specialized psychological support to address their trauma. Central American Indigenous children would benefit from improved language access to information about their legal rights and placements with foster families who speak their languages. Unfortunately, these emerging alternatives to CAS facilities currently operate at a small scale, and most migrant children continue to reside in CAS facilities. To improve shelter conditions and increase capacity, DIF and its CAS facilities should receive more funding, along with oversight and clear accountability measures, to shift from detention-like practices to a less restrictive model that reflects the best interests of the child and the underlying intention of the 2020 legislative reforms.

In sum, the increased number of migrant children arriving in Mexico raises serious concerns about the resilience of Mexico’s immigration and child protection systems. A year after the enactment of the initially lauded reform which prohibits the detention of migrant children, available evidence suggests that there is still a long way ahead for its successful implementation. Currently, Mexican authorities continue to prioritize the repatriation of migrant children over their protection needs and rights to petition for asylum. And most migrant children in DIF custody continue to experience detention-like environments and treatment, with limited access to supportive care and legal services. As Mexico continues to receive a growing number of migrant children and adolescents, it will be critical to strengthen its immigration and child protection systems to successfully address the needs of this population. That means supporting government agencies as they increase their technical skills, human resources, and financial capacity to implement the 2020 law, strengthening partnerships with local and international organizations, and applying a strengths-based perspective to future policies and practices so that they reflect the experiences and voices of migrant children.

Andrea Tanco is a strategic advisor to the president and associate policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).

Maria Jesus Mora is a research assistant at the Migration Policy Institute’s Latin America Initiative.

Daniela Hall is a Demetrios G. Papademetriou young scholar at the Migration Policy Institute’s Latin America Initiative.