The work of Nidos Working process in relation to UMA’s and Dublin

Introduction Speaker: Germa Lourens, guardian and Dublin official at Nidos Summary Nidos as the legal guardian for UMA’s in the Netherlands; Nidos’ role in Dublincases; Concrete cases; Conclusions and recommendations.

Nidos as the legal guardian One organization for guardianship for UMA’s in the Netherlands; Nidos is appointed as guardian by the Juvenile Court; Guardianship is immediately organized upon arrival of an UMA in the Netherlands; Nidos is a professional organization - all guardians have a Bachelor degree in Social Work

Head office in Utrecht; Seven regional offices; Five special teams.

Different guardianship measures Several measures: (temporary) guardianship for UMA’s; Provisional guardianship for children with parents; Family guardianship. These measures are laid down in the Dutch Civil Code.

Mission of the guardian The duty of the guardian is: Give the interest of the child the highest priority; Assisting an UMA towards independency; Intervene when the development of the child is threatened in any way.

Accommodation for UMA’s Foster family; (roughly 0 – 14 years); Process Reception Location (roughly > 14); Protected shelter (victims of trafficking).

Special attention for Dublin Why? Experiences of UMA’s in other EU MS; Nidos’ obligation to transfer the guardianship to another guardian based on the Dutch Civil Code.

Nidos’ role in Dublin-cases Obligation to transfer the guardianship (based on the Civil Code); Investigating the actual situation after a transfer (guardianship and accommodation); Sometimes resisting a transfer if there are no guarantees; “Dublin-pool” with lawyers and psychologists.

Family reunification under the Dublin Regulation Working closely together with the Dutch authorities (IND, unit Dublin); Role of Nidos in relation to UMA’s with family members elsewhere; Role of the IND in these cases; Nidos transfers the relevant information about the development of a child.

Concrete cases: Sixteen year old Afghan boy with a brother in Norway; One year old twins in Greece.

European project: “Dublin support for guardians” Project with France Terre D’Asile and Caritas Belgium; Aims to provide concrete information for guardians; Nidos provides with a helpdesk for guardians from other EU MS.

Observations so far Different interpretation of the judgment MA & others; Tracing (art 6-4 Dublin III); Individual assessment.

Challenges Little time for assessing the child’s best interest; No judicial review by radically decisions; No legal remedy by a rejection on a request based on 8-1 or 8-2 Dublin III; Dilemma’s in cases of reunification concerning minors with family members in EU MS like for example Italy.

Thank you for your attention !