Minors under the age of 14 are not fingerprinted by the police, but they can still apply for asylum and be registered by the police.
Minors traveling with their family members
Minors who are traveling with their parent(s) or adult sibling(s) will not be separated from their family members, meaning that they will be accommodated in the same camp and will have the same legal status as their family. Their parent(s) or adult sibling(s) will apply for asylum on their behalf and there is no obligation for Asylum Office to organize an interview for the minor who is traveling with a legal guardian.
Minors who are traveling with relatives (like uncles or cousins) will be accommodated in the same camps, but they will be considered as an unaccompanied minors for the purpose of asylum procedure which means that they will have to attend the interview with the Asylum Office and will be assigned a legal guardian by the state.
Unaccompanied minors in Serbia
Every person under the age of 18, who is traveling alone or with friends, is considered as an unaccompanied minor. Unaccompanied minors are usually accommodated in camps which provide shelter only to minors, so there are no adults in the same camp. At the moment (January 2026), only the camp in Principovac provides shelter exclusively to unaccompanied minors. This camp is located next to the border with Croatia. Another camp on the south – in Bujanovac – provides shelter to families, including unaccompanied minors.
• Camp in Principovac is located at the address Principovac bb, 22243 Sot, location on the map ( 45°10’20.1”N, 19°20’46.4”E). The contact phone number for this camp is +381 64 8283 174. Camp in Bujanovac is located at the address Industrijska zona bb, 17520 Bujanovac, location on the map (42°26’49.8”N, 21°45’57.9”E). The contact phone number for this camp is +381 64 8283 145.
Unaccompanied minors can apply for asylum and will go through the same asylum procedure like adults, but they will be assigned a legal guardian by the state. A legal guardian is usually a social worker from the local Center for Social Welfare (Centar za socijalni rad) and this person will be present and provide support in all steps during the asylum procedure.
Unaccompanied minors who are granted refugee status have a right to family reunification, which means that they have a right to legally bring their parent(s) and underaged sibling(s) to Serbia. However, this procedure can be complicated and it can last for several years.
According to the law, whenever the police has an interaction with an unaccompanied minor, they should inform the social services, which should assign them a legal guardian. This does not always happen and unaccompanied minors are often treated in the same way as adults.
Right to education
All children under the age of 15 have the right to elementary education regardless of their status. Which means all children should have access to a school. In case this gets refused, try to get in contact with Asylum Protection Centre or any other human rights organizations.